A man who dominated the Shoreland League in the 1970s is set to be inducted into their Hall of Fame.
A ceremony honoring Denny Hrdina and his induction will be held on Monday, July 13th, at Walsh Field, with the festivities beginning at 6:30 p.m.
The Two Rivers High School Polka Band will be performing under the Walsh Field pavilion prior to the Hall of Fame ceremony, which will take place on the diamond at 7:15 p.m.
That will be followed by a matchup between the Two Rivers Polar Bears and the Kewaunee Chiefs.
Hrdina is described as “one of the most talented baseball players in the Shoreland League and Wisconsin in the 1970’s.”
As a pitcher and hitter, he led the Polar Bears to four Shoreland League Championships during the decade, recording 1,341 strikeouts over 1,083 innings while issuing just 310 walks with a 1.76 earned run average.
He was a feared hitter as well, with a batting average over .300 in several seasons, with home run power.
This domination led to Denny being named the Shoreland League MVP in 1973, 1975, and 1976, the Tri-County League MVP in 1973, and MVP of the National Baseball Regional Tournament in 1975.
He is the fourth Shoreland League Hall of Fame member to have played for the Polar Bears. Lee Nebel played for the team in the 50’s and 60’s and was an inaugural Hall of Fame selection in 2018.
Hrdina’s legendary manager, Howie Timm, was elected in 2022. Finally, Shad Hintz was inducted last year after wrapping up a 21-year baseball career that started in 2002 and included 17 seasons with Two Rivers.
More details can be found on the Two Rivers Polar Bears Facebook page.
