Ken Babby is an American businessperson. He is the Founder & Chief Executive Officer of Fast Forward Sports Group. Previously, Babby served as Chief Revenue Officer/ Vice President and General Manager, Digital for ''

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

''. Presently, he is the Owner of the

Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are located in Jacksonville, Florida, and are named for shrimp caught in the area. The team pla ...

(AAA Affiliate of the

Miami Marlins The Miami Marlins are an American professional baseball team based in Miami. The Marlins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) East division. The club's home ballpark is LoanDepot Park. The franc ...

) &

Akron RubberDucks The Akron RubberDucks are a Minor League Baseball team based in Akron, Ohio. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They play in Canal Park, located in downtown Akron, which seats 7,630 ...

(AA

Cleveland Guardians The Cleveland Guardians are an American professional baseball team based in Cleveland. The Guardians compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League Central, Central division. Since , they have ...

) baseball teams.

Early life

In his youth, Ken Babby was a fan of the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

. He often attended this games with his father,

Lon Babby Lon Scott Babby (born February 21, 1951) is an American lawyer and NBA player agent who was named the Phoenix Suns President of Basketball Operations on Tuesday July 20, 2010. However, as of June 10, 2015, Babby has been moved to the team's senio ...

, who was General Counsel for the team, and was later president of basketball operations for the

Phoenix Suns The Phoenix Suns are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. The Suns are the only team in t ...

. His mother is author Ellen Babby. Babby attended Wheaton College (Massachusetts) where he graduated with a dual degree in Computer Science and Economics. Babby later graduated with an MBA from

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...

''The Washington Post''

Babby began working at ''

'' as of 1999, beginning as an intern in the IT department, and joined the IT department full-time in 2002. He then began working in advertising, eventually becoming vice president of advertising for the ''Post''. He remained with the ''Post'' until 2012, when he left from his position as chief revenue officer and general manager, Digital. He was the youngest senior official in the company's history.

Minor League Baseball

In 2012, at the age of 32, Babby acquired the

Akron Aeros The Akron RubberDucks are a Minor League Baseball team based in Akron, Ohio. The team, which plays in the Eastern League, is the Double-A affiliate of the Cleveland Guardians. They play in Canal Park, located in downtown Akron, which seats 7,630 ...

Double-A minor league baseball team of the

organization, and renamed the team the

in 2014. In 2016 the team won the Eastern League championship, and that same year they hosted the Eastern League All-Star Game. The team's stadium also underwent a $8.0 million privately funded renovation since Babby's ownership. In 2015 Babby acquired the

Jacksonville Suns The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League (IL) and the Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins. They are located in Jacksonville, Florida, and are named for shrimp caught in the area. The team pla ...

Double-A minor league baseball team of the Southern League, a part of the

organization, and renamed the team the

in 2016. Additionally, Babby invested $2 million renovating the team's home, the

Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville 121 Financial Ballpark (originally the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville) is a baseball park in Jacksonville, Florida. It is the home stadium of the Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp Minor League Baseball team, who play in the International League. The ...

. In 2020, the club announced a historic naming rights partnership with 121 Financial, renaming the ballpark 121 Financail Ballpark. The Jumbo Shrimp were invited to become the AAA Affiliate of the Miami Marlins ahead of the 2021 season. Both his teams are operated by his company the Fast Forward Sports Group. For both, he reduced ticket prices and revamped the concession stands, with the goal of providing a family friendly environment. In 2016 Babby was also named to the Sports Business Journal's 40 under 40 list, and a regional Ernst and Young Entrepreneur of the Year recipient. Babby currently serves on the MLB PDL (Professional Development League) Executive Board.

Boards

Babby serves on the Wheaton College board of trustees., Jacksonville University Board of Trustees, and the Board of Baptist Health System (Downtown Jacksonville Campus); He also serves on the boards of the Cleveland Sports Commission and the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce. Ken is currently serving a two-year term as board chair, Visit Jacksonville.

Personal life

Ken is married to Liz Bryan, a executive vice president of Spectrum, and has a 13-year-old son, Josh.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Babby, Ken Living people Johns Hopkins Carey Business School alumni Wheaton College (Massachusetts) alumni The Washington Post people Year of birth missing (living people)