Latest News

Published On: February 11th, 2020

Wisconsin Rapids, Wis.- The Wisconsin Rapids Rafters will hold a meet and greet with new owners Joe and Vinnie Fonti on Thursday, February 27th at Great Expectations from 6:00pm to 8:00pm. The meet and greet marks the first public event for the Fonti brothers as owners of the Rafters. Members of the media, ticket package holders, host families, and the general public are encouraged to attend. Appetizers will be included for attendees. A cash bar will also be available.

The event will kick off with a Q&A session for attendees to ask any questions that may have been on their mind since the initial ownership transfer announcement. The Fonti brothers will be available for interviews, additional questions, and private conversations following the Q&A session.

As January ended, the Rafters announced the ownership transfer of the franchise from founders Steve Schmitt and Vern Stenman to Joe and Vinnie Fonti. Both residing in the Plover, the Fonti brothers are best known for their ownership of Furniture & ApplianceMart and Ashley Homestore brands. In conjunction with the ownership transfer, General Manager Andy Francis has come to terms on a two-year agreement to continue overseeing the day-to-day management of the team. Former team President, Vern Stenman will continue in an advisory role for the next two seasons as well.

The Rafters Home Opener is slated for 6:05pm on Wednesday, May 27th against the Fond du Lac Dock Spiders. For more information on the different ticket packages visit Raftersbaseball.com, call the Rafthouse at 715-424-5400, or visit Historic Witter Field. The Rafthouse is open from 9:00 am to 5:00 pm, Monday through Friday at Witter Field, 521 Lincoln Street in Wisconsin Rapids.

###

The Wisconsin Rapids Rafters are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Having completed its’ 26th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 teams, drawing significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires and front office staff, over 230 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist (CHC) and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and MLB All-Stars Jordan Zimmermann (DET) and Curtis Granderson (MIA). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.raftersbaseball.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Rafters as your favorite team.