Futures Collegiate Baseball League set for 2011
A new summer-collegiate league is on the horizon in New England, as the Lowell Spinners (short season; NY-Penn League) will operate a team out of Nashua’s Holman Stadium on behalf of owner and Wisconsin businessman Eric Butlein in the start-up Futures Collegiate Baseball League of New England. Not a lot of specifics on the new […]
Three architectural firms bid on PNC Field renovations
Three firms — Ewing Cole, L.R. Kimball and Populous — submitted bids to provide design services on the renovation of PNC Field, the home of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees (Class AAA; International League), slated to begin at the end of the 2011 season. All three have experience with minor-league ballparks, both on new construction and renovations. […]
Potter County commits $30K to ballpark improvements
Potter County (Texas) must be pretty happy to have the independent American Association in town: the municipality is committing $30,000 to ballpark improvements for the 2011 season. True, that’s not a large sum, but it’s more than what the city put into Potter County Memorial Stadium in recent years, during the tenure of the Amarillo […]
Frontier League unveils ’11 schedule; Oakland County to go dark
The independent Frontier League unveiled a 2011 schedule today that includes the new Joliet team playing out of Silver Cross Field; the big news is the the Oakland County Cruisers will go dark for the season and will not resume operations until a new ballpark is finished. Basicall, the Frontier League will be the same […]
Will we see a ballpark concert tour in 2011?
One reason why 2010 sucked on the financial front for so many baseball teams: there were no large-scale concert tours hitting minor-league ballparks, as the concert scene last year was weak. Will we see a big tour in 2011? In previous years the likes of Bob Dylan, Willie Nelson, John Mellencamp and Dave Matthews Band […]
Metrodome roof collapses in dramatic fashion
The roof literally fell in at the HHH Metrodome, the former home of the Minnesota Twins and the current home of the Minnesota Golden Gophers baseball team, forcing the NFL to move the Vikings/Giants game to Detroit’s Ford Field. The roof tore in several places under the weight of two or more feet of snow; […]
Storm Chasers set to vacate Rosenblatt this week
It will mark the end of an era: the Omaha Storm Chasers (Class AAA; Pacific Coast League) are set to vacate historic Rosenblatt Stadium this week, but the ballpark will probably be left standing for several months before demolition begins. Johnny Rosenblatt Stadium has been home to baseball in Omaha since it opened, and the […]
New Joliet team launches name-the-team contest
The new Joliet team in the independent Frontier League is launching a name-the-team contest and is starting with a solid list of names already suggested by others, including our favorite: the Jailbirds. Names already on the docket also include Pioneers, ’66ers, Gems, Jackrabbits, Old-Timers, Gravel, Stonecutters, Luckys, Steelheads and Jailers. “We have had many brainstorming […]
The Week That Was: Dec. 12
Lots of news generated the past week as the baseball world gathered at the annual Winter Meetings and Baseball Trade Show in Orlando: chatter about a new Oakland A’s ballpark, a final stretch for a new Escondido ballpark, and the potential move of the Southern League into Pensacola. The most popular stories on Ballpark Digest […]
Bombers co-owner arrested
Kfir Jackson, a co-owner of the Brazos Valley Bombers (summer collegiate; Texas Collegiate League), was arrested Friday; he allegedly videotaped female members of the team’s Bombshells squad after asking them to change into team uniforms. On Monday Jackson allegedly asked members of the squad to come in try the new uniforms. They then went to […]
No Japanese teams in Tucson next spring
It may occur down the road, but for 2011 the plan to bring two or more Japanese or Korean pro teams to train at Tuscon Electric Park has fallen short, as organizers run out of time to make a deal. The plan would have had two or more teams training in Tucson; Tucson officials had […]
New Red Sox spring facilities bids come in slightly over budget
Construction bids on a new spring-training facility for the Boston Red Sox came in slightly over budget, with the end number tallied at $77.7 million — or around $2.7 million above the $75 million budget. Nothing will be cut from the budget, however. Lee County Commissioners will meet next week to approve the final numbers […]
Dillas: We were illegally evicted by Potter County
Reunion Sports Group was back in court this week, asking a district court judge to reverse his decision to deny a temporary restraining order against Potter County over the eviction of the Amarillo Dillas (independent; United League Baseball) from Potter County Memorial Stadium. Judge Dan Schaap denied the motion, ruling that the county was immune […]