The St. Paul Saints (independent; American Association) are holding a promotion sponsored by Minnesota Atheists and American Atheists, and the morning hosts at Fox News are none too pleased. On the Night of Unbelievable Fun, set for Aug. 10, the Saints will wear special “Mr. Paul Aints” jerseys during the game against the Amarillo Sox with the […]
Archive | Independent Baseball
Bringing the wild back to Wild Things
The Washington Wild Things (independent; Frontier League) was once a flagship franchise, but new owner Stuart Williams is spending his time trying to bring the team back from a slump at the box office. Washington used to lead the Frontier League in attendance, but these days the team is next-to-last at 1,595 fans a game, behind […]
Freedom Baseball League shackled by economic realities
The independent Freedom Baseball League was locked out of Phoenix Municipal Stadium today because of missed rent payments — something that reportedly has also taken place in three other Arizona communities. According to this report, the league — four teams playing out of the greater Phoenix area — missed rent payments recently in Prescott, Peoria, […]
Future of North American League in…Japan?
With a two-game series against Ishikawa Million Stars drawing well at Iron Maehara Stadium, Na Koa Ikaika Maui (independent; North American League) owner Bob Young is looking at another indy setup that calls for less travel and more Japanese competition. Na Koa Ikaika draw more than 2,500 fans for the two-game series against the Million […]
St. Paul expected to approve Saints ballpark plan Wednesday
The St. Paul City Council is expected to approve a funding plan for a new Lowertown St. Paul Saints (independent; American Association) ballpark despite half of the money for the facility still up in the air. The cost of the project is $54 million. The financing plan calls for St. Paul to issue $8.5 million […]
No expansion on tap for American Association: Wolff
There are no plans for expansion in the independent American Association, reports commissioner Miles Wolff, as the league continues its focus on large markets and stable ownership groups. Visiting Fargo’s Newman Outdoor Field, Wolff addressed the issue of western Canadian teams joining the indy circuit — not likely, given the remote nature of Edmonton and […]
Midseason at Albert Park: How is the NAL doing?
The Albert Park Advisory Committee will be conducting a midseason review of the operations of the San Rafael Pacifics (independent; North American League) next Monday; we’ll do the same for the entire league now. Going forward with a 2012 season after the defection of several teams was a pretty gutsy move for the league owners: […]
New Canadian pro league forming?
Rumors of a new Canadian independent baseball league are surfacing, as the region’s distance from existing circuits is forcing potential owners to stay close to home in search of markets. Several independent leagues — the Northern League, the Golden Baseball League and the North American League — have tried to work on schedules that included […]
El Paso: Let’s sell Cohen Stadium to Tigua tribe
The El Paso Diablos (independent; American Association) could live on if the city sells Cohen Stadium to the Tigua tribe, which owns and operates the team. The issue: a deal to bring a Class AAA Pacific Coast League team to a new downtown ballpark contains a noncomplete clause, prohibiting the city from doing business with […]
New for 2013: Long Beach Splash
We have a name and logo for the team launching next season in the independent American West Baseball League: the Long Beach Splash. “I am very pleased with the outcome of the logo it has been done with class, shows professionalism and immediately lets the public know who the team is,” said Michael Cummings, AWBL Chief […]
Skeeters start strong out of the gate
It’s been a great debut for the Sugar Land Skeeters: the team is pacing the independent Atlantic League in attendance and serves as a great calling card for further expansion in the Lone Star State. The team’s new home, Constellation Field, is a hit (we’ll be down there at the end of the month), and […]
More weather woes: Tarpocalypse in Joliet
It’s been an intense week for weather impacting ballpark operations; check out this video of the Joliet Slammers (independent; Frontier League) staff strugging to keep a tarp down. During a June 29, 2012 rain delay, the Slammers staff put down the infield tarp, but that action didn’t take. Heavy winds blew the tarp off the field, […]
Pecos League pulls Invaders from Roswell
Citing increased hotel costs, decreased fan support and an expensive ballpark lease (relatively speaking), the independent Pecos League has pulled the Invaders out of Roswell. The website for the Roswell Invaders brags about how the team paces the Pecos League in attendance and merchandise sales, but apparently things have gone quite sour this year for […]