Welcome back, everyone. Playmakers here at W.I.R.I. 105, your host, James, with you.
And I am kicking off. Meet your rafters for another great addition of that. We are so
excited to have you guys in studio. Have a CIS and GM Jake Adams with it. Jake,
could you see him?
Good to see you again, James.
Gwen is with us as well. And I forgot your title. I just blanked.
No, that's okay. I'm sales manager. It's been a while.
It has. You just got to come back more often so I can get it in there.
Sales manager, Gwen. Thank you very much for being here, both of you.
Appreciate the time. Guys, we've got a couple of things to get into while we have you here.
But first off, how is the season going for you all? And I'm not talking about the record
or how the players are playing or anything like that. Just you individually.
How is the season going for you? And Gwen, I'll start with you.
Yeah, it's been great. Our intern crew has been phenomenal. So having them there has been
a huge help and it just gets us really excited for everything that's to come.
And we've made some changes over the off season.
So hearing fans kind of start talking about that has been exciting.
And we're just to get the season continuing to go.
Yeah, Jake, I mean, honestly can't complain about anything right now.
Like Gwen said, we have an amazing intern crew that's helping make our lives a little bit easier
at the ballpark. It's been great to open up the gates to some rafters fans.
We had a lot of excitement this past week, opening day and wrestling night on Saturday.
We saw a lot of new fans. That was a cool one to hear.
It was their first rafters game purely because the wrestling event.
But they said they'd be coming back soon. So that's the kind of thing we want to hear.
Sounded like that was really successful. I just happened to be past that area.
And I could hear it. I was like on A Street. I could hear what was going on over there and everything.
So I mean, it was very sorry. Everybody had a good time.
Oh, yeah. Worked out. Well, two with the day being a big, well, kind of worked out for us as fans.
I can't imagine how it was for you guys and logistics of that.
Let's go to Saturday real quick because or I should say Friday, really,
where we had a rain delay that happened.
And I don't think you guys were alone in being a little bit surprised by that.
I'm pretty sure even our meteorologist was surprised by where that came from and all that.
And that's just Wisconsin. That just happens from time to time.
You just kind of get used to it.
But for the crew and certainly the grounds crew that's got to get that tarp out right away.
There was a bit of an issue with that. What happened there?
And how is everybody? How are everybody feeling off of that one?
I mean, I was complaining this morning.
My back's a little sore from now on. But I mean, I've had a short,
but long career in baseball so far.
And I can tell you one thing that tar poles are not easy.
It may look like it's one of the easiest things in the world,
dragging a tarp out onto the field.
But that thing weighs 1,800 pounds.
We need to be distributing it at a bunkst, what 18 people if that.
And once you get even a little bit of rain on top of that thing,
it becomes like an immovable object.
I mean, it was like trying to drag the grandstand itself over the infield.
And it's just a tough thing of baseball.
No one really understands until you're out there on that tarp,
especially getting two inches of rain in 10 minutes.
It became a nightmare scenario.
Yeah, I think just it coming out of nowhere was hard.
And everyone's across the park up in the press box,
trying to run down within 30 seconds to get out there.
And even with all the players and everything,
it's like Jake said, it's thousands of pounds.
So trying to get it out there was difficult.
And yeah, we can't really win with two inches in 10.
Or was it two inches in 10 minutes?
Two inches in 10 minutes and saying it came out in no way.
We had the sun was peaking through and we're like,
all right, good night for baseball.
And then it just got dark and torrential down for.
It was, that's funny.
You said that because I know I said something along the day.
At some point in the day, I said to Seth,
oh, it's going to be perfect baseball weather tonight,
which is of course, exactly with Mother Nature decided to let it rain,
of course.
But I am a huge believer almost in an annoying sense
and a relentless sense of finding silver linings
and looking at the positives of things,
even negatives of things.
And early in the season, you might have another op,
you're probably, let's be honest,
going to have other opportunities to have to use that tarp
and everything.
Not a bad thing to get it out of the way early in the season
and get something like that and get that reps,
those that experience in for this crew for the team
to, you know, and have to do this when it happens again.
I think that was a positive and that and it all worked out.
