More on Steve Schmitt & Co.’s Growing Summer Collegiate Empire

We’ve already mentioned Steve Schmitt and his Big Top Baseball’s growing summer collegiate empire, but you might want to check out three recent and informative articles about the group, as the first-year Kenosha Kingfish and newly acquired Green Bay Bullfrogs — both of the summer collegiate Northwoods League — kick off the 2014 season.  Read here, here, and here.  View Simmons Field renovation gallery here.

Express Decks on Deck

A request by the summer collegiate Eau Claire Express (Northwoods League) to install two small fan decks within the grandstand of historic Carson Park will be voted on this week by the Eau Claire (WI) City Council.  Read more here.  We assume the decks will be similar in nature to the primitive suite decks built and used by the NWL’s Madison Mallards before Warner Park underwent major renovation.

Amazing Milestone: Mallards to Welcome 2 Millionth Fan Tonight

Beyond owner Steve Schmitt and his team, who would have thought back in 2001 that the summer collegiate Madison Mallards (Northwoods League) would be where they are today after two affiliated teams, the  Single-A Madison Muskies and Madison Hatters (Midwest League), and an indy pro club, the Madison Black Wolf (Northern league), failed in the marketplace in one of the then-worst ballparks in America?

Mallards to Host Inaugural Pondamonium at the Duck Pond

PRESS RELEASE – The Madison Mallards will be hosting the inaugural Pondamonium, a live outdoor music festival from the Duck Pond at Warner Park on Thursday, August 9, 2012. Madison’s most popular musical product, Garbage, will be headlining the event along with The Flaming Lips. Gates will open at 2:30pm, with five bands performing starting at 3:00 p.m.

Annual Ballpark Improvements, Listening to Fans Secret to Mallards’ Success

For the Madison Mallards (Northwoods League), the most successful franchise in summer collegiate baseball history, expanding fan amenities each year, obsessively addressing fan complaints, and striving for the perfect fan experience is standard operating procedure.  This year, fans will enjoy the new “Backyard” grass hill, “Mallards Mini-Monster,” and 12-foot-wide rubber chicken-launching crossbow.  Read more here.

Mallards Unveil All-Star Game Logos, Renderings for More Ballpark Upgrades

PRESS RELEASE – The best college baseball talent in the country will play their mid-summer classic at the “Duck Pond” on July 24th at 7:35 pm.  The 2012 Northwoods League All-Star Game is coming to Madison.

New ‘Duck Pond’ Opens for Business Tonight

PRESS RELEASE – The wait is finally over. The Madison Mallards have returned home after an extremely successful 5-1 road trip. Tonight, the Ducks will face the Wisconsin Woodchucks; the team they defeated last night in Wausau to finish their six-game season-opening trip.

Park Commission to Consider ‘Duck Pond’ Renovation Deal Today

The Madison (WI) Park Board of Commissioners is scheduled to consider today a plan approved earlier this week by the Board of Estimates that would provide $1.3 million for renovations to Warner Park (the “Duck Pond”), home of the summer collegiate Madison Mallards.  Under the deal, the City of Madison would pony up $800k and the Mallards would kick in $500k to replace ballpark’s