July 9, 2007

Honkers skipper is leaving team

By Donny Henn

Post-Bulletin, Rochester MN

If the Rochester Honkers are going to bounce back in the second half and defend their Northwoods League title, they'll have to do it without field manager Greg Labbe, the architect of last year's championship team.

Labbe, 28, will leave the team this week during the league All-Star Game break to be with his wife Heather, who is eight months pregnant with their first child. The Labbe's make their home in Jacksonville, Fla.

Labbe will coach what will likely be his last game of the season -- and possibly his last in a Honkers uniform -- this afternoon at Mayo Field.

"There was no doubt that I was going home to be with my wife, I just didn't know for sure when," said Labbe, who is half way through his third season as the Honkers manager.

"It comes down to putting my family first," Labbe explained. "I've always told my players that they should always put their families first; if there was ever a reason they were needed at home, they should go.

"Now I've gotta go and do the same thing."

Honkers co-owners Dan Litzinger and Kim Archer knew that Labbe would leave for the birth of his child but that didn't dissuade them from bringing him back as head coach for a third season.

"Greg is family to us and you don't like to recognize when it's time for a member of your family to move on," Litzinger said. "Kim and I are extremely happy for Greg and Heather."

Honkers catcher Derek Norris said that Labbe told the players four or five days earlier that he was leaving.

"He was our main man and it'll be a little tough without him," Norris said. "But we understand why he's going."

Labbe said his wife's due date is Aug. 3; the couple is expecting a baby boy.

"There are some things already starting that make us believe it could be earlier," he said. "Heather has been going through a lot on her own. She hasn't been able to come up here the whole season and that's been tough on both of us."

Labbe indicated that he might return for the playoffs if Rochester qualified in the second half.

"I haven't made that decision yet," he said.

But Labbe also hinted that today could be his last game in a Honkers inform. When asked if he might return for a fourth season as coach in 2008, he responded, "Probably not."

Labbe has dual careers back home, as a high school math teacher, and an assistant baseball coach at the University of North Florida.

Labbe has been among the most successful managers in the Honkers' 14-year history with a 113-59 record in 2 1/2 seasons. He's second in total wins to Tom Fleenor (147), who coached the team for four seasons from 1998 to 2001.

Labbe guided Rochester to the playoffs in his first two seasons, and last year he led the Honkers to a 50-win regular season and the team's fourth league crown. He was named the league's Manager of the Year.

Labbe admitted that he has been frustrated by this year's team. He believes the Honkers should have a much better record than 19-18, given their league-leading 36 home runs and six runs per game average.

"It's definitely not the way I wanted it to go," he said. "We completely underachieved in the first half of the year. I don't know what happened; I'm a young coach, but I don't have the answer."

The Honkers are now in the hands of two first-year coaches, Dave Martinez, 31, and Brett Lindgren, 24.

Martinez, who'll be the manager, is from Riverside Community College in California. Lindgren is from Cal State Fullerton. Both coaches joined the Honkers late this season because their teams advanced in the college playoffs.

"We'll stay in touch the whole summer," Labbe said. "Dave is definitely very capable to lead this team."

It's been a season of turnover for the Honkers. Five players left the team in the last month, three due to injuries, and two to professional baseball.