Far Mountain Redhawks Home Page
FAR MOUNTAIN REDHAWKS
Owner: Becker Hospitality Enterprises
GM/Manager: Benny Van (2076)
Far Mountain, located in northern Ruthlandia in the Appian Mountains, is a very popular year-round ski resort and convention center. A beautiful town of 75,000 founded by immigrants from the German and Swiss Alps, Far Mountain oozes Tyrolian charm and culture. Horse drawn sleighs and buggies provide free public transportation. The rich and famous come here for wonderful ski vacations, to savor the good life and to enjoy the great hotels, nightclubs, shops, restaurants and nightlife. Yet it is priced for every pocketbook. Middle class families also partake of its many pleasures and activities. And with fine convention facilities, Far Mountain plays host to many professional and educational organizations.
And it is the home of the Far Mountain Redhawks baseball team of the Ruthlandian Union. The team is in the North Division and plays their games at Sky High Stadium with a magnificent panoramic view of the Appian Mountains in the distance. A specialty at all Redhawks games is a great polka band that furnishes music and songs, whenever there is a break in the game action. During the seventh-inning stretch Redhawks supporters have a great time doing the Chicken Dance and singing Take me out to the ballgame to the accompaniment of the polka band. And fans get to enjoy special culinary treats of Bavarian beers, Nurnberg bratwurst mit sauerkraut (fried sausage with sauerkraut), Schwartzwalder kirschtorte (Black Forest cake) and Apfelstrudel (apple strudel) pastries and hot gourmet soups at the games. Many fine German beers are served in profusion, too. In addition all of the traditional ballpark favorites are provided.
The Far Mountain Redhawks are owned by Becker Hospitality Enterprises. They are the proud proprietors of one of the oldest hotels in town, The Bavarian Gasthaus. Johan Becker developed a love for baseball in high school and college and played varsity baseball for both. He met Jock Ewing of Ewing Oil and Ewing Enterprises and developed a business relationship with him to make Far Mountain into a tourist resort. When Ewing offered him one of the franchises in the IPA, Johan quickly invested in it. His family is still running the business.
For a general manager and field manager, Becker originally hired one of the great pitchers of the industrial leagues, Alex Groveland, who was the chief architect of the famous Far Mountain three-peat, the winning of three straight Pro Cups in 2011, 2012 and 2013. It's been accomplished only one time in the annals of the Islandian Pro Alliance. Groveland made the playoffs 10 times in his managerial tenure and was honored as the Ruthlandian Union Manager of the Year in 2012, 2013 and 2014. His last season was in 2024.
The second skipper was one of the best players in IPA history, Hall-of-Fame shortstop Don Nichols. As a player Nichols sparked Far Mountain to the three consecutive Pro Cup titles and seven division flags. In his 24 years in the league Nichols batted .310 in 3523 games (8th) with 3760 hits (5rd), 1773 RBIs (18th), 2161 runs (4th) and stole 668 bases (8th). In 95 playoff games he hit .300 with 9 homers, 51 RBIs, 53 runs and 17 stolen bases. Nichols was elected to the IPA Hall of Fame in 2027. He played 17 years with Far Mountain and 7 with the Marston Nine. He retired as a player in 2024. Nichols was skipper for 31 seasons with 5 pennants. When Nichols retired in 2056 as manager, he was replaced by his pitching coach, Robby Kelly, who was a teammate of Nichols during the glory years and also an IPA Hall-of-Famer. Kelly was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2030 after a splendid 19-year career... the chubby 250-pound right-hander posted a 279-196 record with a fine lifetime 3.23 ERA... Kelly holds the all-time Far Mountain record for wins. He played a prime role in the Redhawks' three IPA titles with a fine 11-4 mark in the playoffs those years. In a magnificent year Kelly went 22-8 in 2012 with a 2.38 ERA and was named the Ruthlandian Union Golden Arm and Most Valuable Player. Kelly's final season as a player was in 2019. He retired as skipper in 2057 with only 2 division flags, but most of the time the Redhawks had good clubs.
The current skipper of the Far Mountain Redhawks is a journeyman first basement Benjy Donahue, who played with the team for 11 years from 2045 to 2056, posting only modest numbers. In his career he hit .300 with 32 homers and 326 RBIs... Donahue retired as a player in 2056 and took over the club in 2076. Progress has been slow. The Redhawks have had only 2 winning years under him.
Sky High Stadium (1997)
Capacity: 10,444
Dimensions:
LF Line 330
LF 354
LC 380
CF 402
RC 380
RF 354
RF Line 330
