The independent American Association and Can-Am League will play an interlocking schedule this season, with five teams from each circuit crossing over for interleague play.
The Can-Am League will adopt the AA’s 100-game schedule, with play starting May 17 and ending September 3. Five Can-Am teams will make one 10-game road trip to AA cities, and five AA teams will play 10 games each at Can-Am ballparks, for a total of 100 interleague games.
“We are excited to be able to bring both leagues together. It will provide new competition, and fans will be able to see a variety of teams from both the U.S. and Canada,” said Miles Wolff, commissioner of both leagues.
The American Association will consist of three divisions in 2012. The South Division includes the Amarillo Sox, El Paso Diablos, Grand Prairie AirHogs and the Laredo Lemurs. The Gary SouthShore RailCats, Kansas City T-Bones, Lincoln Saltdogs, Sioux City Explorers and the Wichita Wingnuts make up the Central Division, while the North Division consists of the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks, St. Paul Saints, Sioux Falls Pheasants and the Winnipeg Goldeyes. (Yeah, we don’t understand why Sioux City and Sioux Falls are in two different divisions, either.) Dropping out this season: the Fort Worth Cats and Shreveport-Bossier Captains. The Can-Am League is at six teams at the present time: Quebec Capitales, Newark Bears, Worcester Tornadoes, New Jersey Jackals, Rockland Boulders and Brockton Rox. (Brockton is the only team not playing any American Association teams.)
The Gary Southshore RailCats are one of the teams making the trip east.
“Interleague play adds a new concept for both leagues,” said Dan Moushon, president of both the American Association and Can-Am League. “We are the league office for both leagues and had an odd number of teams in both, so it made sense to put them together.”
Gary also played a role in ensuring the concept would work, Moushon added. “Gary was willing to be one of the teams that will travel East, so that helped as we made our plans for interleague play.”
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