(Click thumbnails to see photos and videos from this weekend's Wisconsin vs West Michigan games, and hear the full interview with Rattlers President/CEO Rob Zerjav)
GRAND CHUTE, Wis.---After more than 600 days with no baseball at Fox Cities Stadium near Appleton, the Boys of Summer are back on the field as the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers minor league team has begun the 2021 season.
The entire 2020 Minor League Baseball season was wiped out by the coronavirus, and the Majors were only able to play in completely empty stadiums. That, according to Timber Rattlers President, CEO, and General Manager Rob Zerjav, was not an option for the minors.
So, they did what they could with Fox Cities Stadium to fill the void.
"We did our best to have movie nights, and we had drive-in concerts," Zerjav said. "We had (concession) food pick-ups. So, we made money here and there, but definitely not enough to keep us rolling. Without a season, we lost 90-percent of our revenue."
The Timber Rattlers are a community-owned business, and with virtually no money coming in, something had to give.
"We had to look at why we could do to survive here in Appleton," Zerjav said. "So, we sold the ballclub. I actually became part-owner of the team as well. There's three of us, all local ownership. We're just excited that we were able to keep the team here, and then things started to snowball from there."
One thing that happened was the team getting a franchise from Minor League Baseball at a time when the organization was eliminating teams.
Then the Milwaukee Brewers extended its contract with Zerjav's team for ten years. The Rattlers are now the Class A "high level" team, which means it gets a lot of the top young prospects that turn pro with dreams of playing in the MLB.
"Really, our day-to-day operations have stayed the same (as pre-pandemic)," Zerjav said. "We were able to keep all of our staff on board. We didn't furlough anybody. So, we're kind of ahead of the game in being able to have a great experience for fans when they come out to the ballpark. I know a lot of the teams around Minor League Baseball really reduced their staff to one or two people, and now they're struggling to catch up."
Zerjav says the Upper Peninsula is a big part of the Timber Rattler fan base.
"We happen to be the closest professional baseball team for the Upper Peninsula," Zerjav said. "Personally, I am a big fan of the U.P. I love spending time up there every fall. We have a Yooper Night here at the ballpark, and that always turns out real well. We have so many (U.P.) transplants here. A lot of my friends are from the U.P. and they all live down here now, and then their friends come down (for Yooper Night) and it's just a unique experience."
Yooper Night this season is scheduled for the afternoon of Sunday, September 5th.
The Minor League Baseball schedule is being run differently this year to cut down on travel as we continue to rebound from the pandemic. Teams play each other in six-game series, with Mondays as off-days. This weekend, the Rattlers hosted the West Michifgan Whitecaps, the Class A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers.
The series, which the Whtecaps won four of the six games, featured the Tigers' 2020 Major League Baseball Draft Number One overall pick, Spencer Torkelson. He hit his first pro home run in Friday night's game. The Rattlers have several prospects as well, including leadoff hitter Kory Howell and clean-up hitter Thomas Dillard.
Howell was among the Rattlers who homered in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader, which the Rattlers held on to win, 8-7. Then Dillard hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the seventh inning of the nightcap to win, 9-8, after the White Caps tied the game with back-to-back solo home runs in the top of the inning.
West Michigan won Sunday's game, 4-0, as Rey Rivera hit a two-run homer to right field against s stiff breeze that brought temperatures down from 85 degrees to 55 degrees.
Zerjav says there's good talent at this level, even if it's been challenged by the lost season.
"It's been difficult," he said. "There was only a five-round (Major League) draft last year. So, not a lot of influx of talent. A lor of (current) guys just held. You're seeing at our level the pitchers are way ahead of the hitters. The pitchers coluld work out at home (during the shutdown) and they had mounds they built themselves. But the hitters, as much as you hit off the tee, and you work on things, there's nothing compared to live hitting."
Regardless, more people will be able to see Timber Rattlers home games as the club will be allowing 100-percent capactity starting with its next homestand in June. They have been operating on 38-percent capacity for the first two homestands.
The mask mandate has been lifted, as well, but they are still optional and there will be a "socually-distant" seating section for those who want it. The stadium seats about 5,900 fans.
And what about all of the Detroit Tigers shirts in the stands this weekend?
"It's great. Hey, come on out," Zerjav said, then added with a smile, "their money spends just as good as everybody's!"
GRAND CHUTE, Wis.---After more than 600 days with no baseball at Fox Cities Stadium near Appleton, the Boys of Summer are back on the field as the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers minor league team has begun the 2021 season.
So, they did what they could with Fox Cities Stadium to fill the void.
"We did our best to have movie nights, and we had drive-in concerts," Zerjav said. "We had (concession) food pick-ups. So, we made money here and there, but definitely not enough to keep us rolling. Without a season, we lost 90-percent of our revenue."
The Timber Rattlers are a community-owned business, and with virtually no money coming in, something had to give.
"We had to look at why we could do to survive here in Appleton," Zerjav said. "So, we sold the ballclub. I actually became part-owner of the team as well. There's three of us, all local ownership. We're just excited that we were able to keep the team here, and then things started to snowball from there."
One thing that happened was the team getting a franchise from Minor League Baseball at a time when the organization was eliminating teams.
"Really, our day-to-day operations have stayed the same (as pre-pandemic)," Zerjav said. "We were able to keep all of our staff on board. We didn't furlough anybody. So, we're kind of ahead of the game in being able to have a great experience for fans when they come out to the ballpark. I know a lot of the teams around Minor League Baseball really reduced their staff to one or two people, and now they're struggling to catch up."
Zerjav says the Upper Peninsula is a big part of the Timber Rattler fan base.
"We happen to be the closest professional baseball team for the Upper Peninsula," Zerjav said. "Personally, I am a big fan of the U.P. I love spending time up there every fall. We have a Yooper Night here at the ballpark, and that always turns out real well. We have so many (U.P.) transplants here. A lot of my friends are from the U.P. and they all live down here now, and then their friends come down (for Yooper Night) and it's just a unique experience."
Yooper Night this season is scheduled for the afternoon of Sunday, September 5th.
The series, which the Whtecaps won four of the six games, featured the Tigers' 2020 Major League Baseball Draft Number One overall pick, Spencer Torkelson. He hit his first pro home run in Friday night's game. The Rattlers have several prospects as well, including leadoff hitter Kory Howell and clean-up hitter Thomas Dillard.
Howell was among the Rattlers who homered in the first game of Saturday's doubleheader, which the Rattlers held on to win, 8-7. Then Dillard hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the seventh inning of the nightcap to win, 9-8, after the White Caps tied the game with back-to-back solo home runs in the top of the inning.
West Michigan won Sunday's game, 4-0, as Rey Rivera hit a two-run homer to right field against s stiff breeze that brought temperatures down from 85 degrees to 55 degrees.
Zerjav says there's good talent at this level, even if it's been challenged by the lost season.
Regardless, more people will be able to see Timber Rattlers home games as the club will be allowing 100-percent capactity starting with its next homestand in June. They have been operating on 38-percent capacity for the first two homestands.
The mask mandate has been lifted, as well, but they are still optional and there will be a "socually-distant" seating section for those who want it. The stadium seats about 5,900 fans.
And what about all of the Detroit Tigers shirts in the stands this weekend?
"It's great. Hey, come on out," Zerjav said, then added with a smile, "their money spends just as good as everybody's!"
