Curve extend partnership with flagship radio station

CURVE, Pa. - The Altoona Curve, Double-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates, along with Lightner Communications announced a three-year extension through 2022 on Friday for Talk Radio 98.5 WRTA and 1240 AM to continue as the flagship radio home of the Altoona Curve Radio Network.

Talk Radio WRTA will broadcast 115 regular-season games during the 2020 Curve season. The remaining 25 contests, all day games, will be carried on 96.1 FM and 1370 AM WKMC. Live audio streams of all 140 games are available for free on the TuneIn Radio and MLB First Pitch mobile apps in addition to WRTA.com. 
The Curve have carried their games on the airwaves of the radio group formerly known as Sounds Good Media since 2017. Lightner Communications purchased Sounds Good Media in October 2019.
"We are thrilled to be the radio home of the Altoona Curve. The Curve mean so much to our community, and we are very excited to play a part in promoting them over our family of stations," said Matt Lightner, Owner and President of Lightner Communications. "Talk Radio 98.5 FM and 1240 AM WRTA will be the flagship station, but weekday morning and early afternoon games airing on our sister station, Classic Hits 96.1 FM and 1370 AM WKMC. This coming season, updated broadcast equipment will greatly enhance the quality and experience of the games heard on our 98.5 FM signal. The games will now also be streamed online at WRTA.com."
The Curve and Lightner Communications will also continue their cross-promotional and marketing relationships from past seasons. Popular on-air personalities from the Lightner Communications family of stations (Q94, Mix 94.7, Talk Radio WRTA, JACK-FM, Classic Hits 96.1, Easy Favorites WTRN) will be on hand throughout the season at Peoples Natural Gas Field for remote broadcasts and to take part in contests and in-game events.
"We are thrilled to be working with Matt and everyone at Lightner Communications to continue to deliver Curve baseball through our flagship radio station, Talk Radio 98.5 WRTA," said Curve general manager Derek Martin. "Matt's expertise in radio engineering and the reach of his radio group throughout West and Central Pennsylvania makes this partnership a no-brainer for us. His willingness to enhance our equipment will be a huge boost for our broadcast team."
Garett Mansfield and Justin Gallanty will call the action for the Curve during the 2020 season.
Mansfield enters his third season in Altoona and second as the team's lead play-by-play broadcaster. The Defiance, Ohio native joined the club after previous seasons with the Beloit Snappers (Class A, Oakland Athletics) and El Paso Chihuahuas (Triple-A, San Diego Padres). He has also called games for the Chugiak-Eagle River Chinooks, a summer collegiate baseball team in Alaska, and the West Ohio Sports Network. He is a graduate of Bowling Green State University and called numerous Falcon athletic events for the Bowling Green Radio Sports Organization.
Gallanty enters his first season as the Curve's Communications and Broadcasting Assistant and third year in Minor League Baseball. A Westport, Conn. native, Gallanty spent 2019 with the Bowie Baysox (Double-A, Baltimore Orioles) after he called games for the Burlington Royals (Rookie-Adv., Kansas City Royals) in 2018. He has additional baseball experience with the Cape Cod Baseball League's Bourne Braves and Ocean State Waves of the New England Collegiate Baseball League. He earned his degree in Broadcast Journalism from the University of Maryland and was heavily involved with the Maryland Baseball Network.
The Curve return to the field and the Talk Radio 98.5 WRTA airwaves on Thursday, April 9. Pregame coverage of every game begins 15 minutes prior to first pitch. Further details on listening options and broadcast information can be found at AltoonaCurve.com.
The Altoona Curve, 2010 and 2017 Eastern League Champions, have been the Double-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates since 1999. For tickets or more information, visit AltoonaCurve.com, call 877.99.CURVE or stop by the PNG Field box office. Additionally, the Stockyard Team Store is open Monday-Friday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on non-gamedays and online 24/7/365.