FOX 9 Town Ball Tour heads across the border to River Falls, Wisconsin
FOX 9 Town Ball Tour heads to River Falls, Wis.
This week, the FOX 9 Town Ball Tour heads east to Wisconsin as the River Falls Fighting Fish host the Hudson River Rats Wednesday night at "The Bank." Manager Ryan Bishop joined FOX 9 News at 5 on Sunday to preview what to expect.
RIVER FALLS, Wis. (FOX 9) - This week, the FOX 9 Town Ball Tour shifts east to our friends in western Wisconsin.
FOX 9 Town Ball Tour – River Falls, Wis.
FOX 9 Town Ball Tour: J.P. Feyereisen on going pro after Town Ball
J.P. Feyereisen, who recently retired from the Los Angeles Dodgers, is a River Falls native and now lives in town again. The hometown hero sat down with FOX 9's Jim Rich and Randy Meier to talk about the Feyereisen Foundation, which raises money for adaptive sports equipment for those with disabilities.
What we know:
The FOX 9 Town Ball Tour heads just across the border to River Falls, as the Fighting Fish host the Hudson River Rats Wednesday night at First National Bank of River Falls Field. The Fighting Fish play in Division A of the St. Croix Valley League.
FOX 9 Town Ball Tour: River Falls Fighting Fish history
This week for the FOX 9 Town Ball Tour, we're in River Falls, Wisconsin, to hang out with the Fighting Fish. Greg Peters, the River Falls Baseball Council President since 2017, joins to talk about the history of the team.
Who are the River Falls Fighting Fish?
The backstory:
The team started in 2007, with most of the team coming from college players at UW River Falls. The college program was discontinued in 2002, but many of the athletes still wanted to play, and an amateur baseball team was born. The Fighting Fish won three straight St. Croix Valley League titles from 2009-11, and won a state championship in 2011. They also won titles in 2020, and 2022.
FOX 9 Town Ball Tour: Turf field for River Falls Fighting Fish
This week on the FOX 9 Town Ball Tour, we're in River Falls, the home of the Fighting Fish. FOX 9 Sports Director Jim Rich catches up with VFW Manager and Fish coach Ryan Bishop. He explains the team's mission to have a fully artificial turf field.
About ‘The Bank’
Dig deeper:
First National Bank of River Falls Field is a mouthful, so it’s often shortened to "The Bank." It’s a lighted, stadium-style ballpark featuring a covered grandstand with 300 fixed seats, a sheltered picnic area, concession stands, press/media box, bullpens, and batting cages. The field opened in 2014, and they had artificial turf installed in 2019 courtesy of an $850,000 grant the River Falls Baseball Council received from Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players’ Association Youth Development Foundation.
FOX 9 Town Ball Tour: Keeping fighting fish broadcasts afloat
River Falls Utility Director for River Falls Municipal Utilities keeps the live streams up and running for the River Falls Fighting Fish. FOX 9's Jim Rich caught up with him to learn more about the impressive operation.
"The Bank" was 100% volunteer built and volunteer run by the River Falls Baseball Council. The facility hosts about 130 games per year between town ball, high school, Legion and youth baseball and softball. River Falls’ 35-and-over team, the Groupers, also uses the field.
FOX 9 Town Ball Tour: Border battle with Hudson, River Falls managers
This week on the FOX 9 Town Ball Tour, it's a rivalry game in Wisconsin between the River Falls Fighting Fish and Hudson River Rats. River Falls manager Josh Eidem, and Hudson manager Carl "Frenchy" LaBreche join the set to talk about their rivalry.
2026 FOX 9 Town Ball Tour schedule
Big picture view:
The latest on the FOX 9 Town Ball Tour can be found here.
- July 15: River Falls Fighting Fish host the Hudson River Rats at 7:30 p.m.
- July 22: Loretto Larks host the Howard Lake Orphans at 7 p.m.
How to watch FOX 9 Town Ball Tour
Watch live:
FOX 9 will broadcast live from the ballpark starting with the FOX 9 Morning News, continuing into All Day and live coverage at 5 p.m., with post-game coverage continuing on FOX 9 News at 9 and 10 p.m. You can watch on FOX 9, as well as streaming on FOX9.com and FOX LOCAL.