Building

Thank you, Dan Powers of The Post-Crescent for catching this picture.

Thank you, Brett Christopherson, the once and future Timber Rattler beat writer for the PC for writing this article.

Excitement builds as Wisconsin Timber Rattlers opener draws near

Even 1,500 miles away, under the welcomed warmth of the Arizona sun, folks are eager to talk Wisconsin Timber Rattlers baseball.

Consider the unexpected exchange between Rattlers president Rob Zerjav and a spectator during a recent Milwaukee Brewers spring training game in Phoenix.

"He was from Fond du Lac, and he came up to me and told me he was excited about the partnership," Zerjav said, referring to the Rattlers' new four-year player development pact with the Brewers that will station Milwaukee's low-Class A minor league talent in Grand Chute through 2012 — a deal announced in September.

Wisconsin had served as a Seattle Mariners affiliate since 1993.

"That's the first time I've ever been recognized, especially in Arizona, for doing what I do," chuckled Zerjav, who also bumped into a young Green Bay boy wearing a Rattlers cap at Phoenix's Sky Harbor International Airport. "People are taking an interest."

People like Josh Skob.

That's why Neenah's Josh Skog decided to fork over $490 for a Rattlers season ticket, a box seat behind the team's third-base dugout.

Milwaukee's average minor league rating over the previous five seasons is seventh, while Seattle's is 17th. Neither mark is surprising given the Brewers have built a playoff-contending club largely by drafting and cultivating their own talent — sluggers Ryan Braun and Prince Fielder come to mind — while the slumping Mariners have produced losing marks in four of the last five seasons.

"I've been a huge Brewers fan for a while, and that's pretty much why I got a season ticket for the Rattlers," said Skog, 30, an auto repair shop manager who in past years attended only one or two Rattlers games per season.

"If you look at the Brewers' lineup now, the majority of it is all homegrown talent. And now, going to a lot of Timber Rattlers games, it will be easier to become more familiar with the prospects going through here," he said.

And people like Rob Rahn.

Little Chute's Rob Rahn, the 91-year-old former president of the Appleton Baseball Club Inc., the community-owned organization that governs the Rattlers, said he won't let age get in the way of catching a few more ballgames now that the local minor league club is linked with the Brewers.

"Health permitting, I'll go to more games again," said Rahn, a devoted Brewers, White Sox and Chicago Cubs follower. "I think I'll get involved more. I'm in favor of it. It's a good deal, a good move."

And -- we hope -- people like you.

Brett also captured some of the scenes around the ballpark and posted some video at the link along with comments from the boss.