Brainerd Blue Thunder manager Steve Abney isn't afraid of telling it like it is. Photos When the team didn't play well, Abney wasn't afraid of saying they stunk...

...at Mills Field Wednesday before 430 fans. "I haven't seen any competitiveness since Sunday," Brainerd manager Steve Abney said of the last time his team won. "From that point on it's been very uncompetitive. I don't know if it's...

...for Brainerd. "We have only two guys on the team that played in an NCAA regional tournament," Blue Thunder manager Steve Abney said. "The rest of the guys we'll have to teach them how to win. When guys don't know how to win they have fear...

...Mills Field in front of a crowd of 1,259. "We never got in a situation to bunt all game long," Brainerd manager Steve Abney said. "I watched their guy warm up and I thought that if he threw strikes then we'd have a chance to swing the bat...

...Thunder in their last nine games. "I've always said that Alex has the best players in the league," Brainerd manager Steve Abney said. "The programs they come from are very good and I think we match up well with them. Alexandria 8, Blue Thunder...

...who played infield, outfield and pitched, hit .226 with one double, one home run and 11 RBI. Blue Thunder manager Steve Abney, the pitching coach at the University of Kansas, said all three were great people and talented players. "They were...

...outhit 8-3 and striking out 10 times. "We haven't swung the bat well in about two weeks," Blue Thunder manager Steve Abney said. "We went on the road and got seven runs in four games. I don't know if it's just being stubborn and not...

...a little soft, and I think a person needs to be embarrassed when somebody calls them soft," Blue Thunder manager Steve Abney said, "but if we would have made plays we probably would have been in a situation to execute and get back in the game...

...Mills Field. "He got into a rhythm in the middle innings and was a little more efficient," Blue Thunder manager Steve Abney said. "Then we got him up around 90-94 pitches, and we taxed him a little bit. "For a guy who made a jump from...

...Wis., 7:05 p.m. Wednesday. Attendance: 902 "A split didn't do either team any good," Brainerd manager Steve Abney said, "but it didn't hurt either team. The guy they threw in the first game, (Charlie) Shirek, was the best...