Baseball: Brill Millers, Haugen Knights to begin season; Haugen Hornets won't field a team this summer

Baseball games for the Independent League teams Brill Millers and Haugen Knights will be starting soon.

Brill opens its season Wednesday night with a non-league game at the Eau Claire Bears, and the Millers are also at the Chippewa Falls Lumberjacks on May 15.

The Haugen Knights start their season Sunday in hosting the Bruce Belters.

This season the Haugen Hornets will not be fielding a team.

“We couldn’t get enough players to commit to being available for the season,” Hornets’ manager Paul Juza said. He added that some of their pitchers are pursuing opportunities in the Northwoods League this summer.

The Hornets began as a team in 1988 and played through the 2015 season. After three seasons without a team, the Hornets had returned to play in 2019.

Independent League action begins May 18 as the Millers host the Knights.

Last season Brill finished in second place in the Independent League with an 8-4 record. The Knights were 5-7 and the Hornets finished 1-11. The Millers and Knights each qualified for the WBA playoffs, with Brill reaching the state tournament.