Sauk Rapids Cyclones return to amateur baseball, ready to battle in playoffs

The Sauk Rapids Cyclones baseball team ended its team in 2019 and that discussion became the talk of the town for a few years.

Tyler Hemker, a player for the Cyclones, said he was asked many times when the Cyclones would be back as an amateur baseball team. He didn't know for sure, but he knew that it was a matter of time before Sauk Rapids would return to the baseball field.

In 2022, the Cyclones were approved by the Minnesota Baseball Association and the Sauk Valley League to be a member on a one-year probationary season. Hemker was excited to get a team together again and play with a Sauk Rapids hometown lineup.

"Back in 2019, the team didn't have many Sauk Rapids players and the majority were players outside of the city," Hemker said. "Now, our lineup is filled with Sauk Rapids players and it's great to see the local players playing for the Cyclones."

Hemker was one of the players that pushed to get a team formed this year and he was a part of the last team in 2019. He understands the importance of this team for the city of Sauk Rapids and he's glad that the community has an opportunity to come out to games and cheer on a baseball team during the summer.

The Cyclones have 14 players on its roster for the 2022 season and all but one is from either Sauk Rapids or Rice. The lone exception is one player being from Sartell.

Hemker said he enjoys seeing the towns of Sauk Rapids and Rice being represented on this team and he hopes to continue adding players from the area to make the Cyclones a hometown team.

This team has a majority of younger players, whether they're in high school or in college. Most of these players came from the Sauk Rapids-Rice High School baseball team.

"The success that the Sauk Rapids high school baseball team has had over the last few seasons has brought an interest from these younger players to play on a summer team," Hemker said. "They definitely helped with being able to create a team."

The Storm made the state tournament back in 2021 and have had some strong seasons in the spring over the last three to four years. That success is continuing to grow with more players trying out for the team and more players wanting to represent the communities of Sauk Rapids and Rice.

The Cyclones had an up and down regular season with some big wins as well as disappointing losses. In the end, Sauk Rapids earned the No. 4 seed in the Sauk Valley West and will battle the No. 5 seed in the Sauk Valley East, Albertville, in a play-in game for the Sauk Valley League playoffs.

Hemker said this team wants to keep going and earn a spot in the Region 11C tournament. He believes this team has the players and skills to reach that point and fight in the league playoffs these next couple weekends.

"There's a lot of talent coming through the Sauk Rapids area and we're hoping to show that in these playoffs," Hemker said.

Even though this season isn't done, Hemker is excited about the future. He's hoping to bring in more veteran players and create a balance between the younger players with some older players as well.

Ultimately, the team is just excited to be back as an amateur baseball team and competing for state titles once again. It was a long few years of no Sauk Rapids baseball, but now, the Cyclones are back.

Brian Mozey is the high school sports reporter for the St. Cloud Times. Reach him at 320-255-8772 or bmozey@stcloudtimes.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrianMozey.

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This article originally appeared on St. Cloud Times: Sauk Rapids Cyclones return to amateur baseball, ready for playoffs