The Minnetonka Monarchs led most of the way against the St. Louis Park Pirates in a Riverview Amateur Baseball League game July 15. However, the Pirates pulled out a victory 5-4 on a run-scoring double by center fielder Brady Burzynski in the bottom of the ninth.
Minnetonka pitcher Wyatt Nelson was dominant into the early and middle innings, but three errors led to four St. Louis Park runs. Michael Bohlke started on the mound for St. Louis Park and trailed 3-0 when he left the game in the sixth inning.
Nelson, a Hopkins High graduate and one of the best pitchers in Minnesota amateur baseball, had not given up an earned run all season going into the last of the ninth against Park. A single and a sacrifice bunt put the potential winning run on second base, then Burzynski blasted a double to right-center field to end the contest.
“I was just looking for something over the plate,” Burzynski said after the game. “Nelson is a great pitcher. Maybe he stayed out there an inning too long.”
David Cushing, Park’s winning pitcher, threw one scoreless inning in relief. Cushing is the only player who has been on both sides of the Park-Tonka rivalry. He was on state-champion Minnetonka teams and then won a state championship with Park in 2022.
“I was proud to play for Minnetonka, and I love the guys I’m with now,” Cushing said. “Some people were writing us off at the beginning of this season, but we just knocked off the quote-unquote best team in the state tonight.”
Cushing described the pitching style that his made him one of the elite relief pitchers in the state: “Everyone is aware that I like to throw the fastball in the zone. My slider was working pretty well this game.”
With the July 15 win, Park was alone atop the Riverview League standings and had a two-game lead over Minnetonka.
Most years, Minnetonka dominates Riverview League play. In the first 48 years of the franchise, Tonka won 30 league championships and 15 state championships as the Millers. The team nickname changed to Monarchs this season because former manager Kevin Hoy retired the Millers mantle.
Both Park and Minnetonka are retooling their rosters with younger players this summer. Of course, there are still members of the old guard on both rosters — Steve Schmitz, Joe Shallenberger, Mike Davis, Brandon Broxey, Blaine Rutledge and Paul Voelker for Minnetonka and Adam Seaman, Donald Blunt, Joe Pierce, Jake Mangler, Tony Manville, Austin Ledin, Chris Odegaard and Andy Davis for Park.
Jack Hanson, who hit a three-run double in the July 15 loss to Park, heads the new breed of star players for the Monarchs along with Nick Thimsen, Mason Nadolney, Jarod Wandersee and the star pitchers, Nelson and Sam Schlecht.
Burzynski, a center fielder throughout high school and college baseball, leads the new breed for Park. In his third season, he brings range on defense and quickness on the base paths. Other young stars on Park’s roster include Kris Hokenson, Jimmy Heck and Parker Johnson.
Burzynski feels that playing for the Park Pirates is like going to a baseball clinic every day. “I saw one ranking where we were third in the state,” he said. “I haven’t seen every team, but Minnetonka and Baseball 365 from our league are really good. We just have to focus on what we can do. The Pirates are a great group of guys — 20 of my closest friends. And they have a lot of baseball experience to share.
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