Futures League sets attendance record
Good news for the summer-collegiate Futures Collegiate Baseball League: with the addition of a tenth team, the circuit has already set a total attendance record with two weeks to go in the season. This is the fourth season for the Futures League, which launched in 2011 with only four teams: Nashua, Martha’s Vineyard, Torrington and […]
A baseball lifer: Matt Ellis
One of the best things about working in the baseball industry: hearing about baseball lifers. Here’s an interview with baseball lifer Matt Ellis, executive VP of the Missoula Osprey (rookie; Pioneer League). The Ellis family moved the team from Lethbridge to Missoula, working for years on a ballpark plan that eventually led to the construction […]
Ten tossed after Aces/Isotopes brawl
It was an epic baseball brawl in the Pacific Coast League, with nine players and Aces manager Phil Nevin tossed after a benches-clearing incident between Reno and the Albuquerque Isotopes Saturday night. Tensions had been rising between the two squads since an incident Friday night, when Isotopes third baseman Erisbel Arruebarrena took his time circling […]
Winning, conciliatory moves bring back Athletics fans
The best record in baseball and a recommitment to Oakland are generating dividends for the Oakland Athletics, as attendance at O.co Coliseum is up and prospects are bright for a new ballpark. Last season the A’s drew 22,337 fans per game. This year that number is up to 24,626 fans per game; a pretty good […]
Pelicans GM to undergo in-game prostate exam while singing “Take Me Out to the Ballgame”
That headline really wrote itself: Myrtle Beach Pelicans (High Class A; Carolina League) GM Andy Milovich will receive an in-game prostate exam while singing “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” during tomorrow’s Prostate Cancer Awareness Night. The promo is the result of a bet made to Pelicans fans, where Milovich challgenged them to like Fierce […]
Boomers eschew social media — for one-night promo
The Schaumburg Boomers (independent; Frontier League), who do a pretty good job with social media, are eschewing the technology for an upcoming Human Interaction Night on Saturday, July 26. The theme: turn off the smartphones and interact with your fellow human beings. That may be harder to do for many, but the Boomers are throwing […]
Blue Wahoos on verge of 100th sellout
The Pensacola Blue Wahoos (Class AA; Southern League) are on the verge of the team’s 100th sellout after recording the 98th sellout at Pensacola Bayfront Stadium on Saturday night. To date, the team has welcomed over 855,000 fans through its gates since its inaugural campaign, hitting the 200,000 fan mark for this season on Thursday, […]
Osprey, D-Backs extend PDC to 2020
The Missoula Osprey (rookie; Pioneer League) and the Arizona Diamondbacks extended their player development contract (PDC) for four more years, through the end of the 2020 season. The current agreement is set to expire at the end of the 2016 season. This affiliation relationship is the second longest current consecutive tenure in the Pioneer League […]
Savannah to Columbia? Relo paperwork filed
Hardball Capital has filed a relocation application with Minor League Baseball to move the Savannah Sand Gnats (Low Class A; Sally League) to Columbia (S.C.), according to a report from a local TV station, but that doesn’t mean Savannah is losing affiliated ball. The relocation application was confirmed by a local reporter, who wrote that […]
Local investor looking at bringing new SL team to Huntsville
The Huntsville Stars (Class AA; Southern League) haven’t set a firm date for leaving Joe Davis Stadium, but a local attorney is already looking at buying a replacement for a new downtown ballpark. Attorney Mark McDaniel, a former Stars owner during the Don Mincher era and attorney for the Southern League between 2001 and 2011, […]
Tigers, Lakeland agree on spring training lease extension
The city of Lakeland and the Detroit Tigers reached an agreement on a lease extension, committing the pair to Tiger Town and Joker Marchant Stadium upgrades, while keeping the team in central Florida through 2036. The $37-million plan for Tiger Town and Joker Marchant Stadium upgrades includes an expanded press box, new synthetic surfaces for […]
New MLB security measures: Impacting the fan experience?
There were some collective groans when MLB announced teams would be installing metal detectors at ballparks over the next two seasons, but so far the impact seems to be minimal. We’ve experienced metal detectors several times this season, most recently at Tuesday’s MLB All-Star Game at Target Field. Like most attendees, we hit the ballpark […]
Freedom unveil unique Sherlock baseball hats
Maybe it’s because we’re unabashed fans of Sherlock and Benedict Cumberbatch, but we’re really enjoying the release of Sherlock baseball-themed hats by the Florence Freedom (independent; Frontier League). Sherlock, of course, is the popular reboot of the venerable detective series, with Cumberbatch dazzling as the title character. And the once-popular Sherlock Holmes hat does appear […]