Visit to Dick Putz Field jogs townball memories, reveals a remarkable Fairmont battery

ST. CLOUD – The Class 2A baseball tournament started at 10 a.m. Tuesday with a quarterfinal meeting between high schools representing areas with tremendous baseball pedigrees.

Arlington-Green Isle and Gaylord were fierce high school rivals until 1990, when the citizens approved a merger into Sibley East High School.

The athletic teams became the Wolverines and were playing in the state tournament for the first time since 1998, which seems a long wait for a school representing two towns and one stop on the road (Green Isle) that have been home to so many famous baseball families.

Sibley East would be facing Fairmont, the No. 1 seed in the eight-team field.

Fairmont's baseball history includes the Martins, one of the most famous teams of the post-World War II era of pay-for-play townball in Minnesota. The high school team has been a frequent visitor to the state tournament, and the current town team won the state Class C title in 2020.

There were a sizable number of fans wearing T-shirts of support for each team at Dick Putz Field, the older of the side-by-side ballparks at St. Cloud's sports complex.

The pregame chatter with fans included this attempt by a Sibley East backer to stir up some positive karma for the Wolverines.

As any Arlington baseball person of some vintage knows, that home run was a game-winner hit by the great Joe Driscoll in the opening round of the 1979 state amateur tournament — a bottom-of-the-ninth blast that allowed the A's to get through the first round against Maple Lake and on the way to a state championship.

It lives as the Holy-Ta-Moley homer because that's how it was saluted by Jim Bartels, doing play-by-play for KNUJ in New Ulm.

Bringing up that glorious home run then caused a sadder discussion:

Driscoll's current grave health condition, upsetting to what I'd estimate to be a few thousand of us with a townball interest who have cherished Joe as the ultimate character.

As it turned out, any Holy-Ta-Moleys uttered toward the Wolverines on Tuesday morning involved plays not made.

Sibley East tied it in the top of the third, and then — presto! — an error, a balk and a Kosbab single put Fairmont ahead to stay.

Jacob Schmidt, Sibley East's lefthanded ace, was twice deemed to have not come to a proper stop in his delivery by the ump at first base. I didn't catch the name, but perhaps Joe West is now working prep games.

Eli Anderson's leadoff triple for Fairmont led to a run that made it 3-1 in the fifth. Then, Anderson had a second, bases-emptying triple on a misplayed drive in a five-run sixth that sealed the deal.

Anderson was a record-breaking wide receiver for Fairmont, and he can fly.

Jacob Crissinger, Fairmont's No. 1 starter, is a strike-thrower of considerable prowess. He held the Wolverines to three singles — and a double on a misplayed fly ball — until the seventh.

Crissinger and his catcher, Zach Jorgensen, have been teammates since they were T-ballers. "I love this guy; he is so easy to catch,'' Jorgensen said.

Jorgensen is that focal-point athlete you find at successful schools: tremendous passing quarterback, point guard in basketball, shortstop in 2021 and now excellent catcher.

His quarterback days are behind him: The Gophers were impressed with his hitting and range as a safety and he'll be on campus by this weekend, as a 2022 preferred walk-on in P.J. Fleck's program.

Crissinger has been more of an underdog tale. He was born and remains nearly blind in his left eye. He pitches while wearing a metal mask to protect his right eye.

"The mask is strictly a baseball thing,'' he said. "I wear safety goggles in basketball.''

"That's right,'' Crissinger said. "I throw the ball to Zach in baseball, and he threw it to me when I was open in basketball.''

Crissinger reached the 115-pitch limit for the tournament on Tuesday. so he's done pitching for his high school career.

Fairmont plays Rochester Lourdes at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Dick Putz … making it another early-morning drive from dang near Iowa for their fans.

"Everybody's hoping we'll be playing our last one at Target Field on Friday,'' Jorgensen said.