We're still able to get the game in the very next day.
Yeah, and it was fun, honestly,
have a game before and after wrestling
and people got two games for one.
So it ended up being a blessing
and that's overlining, like you said.
But in the moment, it's very frustrating for fans,
obviously, that took time out of their night
to come to the rafters game, so we get it.
Yeah, and not taking any of that lightly.
I do think that, you know,
looking at it from your guys' perspective,
that's certainly first and foremost,
looking from my perspective,
I don't worry as much about it
because in that situation, usually I do.
Certainly fans come first, of course.
But in that situation, I was really curious,
like all I could think about was like,
what, how you guys were doing and what was going on there
because, you know, being honest about it,
you're some, you know, there's some new blood
in that in that in these positions
and that was out of nowhere.
It was such a random situation.
But man, that is the way you learn.
Like that's just life in general,
but especially with the jobs that we do,
you can go to school for 20 years doing this stuff.
You can train prep for every single situation.
It is so different in real time.
It is so different what actually is happening.
Getting those reps early on with any kind of these things,
just, it's a positive, it's a good thing.
Oh yeah, and I, we've been talking about
in the office all weekend, but I don't think
if that rain didn't happen,
we wouldn't have had the perfect Disney ESPN story
like this Saturday's game.
Absolutely.
Did you hear a little bit about that?
Oh yeah, I was, I was glued every inning of that game.
Yeah.
And in part, and just real quick,
just wrapping up the Friday game and into that,
Gwen, I think you were touching on this a little bit.
I thought it was a perfect mashup
and something maybe even to think of next year,
having that double header and in the middle of that,
having the wrestling event.
My goodness, nobody was leaving that park.
It was cool.
It was really cool to see that people just wanted to sing
literally all day one day and got over there with a field.
Absolutely, that was what we loved to see.
And we had, even some of the wrestlers
commentating on it from their performances,
that said, you get two baseball games and a wrestling show.
One more, can you ask for a Saturday night?
And we ended with some fireworks.
Yeah.
Can't complain there.
Exciting ending, two Saturdays games, certainly, too.
That was a lot of fun.
And the only thing that I enjoyed more was his smile.
I mean, you know, it looked like it was a 10-year-old out there
to smile like that, how happy he was and everything.
That was fun.
It was, it's a fun game.
Now, we certainly are not where we want to be
in the standings and the win, loss, column, and everything.
I want to mention, though, real quick.
First off, to, you know, anybody,
especially if you're new to the Northwoods League,
we get two seasons, really, in the Northwoods League.
While we don't have maybe the games of an MLB schedule
or something like that, I think we almost have a better
seat in some ways, a better kind of time
because you have these tale of two cities,
a tale of two seasons, too, in there,
with the first half and the second half.
And not that, you know, we wouldn't like to see
the Raptor schedule, you know, record opposite.
Nobody's really running away with this league, either division.
No, but no, no team is really like blowing away
anybody or anything like that.
I think everything is a matter of just a couple plays here,
a couple of plays there between every one of these teams,
including the, the Raptors, the wins, even.
Or, you know, so it tells you a lot right there.
Yeah.
One quick thing I also wanted to note about the tarp situation.
If you think it's not difficult,
or if you have any issues about just Google tarp situations
and baseball history, there are a billion of them.
It's just evidence to what you guys were talking about there.
We got some exciting events coming up at the ballpark, too.
Let's touch on those.
Well, just this Saturday, we've got a really cool event
called Anyone But Kelsey.
So brand new across the Northwoods League,
across MLB, where we're going to celebrate Taylor Swift
and kind of bring down Travis Kelsey
after that super bowl performance.
And, you know, Taylor deserves better.
So bring out those Travis Kelsey jerseys
and trade them in for a Raptors jersey.
Yeah, that's a fun one we got go.
And everyone's been reaching out and saying,
anyone but Kelsey and I that's super creative,
we're really excited to do that.
But I mean, in general, we have a week full of fun
at the ballpark Tuesday.
We've got our golf night.
We're going to do everything related to the,
I like to go out the secondary game of baseball
because if you ever talk with baseball players,
they love to golf days.
Yeah.
