Thunder Bay Border Cats

Thunder Bay Border Cats

Information
League	Northwoods League
Location	Thunder Bay, Ontario
Ballpark	Port Arthur Stadium
Founded	2003^[1]
League championships	2 (2005, 2008)
Division championships	3 (2005, 2006, 2008)
Colors	Red, black
Mascot	Boomer
Manager	Mike Tallari

The Thunder Bay Border Cats are a baseball team that plays in the Northwoods League, a collegiate summer baseball league. The league's only Canadian team, their home games are played at Port Arthur Stadium in Thunder Bay, Ontario.

The Border Cats have been Northwoods League champions twice, defeating the Madison Mallards two games to one in both 2005 and 2008. They also were in the Northwoods League championship in 2006, but lost to the Rochester Honkers.^[2]

As of 2019, the Border Cats have sent six players to the major leagues. Matt Mangini was the first to make the jump, playing 11 games for the Seattle Mariners in 2011. Shortstop Jonathan Diaz followed two years later, playing four games with the Boston Red Sox in 2013. Diaz also spent time with the Toronto Blue Jays in 2014, almost making the team out of spring training. Pitcher Blaine Hardy became a regular in the Detroit Tigers bullpen in 2014. Seth Frankoff pitched in one game for the Chicago Cubs, while A.J. Schugel spent time with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Wes Parsons is currently with the Toronto Blue Jays in a relief role.

The Border Cats will not play their 2021 season due to "the ongoing uncertainty of the pandemic regarding the Canada-US border closure as well as outdoor gathering numbers".^[3] A travel team known as the Minnesota Mud Puppies, based in the Twin Cities region, will play the Border Cats' originally scheduled 36 road games during the 2021 season.^[4] The Border Cats were again left dormant for the 2022 season, with a return intended for the 2023 season.^[5]

2009 All-Star Game

The 2009 Northwoods League All-Star Game was held on July 21 in Thunder Bay. This was the first time the All-Star game played in Canada. The guest speaker for the event was Ferguson Jenkins, a Canadian member of the Baseball Hall of Fame. The game was won 4-2 by the South Division squad, led by the MVP performance of Kurtis Muller, who went 3-for-5.

Notable active alumni & those reaching AAA/Majors

Name	Position	Pro Affiliate	Level	League	Team	Status	Majors
Oney Guillen	INF	Chicago White Sox	AAA	International League	Charlotte	Not active	N
Zach Daeges	OF	Boston Red Sox	AAA	International League	Pawtucket Red Sox	Not active	N
Reid Mahon	RHP	Arizona Diamondbacks	AA	Southern League	Mobile	Not active	N
Matt Camp	OF	Chicago Cubs	AA	Southern League	Tennessee	Not active	N
Jonathan Diaz	INF	New York Yankees	AAA	International League	Scranton/Wilkes-Barre	Not active	2013-2015
Scot Drucker	RHP	--	IND	American Association	Grand Prairie	Not active	N
Marc Maddox	INF	Kansas City Royals	AAA	Pacific Coast League	Omaha	Not active	N
Matt Mangini	INF	Seattle Mariners	--	MLB	Seattle	Not active	2010
Eric Wordekemper	RHP	--	AAA	Mexican League	Olmecas de Tabasco	Not active	N
Craig Heyer	RHP	New York Yankees	AA	Eastern League	Trenton	Not active	N
Jon Mueller	RHP	Chicago Cubs	AAA	Pacific Coast League	Iowa	Not active	N
Chris Curley	INF	Chicago White Sox	AAA	International League	Charlotte	Not active	N
A.J. Schugel	RHP	Pittsburgh Pirates	--	MLB	Pittsburgh	Not active	2015-2017
Ryan Court	3B	Seattle Mariners	--	MLB	Seattle Mariners	Not active	2019
Matt Johnson	OF	Boston Red Sox	A	Carolina League	Salem	Not active	N
Blaine Hardy	RHP	Detroit Tigers	--	MLB	Detroit Tigers	Active	2014-2019
Jason Vosler	SS	Seattle Mariners	--	MLB	Tacoma	Active	2021-2023
Dan Rizzie	C	New York Mets	AAA	Northeast	Binghamton Rumble Ponies	Not active	N
Michael Papierski	C	Seattle Mariners	-	MLB	Seattle Mariners	Active	2022
Greg Weissert	RP	Boston Red Sox	AAA	International	Boston Red Sox	Active	2022-2023
Wes Parsons	RHP	Toronto Blue Jays	--	MLB	Toronto Blue Jays	Active	2018-2019, 2023
Seth Frankoff	LF	Arizona Diamondbacks	--	MLB	Arizona Diamondbacks	Active	2017, 2020-2021
Nate Nolan	C	Chicago White Sox	AAA	Triple A East	Charlotte Knights	Not active	N
Jacob Robson	OF	Detroit Tigers	-	International	Toledo Mudhens	Active	2021
Matthew Batten	2B	San Diego Padres	-	MLB	El Paso Chihuahuas	Active	2022-2023
Penn Murfee	RP	Atlanta Braves	-	MLB	Atlanta Braves	Active	2022-2023
Brandon Williamson	SP	Cincinnati Reds	-	MLB	Brandon Williamson	Active	2023
Andy Weber	SS	Arizona Diamondbacks	AAA	PCL	Reno Aces	Active	N

Reached Majors

Year-by-year records

Year	League	Div.	W	L	W%	Manager	Playoffs
2003	Northwoods League	North	31	33	.484	Mitch Dunn	--
2004	Northwoods League	North	32	32	.500	Mitch Dunn	--
2005	Northwoods League	North	44	24	.647	Chad Miller	Won championship
2006	Northwoods League	North	29	38	.433	John Herrera	Lost final
2007	Northwoods League	North	28	40	.412	Jared Manske	--
2008	Northwoods League	North	42	26	.618	Devin McIntosh	Won championship
2009	Northwoods League	North	27	41	.397	Joel Barta	--
2010	Northwoods League	North	31	38	.449	Mike Steed	--
2011	Northwoods League	North	29	40	.420	Mike Steed	--
2012	Northwoods League	North	32	37	.449	Andy Judkins	--
2013	Northwoods League	North	21	49	.300	Dan Holcomb	--
2014	Northwoods League	North	23	49	.319	John Hernandez	--
2015	Northwoods League	North	33	38	.465	Danny Benedetti	--
2016	Northwoods League	North	21	51	.282	Danny Benedetti	--
2017	Northwoods League	North	27	43	.386	Mitch Feller	--
2018	Northwoods League	North	22	50	.306	Mitch Feller	--
2019	Northwoods League	Great Plains East	24	47	.338	Eric Vasquez	--
2023	Northwoods League	Great Plains East	27	41	.397	J.M. Kelly	--
TOTAL	Northwoods League	North/Great Plains East	523	718	.421	--	--

References

^ Millea, John (July 27, 2004). "Fielding big dreams". Star Tribune.
^ Milewski, Todd (August 22, 2005). "Mallards Dethroned By Late Run". The Capital Times. Retrieved January 3, 2007.
^ Reichard, Kevin (March 5, 2021). "Thunder Bay drops out of 2021 Northwoods League season". Ballpark Digest. August Publications.
^ "Minnesota Mud Puppies". Northwoods League. Retrieved June 9, 2021.
^ "2022 Season Update". December 7, 2021.