Riverdogs Legion team preparing for seaosn

While professional baseball is winding down, the American Legion youth baseball coach in Sanders County is looking to get a jump on next season by holding tryouts at Amundson Sports Complex.

A dozen boys recently showed up for the tryouts, which ran for a little over two hours. The session went well and the coaches selected members for the 2022 season, said Jon Zigler, head coach for the Clark Fork Valley Riverdogs American Legion youth baseball team. The players ranged from age 13-18 and came from Plains, Thompson Falls and Superior. All but five were returning players. Last year was the first year for a Sanders County Legion team in more than 20 years. The Riverdogs went 20-32 for the season. They were 0-14 until a double-header at home against the Libby Loggers gave them their first two wins.

Zigler wanted to get a head start of finding players for 2022 with the tryouts. "We would like to be in a position to field the most talented team that we can," said Zigler, who is in his second year coaching the River Dogs, along with coaches Shawn Plakke of Superior and Sam Carter of Plains.

"We're not looking for guys that can necessarily drive it over the fence. We're just looking for guys with athleticism," said Zigler. They put the boys through several drills and exercises. Some of the players from last season helped with the tryouts. Coaches timed the boys running to first and second bases. The fastest was 16-year-old Orion "Bean" Plakke, the coach's son, whose dash to first was done in 4.49 seconds and whose run to second was 8.41 seconds.

The boys were evaluated for their abilities in the outfield, infield and at the plate. Zigler said they had a strong pitching and catching roster last year and most of them will be returning for the next season. "Our catchers were the best in the western district," said Zigler, who added that the team's biggest weakness last year was their outfield, which is the area he wants to strengthen. Zigler, Carter and Plakke got together after the tryouts and selected 10 of their best players for their varsity team. Like other Legion teams, Zigler would like to have an A and a B team. In the event that an A team player is injured, Zigler could bring up a player from his B team.

The 2022 Clark Fork Valley Riverdogs A team will include the following players: Orion Plakke, Nate Zigler, Kody Carter, Jack Taylor, Trenis McDonald, Garth Parker, Joey Grossman, Alessi Rolando, Jack Williams and Bryson McCormick. Zigler said they will look for three more players for the varsity team. John Thurston and Beau Crabb will be on the B team. "We are in contact with a few other prospective players for the A team, which we will try out individually," said Zigler, r, who has coached T-ball, Rookies, Minors, Majors, Babe Ruth, and Legion for the past 11 years.

Ideally, he would like to have 13 players for his varsity squad, the same as he had last season. He said having too many players can cause problems. The Mission Valley Mariners had a roster of 18 players for their B team last season and the Missoula Mavericks had more than 80 boys show up for tryouts, according to Zigler. "With a roster that big there is a lot of discontent due to playing time," he said.

The River Dogs are sponsored by American Legion Post 129 in Paradise, but Zigler said they will be looking for additional sponsors and will be holding fundraisers in an effort to raise $15,000 to pay for such things as umpires, equipment, field usage, and baseballs. In addition, each player has to pay $800 to play. Businesses can pay $250 for a decal sign with the name of their business and telephone number on the team bus, or $100 for just the name. "Our bus is like a rolling billboard," said Zigle

Carter, father of Kody, played for three years for the Clark Fork Valley Black Sox American Legion team in the 1990s and was selected to try out for the Seattle Mariners when he was 18 years old. He didn't go because he had trouble coming up with the $2,500, which he would have had to pay if he didn't make the cut. He has coached youth baseball for 12 years. Plakke, whose son Orion is the sole Superior player, has been a youth baseball coach for 10 years, including last year's Legion team.

There have been no decisions on all the positions, but they will probably use some of the same pitchers and catchers. Zigler said it's not unusual for Legion coaches to hold tryouts in September. He said that coaches start developing next year's schedule in October to make sure they can first roster a team. The American Legion has 58 teams throughout Montana. There will be nine teams in the Western District of Montana/Alberta American Legion, and 52 games next year. Zigler hopes to have more than one home game next year. The Riverdogs won't start practice until next spring inside the Christian Alliance Church gym again. "I'm not ready for the season," said Zigler, "but I'm looking forward to it."