|
Around the Town in the IPA
Hartsdale Hellcats
Owner: Pioneer Brewing Company
GM: Zim Donner
Manager: Jud Turchin
Hartsdale, with population of about 74,OOO, is situated on the slopes of the Appian Mountains of Northern Tycobbia. It is a blue-collar, working class town, functional and old-fashioned in architecture. Primary industries are coal and iron ore mining, timber, glassware and beer. The vital Appian River begins in the Appian Mountains near North Hills, travels most of the country from north to south, past Hartsdale to the capital city, La Claire, then finally culminates at Bay St. Clair, a seaport town on the west central coast. The river provides an inexpensive source of transportation and is crucial to Hartsdale’s and Tycobbia’s economies.
Hartsdale is also the home of the Hellcats baseball team of the Islandian Pro Alliance. They are in the Tycobbian Union North Division and play at Pioneer Park. The Pioneer Brewing Company owns the club and is the maker of Tycobbia’s favorite brew, Pioneer Premium Beer. The brewery can be seen just beyond the center and right field fences of Pioneer Park. In fact, the brick walls of the factory form part of the right field bleachers. Company bigwigs can watch the ballgame from their offices.
Hellcats fans take their baseball very seriously and are serious students of the game. It’s baseball, beer and hot dogs in the hearts of the fans -- and the last two are a very distant second. When they go to a game, their eyes stay glued to the action on the field. They are hardcore Hellcats fans, too, and give no breaks or quarter to the opposing team or their fans. Very few visiting fans have the courage to display their loyalties very much in front of the rough and rowdy Hellcats. They get some very hard stares if they do. The Hartsdalians are tough and demanding on the Hellcats players, too. At the traditional seventh inning stretch each adult is gifted with a small sample of Pioneer Beer and it is used to toast their cherished baseball team as they sing a few bars of “99 bottles of beer on the wall”, followed by “Take me out to the ballgame”. And you can get the best burgers and dogs in Tycobbia, grilled to perfection on the concessions concourse.
The Hellcats are corporately owned. Zim Donner, a 50-year veteran in amateur and professional baseball, is the GM. He was a fine up-and-coming shortstop until he suffered a couple of beanballs that turned him into just a journeyman infielder. But he is one fine manager and baseball teacher. When he was the manager Donner was known to charge the mound occasionally. The fiery Hellcats fans love him. Donner moved upstairs a few years ago and made Hall of Fame shortstop Jud Turchin the skipper. He was a seven-time All-Star in addition to being a Gold Glove fielder, who swung a big bat. In his 21 seasons with Hartsdale (2002-2022) Turchin batted .304 with over 300 homers, 1600 RBIs and 1800 runs scored. He played in 2957 games, collected 3360 hits and was inducted into the IPA Hall of Fame in 2036.
Pioneer Park (1954)
Capacity: 10,000
Dimensions:
LF Line 322
LF 345
LCF 375
CF 415
RCT 375
RF 345
RF Line 322
|