Minnesota Mud Puppies
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| Minnesota Mud Puppies | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| League | Northwoods League (Great Plains East Division[1]) |
| Location | Savage, Minnesota |
| Ballpark | None (travel team) |
| Founded | 2021 |
| Colors | Red, Black, Gray, White[2] |
The Minnesota Mud Puppies are a baseball team that plays in the collegiate summer Northwoods League (NWL). Based at the MASH training facility in Savage, Minnesota, the Mud Puppies are exclusively a travel team and play all of their games in the home stadiums of NWL opponents.[3]
The NWL's Thunder Bay Border Cats were not able to participate in the league's 2021 season due to Covid-19 pandemic US-Canada border restrictions. To make up for the schedule absence of the Border Cats, the league created the Mud Puppies as a travel-only team.[4] In their first season, the team logged a 10-26 record, the lowest winning percentage in the NWL.[5] The Border Cats were again unable to participate in 2022, and the Mud Puppies took their place, this time posting a 7-29 record.[6]
The Border Cats returned to the NWL in 2023, but the Mud Puppies remained in the league. With the addition of the expansion Minot Hot Tots franchise, the Mud Puppies allowed the league to maintain an even number of teams. They played a restricted schedule, posting a 12-32 record. This record bested only the Hot Tots (16-51) for winning percentage among all 24 NWL teams.[7]
In 2024, they once again competed in the NWL, a year that saw the league expand to 26 with the additions of the Badlands Big Sticks and Royal Oak Leprechauns. The Mud Puppies' record in 2024 was 5-28.[8] After that season, the Kokomo Jackrabbits ceased operations and the Mud Puppies were also deactivated for the 2025 season.
In December of 2025, the NWL announced that the Mud Puppies would be returning after a one-year hiatus. The league announced plans to add the Richmond Flying Mummies to the NWL baseball branch, and the Mud Puppies' return puts the list of teams to an even 26.[9]
Brand
The nickname Mud Puppies is a reference to the Dubuque Mud Puppies of Dubuque, Iowa, one of the original five teams when the NWL was founded in 1994. In another homage to Dubuque, Minnesota features a similar color scheme of red, black, gray, and white, but has updated logos featuring a cartoon mud puppy in various poses.[3]
