Nice promo: the Rockland Boulders (independent; Can-Am League) will be changing their team name to the Bergen Boulders — but just for a day. With Bergen County residents accounting for a good chunk of the team’s fan base — some 9 percent — and a ready sponsor in a local car dealership, the Boulders will […]
Tag Archives | independent
Diablos casualty of new El Paso ballpark
One side effect of a new ballpark in downtown El Paso: the probable demise of the El Paso Diablos (independent; American Association). Owned by the Tigua tribe, the Diablos play out of city-owned Cohen Stadium. Since buying the team for $500,000 in 2011, the Tigua tribe has spent about $750,000 on ballpark improvements, including a swimming […]
Slow start at the gate for Sioux City Explorers
It’s been a slow start to the season for the Sioux City Explorers (independent; American Association), as only 1,177 fans are showing up nightly at Lewis and Clark Park. That number ranks last in the American Association; it’s also about half of what the second-to-last team, the Sioux Falls Pheasants, are drawing per game (2,200) and […]
No beer, no ball: Pecos League and Carlsbad part ways
The inability to sell beer has prompted the independent Pecos League and the city of Carlsbad to part ways in a discussion of a future franchise. The Pecos League’s Andrew Dunn has worked for several years on a Carlsbad franchise, going to the point of naming the league’s 2011 traveling team the Carlsbad Bats and […]
Boulders, we hardly knew ye; name change on tap
Well, this is quick: the Rockland Boulders (independent; Can-Am League) have scheduled a press conference Saturday to announce the team’s new name. The team had its inaugural season in 2011. The announcement, set for Ramsey Nissan in Upper Saddle River, N.J., will involve some ticket giveaways and more. — Share your news with the baseball community. […]
Life on the bottom indy league: $50 a week
You must really love baseball to play in the independent Pecos League, where players receive $50 a week and some teams draw as little as 150 fans a game. Now, most of us in the baseball world remember a time when we were doing it for the love of the game, whether it was as […]
No baseball this summer in Shreveport
After the loss of independent baseball and a failed effort at summer-collegiate ball, Shreveport’s Fair Grounds Field sits empty this summer, its future far from assured. When it opened in 1986, Fair Grounds Field was seen as a shining star in the Minor League Baseball pantheon, outfitted with the kinds of amenities you usually found […]
Macon seeking return of pro baseball
Macon officials once again raise the possibility of the return of affiliated baseball to the Georgia city, with a new downtown ballpark dangled as a lure. There’s no funding plan or anything other than some city officials acknowledging that Luther Williams Field, whatever else its charm and allure, won’t be enough to bring back professional […]
St. Paul council to vote on state ballpark-funding request
The St. Paul City Council is expected to unanimously approve a request of state funding for a new St. Paul Saints (independent; American Association) ballpark today. The city will put together a funding request for $27 million from a $47.5 million economic-development fund overseen by the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED). This would cover half […]
Pheasants attendance up dramatically this season
Apparently new ownership and management caught the attention of Sioux Falls Pheasants (independent; American Association) fans: attendance is up some 46 percent this season over last. “We want to thank our fans for their outstanding support so far this season,” said Pheasants President and CEO Tom Garrity. “We are working hard to create new ways […]
Macomb County: We want minor-league ball
A long-term development plan for Macomb County in suburban Detroit calls for the development of a minor-league ballpark in Utica. Macomb County’s Blue Economy Strategic Development Plan lists 49 projects to be undertaken by the county. It’s not as though there’s not been an effort to bring baseball to the region — a group failed […]
Hanging on: Former home to baseball in Winnipeg
The former home of the Winnipeg Goldeyes (independent; American Association) and the Winnipeg Whips (Class AAA; International League) will remain open — for now. Canad Inns Stadium, better known as home of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers (CFL), was slated to be torn down this fall after the Bombers moved to a new stadium on the […]
Atlantic City exhibition games scrapped; still in running for 2013 pro ball
A plan for independent Atlantic League exhibition games at Surf Stadium has been scrapped due to ballpark issues, but Atlantic City remains in the running to land a 2013 team. Former Surf manager Mario Perrucci pulled the plug on the Labor Day exhibition games, saying he wasn’t confident ballpark improvements would be completed in time to see a […]