(February 14, 2018) When Logan Ratick was considering an opportunity to join the broadcast team of the Quad Cities River Bandits, he contacted his friend Kit Scheetz. Scheetz pitched for QC in 2017 and helped them win the Midwest League championship. “Kit told me how great the organization was, from the front office to the fans and Modern Woodmen Park. I was instantly intrigued,” says Ratick.
Intrigued enough that Ratick applied and is the River Bandits new Broadcasting and Media Relations Assistant. He’ll work alongside lead broadcaster and fellow STAA member Jason Kempf.
A 2017 Syracuse graduate and STAA All-American, Ratick spent last summer broadcasting for the short season Idaho Falls Chukars. He had the option of returning to Idaho Falls next season but Ratick and Chukars GM Kevin Greene agreed that Ratick should make the jump to full-season baseball if he found the right opportunity.
“I am no longer a No. 1 and will probably call less innings this summer, I believe that it is important to show progression,” says Ratick. “Like baseball players, broadcasters typically want to move up through the minors in order to get closer to the ultimate goal: Major League Baseball. I also wanted to start broadcasting baseball games right after basketball season ends instead of having to wait until June.
“As someone who wants to broadcast baseball for my entire career, it is important to show people that I am capable of handling the grind that is a full season. Jason made it clear to me that he wants to provide me with enough innings and give me constructive feedback so that I can eventually land a No. 1 broadcasting job with a full-season team. I feel as though I am in a better position to get a No.1 job in A or AA now that I have made the transition from short-season to full-season.”
Ratick first contacted the River Bandits in October but didn’t hear back until early January, after they had hired Kempf to be the Director of Broadcasting and Media Relations.
“I reached out to Jason immediately and we spoke over the phone a few days later,” says Ratick.
Building relationships has long been a strength of Ratick’s.
“When I was a senior in college, I reached out to almost every short-season team regarding broadcast positions because I knew that I could not start until after I graduated in May,” he explains. “This time around (starting in October), I reached out to every full-season team that posted a broadcast opening, as well as other teams that I thought might have a vacancy.
“Networking is very important in this industry. Alex Cohen, the new voice of the Iowa Cubs [and another STAA member], has been a mentor and a friend of mine throughout my young Minor League Baseball career. He is someone who I can always go to for advice and he helped me get in touch with a lot of broadcasters, especially in the Midwest League, where he spent the last two seasons with Bowling Green.
“Alex put in the good word for me [with Quad Cities] and I interviewed with a few of the people who he had referred me to, including Jason Kempf. Between contacting almost every full-season team and talking to Alex, I felt confident that I would end up with a full-season job.
(Visit Logan’s LinkedIn page).