The Alexandria Aces are jumping ship from the Continental Baseball League and joining the Texas Collegiate League.
The Alexandria Aces, whose history is a virtual history of independent ball in Texas, is shifting leagues once again — this time to the summer-collegiate Texas Collegiate League.
The move is effective immediately, and the Aces will play in the TCL in 2010.
“We couldn’t be happier that the Aces are joining the TCL,” said league president Uri Geva. “Alexandria is excellent market and the Aces bring a great reputation, making the franchise a strong addition to the Texas Collegiate League.”
“We are excited to be a part of the TCL,” said Eric Moran, president of the Aces. “Our fans will get to enjoy a new, vibrant brand of baseball in the fun and familiar confines of Bringhurst Field. “We’re looking forward to this new chapter in Aces history,” added Moran.
The Aces continue a rich baseball heritage in Alexandria that dates back to 1907 and includes spring training visits from the Cincinnati Reds. Bringhurst Field, the venerable home of the Aces, was built in 1933, and the first Alexandria Aces squad debuted a year later.
The modern Aces were re-born in 1994, bringing with them extensive renovations to Bringhurst. The organization has fielded teams in several independent professional leagues since then, but this will mark the city’s first foray into summer collegiate baseball.
Alexandria is the first TCL franchise based outside of the Lone Star state, but it’s the second team to join the TCL this off-season. The Texas Tomcats announced earlier this week they would call Weimar, Texas, home for their inaugural season this summer.
Alexandria becomes the league’s seventh franchise, five of which have joined the circuit in the last four years. The TCL welcomed the Victoria Generals in 2009 and the East Texas (Kilgore) Pump Jacks a year earlier. The Brazos Valley (Bryan) Bombers kicked off league expansion in 2007.
The North Texas Copperheads and McKinney Marshals, both original TCL franchises, round out the league lineup.
What this means for the independent Continental Baseball League remains unclear. The league has announced a May 2010 season-opening date, but with both Coastal Bend and Alexandria pulling out of the league, there only remains an expansion Las Cruces team, the Big Bend Cowboys and two new teams with precious little information showing up on the league website. Still, we've found it's totally impossible to write off the CBL: somehow or another league founders come up with at least four teams able to comprise a league.
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