Orphans &
Fox 9 Town Ball Tour
The tradition of amateur baseball is special across the state of
Minnesota. In Howard Lake, that’s no diff erent.
Memorial Park, home of the Howard Lake Orphans, was on
full display as the Orphans shared their fi eld and story with
the rest of the state as part of Fox 9’s 2019 Town Ball Tour this
past June.
A� er starting their tour last summer, Fox 9 hit the road once
again this summer to feature some of the top town ball parks in
the state. Memorial Park in Howard Lake was the third of seven
stops for Fox 9 this summer.
As part of the tour, Fox 9 broadcasted live from Memorial
Park as part of their normal broadcast. Following the game, Fox
9 broadcasted live once again.
The Howard Lake Orphans hosted the Cokato Kernels that
night. In a extra inning aff air, it was the Kernels who outlasted
the Orphans 7-4 in 15 innings.
Although the game didn’t start until 7 p.m., fans were invited
to come out to Memorial Park early to take in the atmosphere.
Admission to the game was free for everyone.
During Fox 9’s live broadcast, several people involved with the
Orphans organization were featured as part of the telecast.
Back in 2018, Orphans’ outfi elder Steve Boger was named
Fox 9’s Top Teacher. Boger’s kindergarden class was one of
the highlights featured by Fox 9 during their broadcast. Each
summer, Boger invites his students and their families to the
ballpark for a special day in which they get to run the bases.
Many of Boger’s students from the past few years were in
a� endance for the game.
Also being highlighted by Fox 9 was Mike and Wanda Gagnon.
The duo have helped lead the Orphans’ organization to where it
is today, and the Orphans took the chance to thank and express
their appreciation for their time and commitment to the team
over the past years. Mike and Wanda both retired last year, but
will always be a big part of the Orphans’ organization.
Other topics that Fox 9 dove into are long-time Orphans fans,
Howard Lake Mayor Peter Zimmerman, and the history of the
Orphans.
The Orphans boast one of the most unusual nicknames in
amateur baseball, and there’s certainly a story behind it. In the
1920s, Howard Lake had a team called the Blue Sox that lasted
until the 1930s. Town ball was discontinued during the World
War II era, ending the Blue Sox’s organization.
Under the leadership of Don Mitchell in 1947, baseball returned
to Howard Lake. Although they didn’t have a home fi eld, there
was baseball once again. One player mentioned that “we’re just a
bunch of orphans,” since they didn’t have a home fi eld and played
every game on the road. The name stuck, and the Howard Lake
amateur baseball team has been called the Orphans since.
Baseball was back in Howard Lake until the team disbanded
once again in the late 1960s. Flash forward to 1995, and the
Orphans came together once again. With a handful of players
from Howard Lake and Waverly, the Orphans were not only
back, but also tough to beat.
They made the state tournament in their fi rst year back,
which is very rare for fi rst-year teams. If that’s not enough,
the Orphans haven’t had a losing season since 1995, and have
qualifi ed for 11 of the last 13 state tournaments. They reached
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Fox 9 ’ s 2019 Town Ball Tour
Stop 1
Wednesday, June 5
St. Clair Wood Ducks at Arlington A’s
at Arlington Ball Park
Stop 2
Wednesday June 12
Wednesday,
Sauk Rapids Cyclones at Cold Spring Springers
at Cold Spring Baseball Park
Stop 3
Wednesday June 19
Wednesday,
Cokato Kernels at Howard Lake Orphans
at Memorial Park
Stop 4
Wednesday June 26
Wednesday,
Young America Cardinals at Glencoe Brewers
at Vollmer Field
Stop 5
Wednesday Ju ly 3
Wednesday,
St. Clair Wood Ducks at New Ulm Brewers
at Johnson Park
Stop 6
Wednesday Ju ly 10
Wednesday,
Wanamingo Jacks at Waseca Braves
at Tink Larson Field
Stop 7
Wednesday Ju ly 17
Wednesday,
Minnetonka Millers at Chanhassen Red Birds
at Red Bird Stadium
the Final Four in the Class C State Tournament twice in that
stretch.
In 2002, the Orphans became orphans once again as having
their fi eld located next to a lake can be tough sledding sometimes.
The fi eld was unplayable from June of 2002 until May of 2003,
following 16 inches of rain over a seven-day span. The entire
fi eld of Memorial Park became part of Howard Lake, forcing the
Orphans to play their games elsewhere.
When the fi eld dried up the following spring, fi sh carcases
were everywhere and ca� ails were growing in the outfi eld.
Over the years, several improvements have been made to
Memorial Park. Just last year, the Orphans added new bleachers
behind home plate in honor of Mike Mitchell and his family.
Mitchell was one of the pioneers of Orphans’ baseball.
OFFICIAL GUIDE TO HOWARD LAKE 2019-20