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Jul. 11—ROCHESTER — It's the All-Star break in the Northwoods League and Mayo Field won't host another Rochester Honkers home game for four days. However, Ezekiel Mendoza is at the park for a midday workout Monday, July 6, 2026.
"I'm not getting better at baseball if I was laying around," Mendoza, a Rochester Honkers pitcher, said.
Voluntarily being at the park on a day off was a pivot from his attitude when he first saw the 75-year-old ballpark when he joined the Honkers.
"As an outsider, it looks pretty bad," Mendoza said. "The locker room's small, hot, no air conditioning, the stands, everything, needs paint."
However, after playing half a season in front of fans there, it feels like a friendly place now.
"I feel safe here," he said.
Years of deferred maintenance and lack of space have taken a toll on the ballpark that has been home to the Honkers since 1994. This season will be the team's last there, team officials announced.
For now, Honkers players focus on making the Northwoods League playoffs for the first time since 2015 despite coming close in 2019. The Honkers have finished below .500 each season since 2019.
However, so far this year, the Honkers have been one of the best-performing teams on the field regardless of any shortcomings of their home facility.
"We're really trying to maximize and use everything we can," said Thor Johnson, Honkers director of operations. "We do the best we can with this space."
Johnson and team staff say they're committed to giving fans a fun experience and the ballpark a proper send-off. Attendance for Honkers games at Mayo Field has been about 837 fans per game as of the All-Star break. That's the third-lowest average post-COVID but up from a franchise-low of 794 fans per game in 2023.
The team's lease of the city-owned ballpark has an escape clause allowing for either party to depart the agreement if the city's parks and forestry department facilities adjacent to the ballpark are vacated. The department's equipment and staff there are being moved to a new building near the city's Public Works and Transit Operations Center, 4300 East River Road NE.
That means the Honkers, a member of the Northwoods League since 1994, will be on hiatus in 2027, team owners announced in April.
Fan reaction is mixed as some are critical of the stadium's condition while appreciative of having a ballpark.
Kiwi Jewell, whose sons are 8 and 10, said it's one of the few spaces multiple generations of a family enjoy equally. She was at Mayo Field July 2 for a Honkers win against the Mankato Moondogs, which was also a fireworks night. A resident of the East Side neighborhood, Jewell said having a baseball stadium in her neighborhood has been a great amenity.
"I feel like it enhances my life and my life as a parent," she said. "We've biked, waggoned, we've strollered, we've walked to the ballpark."
When they were younger, a visit from a mascot, treats, and a chance to run around entertained her sons.
"My kids remember it and as they've gotten older, they've gotten more involved," she said.
Her youngest has taken up playing baseball and both ask questions about the game and listen as their grandfather explains plays and baseball rules.
"It's such an open forum for kids to learn from adults," she said. "Everything is set up for everyone to enjoy it together."
Honkers and city officials are saying they are moving forward in exploring ways to give baseball a home in Rochester. On Monday, July 6, the Rochester City Council unanimously approved entering into a negotiation agreement with Wisconsin-based Landmark Development to develop new sports facilities, including a baseball stadium at the site of the Silver Lake Power Plant.
For now, Mike Nigbur, head of the city's parks and forestry division, said the city will continue to operate the stadium through 2027. A typical calendar for the ballpark includes about 90 other baseball games a year with high school, adult amateur, youth and collegiate baseball players using the stadium.
Where those teams and the Honkers will play in 2028 is still up in the air. For now, players, staff and grounds crew work to coax another season out of the historic ballpark.
Continue reading...
"I'm not getting better at baseball if I was laying around," Mendoza, a Rochester Honkers pitcher, said.
Voluntarily being at the park on a day off was a pivot from his attitude when he first saw the 75-year-old ballpark when he joined the Honkers.
"As an outsider, it looks pretty bad," Mendoza said. "The locker room's small, hot, no air conditioning, the stands, everything, needs paint."
However, after playing half a season in front of fans there, it feels like a friendly place now.
"I feel safe here," he said.
Years of deferred maintenance and lack of space have taken a toll on the ballpark that has been home to the Honkers since 1994. This season will be the team's last there, team officials announced.
For now, Honkers players focus on making the Northwoods League playoffs for the first time since 2015 despite coming close in 2019. The Honkers have finished below .500 each season since 2019.
However, so far this year, the Honkers have been one of the best-performing teams on the field regardless of any shortcomings of their home facility.
"We're really trying to maximize and use everything we can," said Thor Johnson, Honkers director of operations. "We do the best we can with this space."
Johnson and team staff say they're committed to giving fans a fun experience and the ballpark a proper send-off. Attendance for Honkers games at Mayo Field has been about 837 fans per game as of the All-Star break. That's the third-lowest average post-COVID but up from a franchise-low of 794 fans per game in 2023.
The team's lease of the city-owned ballpark has an escape clause allowing for either party to depart the agreement if the city's parks and forestry department facilities adjacent to the ballpark are vacated. The department's equipment and staff there are being moved to a new building near the city's Public Works and Transit Operations Center, 4300 East River Road NE.
That means the Honkers, a member of the Northwoods League since 1994, will be on hiatus in 2027, team owners announced in April.
Fan reaction is mixed as some are critical of the stadium's condition while appreciative of having a ballpark.
Kiwi Jewell, whose sons are 8 and 10, said it's one of the few spaces multiple generations of a family enjoy equally. She was at Mayo Field July 2 for a Honkers win against the Mankato Moondogs, which was also a fireworks night. A resident of the East Side neighborhood, Jewell said having a baseball stadium in her neighborhood has been a great amenity.
"I feel like it enhances my life and my life as a parent," she said. "We've biked, waggoned, we've strollered, we've walked to the ballpark."
When they were younger, a visit from a mascot, treats, and a chance to run around entertained her sons.
"My kids remember it and as they've gotten older, they've gotten more involved," she said.
Her youngest has taken up playing baseball and both ask questions about the game and listen as their grandfather explains plays and baseball rules.
"It's such an open forum for kids to learn from adults," she said. "Everything is set up for everyone to enjoy it together."
Honkers and city officials are saying they are moving forward in exploring ways to give baseball a home in Rochester. On Monday, July 6, the Rochester City Council unanimously approved entering into a negotiation agreement with Wisconsin-based Landmark Development to develop new sports facilities, including a baseball stadium at the site of the Silver Lake Power Plant.
For now, Mike Nigbur, head of the city's parks and forestry division, said the city will continue to operate the stadium through 2027. A typical calendar for the ballpark includes about 90 other baseball games a year with high school, adult amateur, youth and collegiate baseball players using the stadium.
Where those teams and the Honkers will play in 2028 is still up in the air. For now, players, staff and grounds crew work to coax another season out of the historic ballpark.
Continue reading...
