Independent file photo A Marshall A’s player swings at a pitch during their July 26, 2017 game against Minneota. The A’s will be changing classes for the first time since 1986, going from Class B to Class C this season.

MARSHALL – While the weather didn’t quite get the memo yet, the 2018 amateur baseball season is quickly approaching.

The first town ball games on the area schedule are currently set for one week from Sunday. The Marshall A’s season will begin on May 20, with the team’s home opener set for May 23.

This has been an offseason of change for the A’s, as the club changed from a Class B team to a Class C team. The A’s have been in Class B since 1986, the first year Minnesota moved to a three-class system in amateur baseball.

“We changed classes due to Class B being such a large area for the section,” A’s manager Justin Greenwood said. “Marshall and Hibbing were in the same section. This brings it back to a true town ball team. This means we have to have Marshall guys playing for their town, which brings Marshall pride playing for your home team.”

Some effects of the change won’t be felt until the postseason. Rather than traveling over 100 miles to towns like Sauk Rapids, Cold Spring or Richmond for the playoffs to possibly face teams like Hibbing or Brainerd as the team has done in previous years, the team will stay closer to home.

Last year, the Corn Belt League teams in Class C played in Region 11C, with region tournament games held in Granite Falls and Milroy. This year, realignment has placed the Corn Belt in Region 4C along with the County Line League. All teams in the region are within a 100-mile radius of Marshall.

One way the change will be felt immediately is in the construction of the team. One of the differences between Class B and Class C is that “college students who use their college address are not eligible to play with a Class C team,” according to the Minnesota Baseball Association handbook.

This means current Southwest Minnesota State University students who use their college address cannot play for the A’s. The date to determine eligibility is March 15.

“Jake Leighton and Dylan Boettcher are two players from last year’s team who are not eligible to play for the A’s this season,” Marshall Baseball Association board member Nate Tykwinski said. “Both are still SMSU students and used their college address when they joined the A’s.”

Additionally, the state board has ruled Marshall cannot go outside of Marshall to find players, eliminating the normal rule which allows teams to add players within a 30-mile radius of the home ballpark.

“Marshall will be one of the bigger towns in Class C and the state board felt allowing the team to go outside of the city for players was overkill,” Tykwinski said. “It’s also protection for other area teams like Minneota, Cottonwood and Milroy so that the A’s do not raid their player pool.”

Tykwinski added that the Marshall board is not concerned about the added restriction, as they hope to sign Marshall players and to build up the connection between the A’s and the Marshall community.

As the A’s roster develops, the team is hoping that some of the younger players will become foundational parts moving forward.

“The biggest obstacle to overcome will building that core group of Marshall players,” Tykwinski said. “Most area teams have the bulk of their roster the same year in and year out. We’ve gone through a transitional phase over the past few seasons, trying to focus on locals players as opposed to filling the roster with college players.

“Five years ago, the A’s roster might have been 75 percent college players. Most of them graduate and move, so you are continually needing to replace them,” Tykwinski added. “Now, we have a good group of 18 to 20-year old Marshall guys on the roster. The hope is a good portion of that group is still playing for the A’s when they are in their mid-20s.”