Owatonna Legion Baseball to Open Playoffs at Austin Tuesday

Owatonna American Legion Post 77 baseball team will open its postseason Tuesday against Austin at Marcuson Park with a 6PM start time.

Austin won the Division 1, First District title in 2015 and Owatonna coach Brian Price says they have most of that team assembled again this summer. On the other hand, Post 77 is playing with a short bench due to injuries and several high school varsity starters playing with the Owatonna VFW this summer.

Owatonna split a doubleheader at Winona on Friday while playing with 10 guys. Price says the playoff games are nine innings, which puts more pressure on a limited roster. He said Sunday that he was still evaluating his lineup and wasn't ready to name a starter. He also says its been a very quick season. The high school varsity team made it to the section finals, delaying the start of the Legion season and the playoffs start a week earlier than usual.

The Rochester Patriots are the top seed. Austin is second, followed by Albert Lea and the Rochester Red Hawks. Price says all of the top four are very good. Winona is the fifth seed. The Rochester A's are sixth. Owatonna, Waseca and Kasson round out the field. After Tuesday's games at the high seed, the tournament will be played out at Rochester Century High School.

In other Owatonna baseball news, the Aces amateur team topped Dodge County 5-3 on Sunday. The VFW plays their next game Wednesday against Red Wing.