Cal Ripken Jr. - Founding Owner and Chairman of Ripken Baseball
Executive Management
Bill Ripken - Executive Vice President
Jack Graham, General Manager, a 2012 graduate of Kenyon College and former Orioles' minor league player, arrived in Aberdeen in 2013 as a catcher. Jack helped the IronBirds to a McNamara Division Championship, the club's only post-season appearance that same year. Following his retirement from professional baseball, Jack came back to Aberdeen to work for the Ripken Baseball organization, eventually taking over as Assistant General Manager of Operations and finally taking the helm as General Manager in August of 2019. In addition to overseeing the club's business operations, he also manages the IronBirds' relationship with the their big league parent club, the Baltimore Orioles, working closely with the club that drafted him in the 38th round.
Ticketing
Justin, a native of Brick, New Jersey, is a graduate of Towson University where he received a Bachelor of Science in Sport Management. He joined the Aberdeen IronBirds in May of 2016 as a Fan Relationship Specialist and has now become the Senior Manager of Membership Services. Prior to joining the IronBirds, he worked with the Baltimore Orioles, Towson Athletics, Towson Sport Properties, and Tech USA. In his spare time, Justin enjoys cheering on his painful to watch New York Mets and Giants, and spending time with family and friends.
Andrew, Born in Mechanicsburg, PA and graduated from Duquesne University with a BS in Sports Marketing in 2017 while also playing football for the Dukes. Andrew came the IronBirds in May of 2021 after spending time with the Bowling Green Hot Rods as the Group Sales Manager and the Lancaster Barnstormers as a Business Development Specialist. Andrew enjoys hanging out with friends and family while not at the stadium, attempting to golf and watching all sports including the Pittsburgh Pirates and Steelers along with the WVU Mountaineers and NY Knicks.
Jessica Benson joined the IronBirds staff October of 2021. A born and raised Maryland Native, Jessica also lived in Florida for nearly six years where she attended Florida International University graduating in 2018 with a bachelor’s degree in Communications. Jessica brings a great deal of professional sports experience to the IronBirds ranging from The Miami Dolphins, The Baltimore Orioles and currently still can be seen working gamedays at M&T Bank Stadium for the Baltimore Ravens.
In her free time, Jessica loves attending sporting events, shopping and traveling to new places (especially if a beach is involved!). A fan of baseball, she also enjoys watching football and hockey…Go CAPS! And lastly to put it in her own words, “I AM A HUGE COFFEE LOVER.”
Corporate Partnerships & Events
Brekke was born and raised in Arkansas, has lived all around the country (and England!), but calls Harford County home for many years now. She met her husband in Nebraska and they have been adventuring together for 15 years, with two ridiculously cute kids in tow. Brekke attended Purdue University Global for her bachelor’s degree in Industrial/Organizational Psychology. Prior to joining the IronBirds in October of 2021, her professional career has included more than a decade in the hospitality business, most recently leading the Home2 Suites by Hilton team as Director of Sales and General Manager here in Aberdeen.
In her spare time, Brekke likes to travel, work on home improvement projects, and spend time with her family. She will eat just about anything after years of being the guinea pig for her Chef husband. Favors can be bought with coffee and a mixture of peanut and peanut butter M&Ms. She hopes to come back as a penguin in her next life.
Becca, a long-time resident of Havre de Grace, MD, graduated from Eastern Nazarene College in 2019 with a BS in Sports Management while also playing volleyball and softball for the Lions. She went on to continue her secondary education at Regis College where she received her MA in Strategic Communication with a focus in athletics in the Spring of 2021. While completing her masters, Becca began her career in event planning and coordination within the Center for Student Engagement at Regis College. In her spare time, Becca enjoys tending to her garden and chickens, shopping for new houseplants to add to her collection, and supporting her local breweries.
Mattie, Maryland born and raised, graduated from Towson University in 2020 with a BS in Sport Management. She joins the IronBirds after interning during the 2021 season with Double-A affiliate, the Bowie Baysox. Mattie also works with the Baltimore Ravens as a game day supervisor in their retail stores. She has a love for all sports and enjoys watching and attending sporting events whenever she can. Mattie loves to spend her time shopping in person and online, going out with friends, and hanging out at home with her family.
Administration
Food & Beverage
Derrick, although born in Virginia, went to school right here in Harford County. A graduate of C. Milton Wright High School, Derrick went on to travel the country studying culinary arts, eventually meeting his wife and mother of their two children in Omaha, Nebraska. Derrick continued his education in culinary arts at Baltimore International College, then earning a degree in Business Administration from Purdue University Global. Derrick began his employment with the IronBirds as the Executive Chef in 2018, transitioned to Catering Manager in 2019, and now serves as Director of Food and Beverage Operations. Derrick is an avid collector of spare nuts, bolts, and screws, which he stores in old coffee cans in his garage and unfinished basement. Derrick aspires to own a jicama farm that he hopes to, one day, pass on to his children.
Operations and Facilities
Larry was born and raised in central New Jersey and after High School joined the United States Air Force as a Crash Rescue Firefighter. He was stationed at Dover AFB for four years where he began his career in the military as a professional firefighter. As a Veteran, Larry continued his firefighter career with the Federal Government, earned his degree in Fire Science Technologies and retired from the Perry Point VAMC after 33 years of service. With his unique work schedule as a professional firefighter, he also had a 30-year career as a Contractor and Operations Manager in the building and maintenance industries. Larry joined the Aberdeen IronBirds in 2014 as the Facilities Manager. Larry enjoys spending time with his wife, children, grandson and two pet boxers. He also enjoys sports, playing softball and jogging.
Todd Bradley, born and raised in Harford County has been on the grounds crew since 2012. He took a full-time position as Assistant Sports Turf Manager in 2014. He took over as the Head Grounds Keeper for the Ironbirds in 2016. In his spare time, Todd enjoys a good book and spending time with his beautiful family Meg, Rae, and Jack. His favorite sports teams are the Ravens, Orioles, and Capitals.
Skye was born in Bronx, New York and grew up in Baltimore County, Maryland. She Graduated from Delaware State University, December of 2019, with her BS in Sport Management. In 2019 she joined the IronBirds as Jack Graham’s Operations Intern and worked her way up to being promoted to Operations Manager mid-season 2021. Skye's favorite part of being an IronBird so far is getting to know all the Fan Hosts she oversees now; they make her feel like family!
Outside of work, Skye is working on her MS in Negotiation and Conflict Management at University of Baltimore. She also loves spending time with her family and friends, writing, watching movies and going to the gym to let off some steam. She’s very hopeful to make an impact here at Ripken Stadium!
Marketing and Game Production
A humble yet humorous man, Kevin (or KJ) has been creating new and fun concepts in baseball since 2000. He has received a national spotlight for his designs from ESPN, Sports Illustrated, eBay and even has a jersey in the National Baseball Hall of Fame. More an artist than he'd like to admit - KJ loves to write, occasionally creates Synthwave music, customize his cars, fix computers and watch a wide variety of genres from engaging documentaries to terrible B-movies.
In 2019, KJ celebrated his 20th season in minor league baseball - 18 of them with the Brooklyn Cyclones before joining the IronBirds in 2018. Born and raised in Queens, KJ had some adjusting to do since moving from the big city. To stay active and engaged, KJ is out and about Maryland in his "Lyft Machine". His mission; to fight injustice, to right that which is wrong and to serve all humankind (by offering bottled water and phone chargers to Lyft riders).