It changes their approach to the game.
So we're excited to do a little bit of that.
I'm very excited for Wednesday for the love of the game night
because one big thing that we've been hearing
is while the Raptors games are immensely fun for all ages,
a lot of our fans are saying it's too much
and we're taking away from the game of baseball.
So this is a game to give back to them.
If you want to come out and watch baseball
in its purist form, minimal interruptions, minimal noise,
just baseball in its purist form,
that's what Wednesday is all about.
And then we got classic redneck night.
Oh, yeah.
Red solo cup giveaways.
Graphics pros did a great job on that.
So I'm excited about that.
Yeah, we're very excited to roll that one out.
Native American Heritage Night presented
by a whole chunk game in Nekusa,
kind of celebrating the culture that doesn't get
a lot of spotlight, especially in the game of baseball.
So we want to make sure that they're seeing
and then wrap it up with anyone but Kelsey night.
I've already got my Travis Kelsey,
crosstaff jersey already to go.
So we're excited for that one.
That's, it's gonna be great.
Hopefully we don't create any bad blood with Mr. Kelsey,
but I'm sorry, that I had to,
and that's the only song I know.
So that was it.
That was the closest I could make to a Taylor Swift song.
It was just up to top my head as all I had,
but that's a fun.
Just you guys are having so much fun with these
and that means, and I know for a fact,
this community is gonna have fun with them.
That's great.
One of the things I'm also looking forward to,
and very selfishly, I'll admit,
the United Week kind of event coming up,
that's a big one for us here around,
and not just at our studios, but in our community.
I'm fortunate I get to judge on that
when I had been for the last couple of years.
It's easily the toughest thing I have to do every year.
I have no idea how to just choose between these great.
Oh great, here's a wonderful nonprofit
that does amazing things in our community.
Right next to another wonderful nonprofit
that does amazing things in this community.
How am I supposed to choose between that?
It's not easy man, it's not easy,
but I'm looking forward to that night.
That is also coming up on June 17th.
There are of course, our single game package tickets available.
There are so many wonderful opportunities
for you to go to these games
and support your rafters who put so much into this community
along with giving us some great baseball
just about every night of the summer.
It's so much fun, we are enjoying the season.
Guys, thanks a lot for joining us,
appreciate the time from you.
Want to encourage everybody to go to Northwoodsleague.com,
get those tickets, find out more about some
of what we've talked about here today,
but if they'd like to reach either of you individually,
you want to give you any information
or just send them to the website.
Send them to the website,
I'm going to do a quick plug for United We Can.
If you start bringing in non-perishable food items this week
until United We Can, you get a free ticket
to a future game.
So, go to our house, go free tickets.
Yeah, great, great last minute plug.
But yeah, well, Northwoodsleague.com,
we love the last minute plug.
But if you want to reach us individually,
you can reach me at AGM at raftersbaseball.com
or you can even just stop down at Witterfield.
We are there.
We do love talking to rafters fans.
Had a bunch of people stop into the ticket office
and chat with us recently.
And we love doing that.
So, come up, stop on by and talk raftersbaseball.
We love to do it.
I love the opportunity and thank you to both of you.
You're the whole front office,
whole rafters organization giving us such a great opportunity
every summer to give away tickets.
We enjoy doing that.
We're going to be doing that throughout the summer here,
playmakers, like right now.
Want you to call up?
Give me your favorite,
give me your favorite lead off hitter.
I want your favorite lead off hitter.
Give me whoever it is.
Go ahead and make a lot of guys have played lead off.
So, you know, some guys even do it once.
It doesn't matter.
I'm not trying to stump anybody.
I just want to give you these tickets.
So, give me maybe your favorite baseball player,
favorite lead off hitter, favorite left fielder.
And they go ahead and give me something like that.
It will get you four tickets this year.
What's constantly rafters?
These are open game tickets.
You can go to any game this summer.
We will meet you at Witterfield.
And we'll be looking forward to another edition
to meet your rafters.
Thanks for the time again, you two.
Yeah, thank you.
Always pleasure.
We will take a quick time out.
We'll come back and wrap up playmakers here at WRI,
105-5.
