File photo from the Fairmont Sentinel.

FAIRMONT – The 2026 Fairmont Martins will be in a more familiar territory this summer season. After the team’s brief stint in Class B, Fairmont will return to Class C, playing teams and traveling to ball fields the Martins have gotten accustomed to over the years.

“We got a good taste of Class B, with some of the top teams like New Ulm, Bird Island, and Raymond,” Fairmont Martins manager Levi Becker said. “But, we are kind of glad to be back down to Class C again. We’re familiar with those teams and the format. But we had a lot of fun playing up for one year.”

Enhanced competition from larger organizations didn’t detract from any success. Fairmont still came out of the year with a solid 11-4 record, picking up a win over North Mankato in the District 8B tournament before losing to Bird Island and Luverne to end the season.

However, the Martins will have another mish-mash of veteran and youthful talent coming to this year’s roster. A recipe that has seemed to work towards any success Fairmont sees in the eyes of Levi Becker.

“We have that veteran and younger athlete mix, which seems like it’s usually that way,” Levi Becker said. “There are just some small things that the younger guys can keep picking up from our experienced players who have been around or played a lot of baseball. There has been a lot of experience that has played for the Martins.”

This set of experienced players is immediately evident on the pitching staff. Levi Becker called Spencer Chirpich the team’s workhorse when it comes to innings pitched, but also mentioned Jack Hested and Josh Smith as a pair of other arms who are very capable of stringing together good starts.

With the return to Class C’s best-of-three series playoff format, having three bona fide starters can be advantageous. It gives any team a security blanket to rely on in big moments.

“In years past, those three-game series have worked out for us, because we have a lot of pitching,” Levi Becker said. “You get to a three-game series, and we have Spencer, and Smth Hested. …We always say to bring it on.”

The offensive lineup will see a good amount of familiar faces for the Martins. Levi Becker will be joined by brothers Luke and Lance Becker throughout the batting order. Chirpich will also see plenty of action as well.

Levi Becker called this group the “steady eddie” individuals, consistent bats who have been here before. He also expects to see other veteran players, such as Zach Jorgensen and Gavin Rodning, contribute with their return to the area this summer.

This is where the youthful talent comes in. Levi Becker wants to get as many games as possible from active collegiate baseball players in the area, including Eli Anderson of Purdue, Nate Soelter of Augustana, and Landen Meyerdirk of the University of Minnesota-Morris.

Fairmont will also likely see some play from a handful of current individuals on the high school roster. While Levi Becker plans to ask the majority of the team to collect interest, Vincent Schultz, Nolyn Goerndt, Joseph Hackett, Joey Crissinger, and Jensen Livesay are already marked as active on the roster.

Supplemented help from some of the area’s young talent has always been a part of the Fairmont Martins baseball team. Whenever possible, Levi Becker will insert these players into the lineup, especially if they are hot at the plate.

“We always say that the younger guys need to get all the at-bats they need,” Levi Becker said. “If those college and high school guys are there too, and they’re still performing, they will be up there [in the batting order].”

Fairmont plays its home-opening contest against the Jackson Bulls on Wednesday night, beginning at 7:30 p.m. The Martins have already picked up a win under their belt on Sunday, May 17. They took down the Fox Lake Foxes at Truman High School, 5-2.