RiverHawks will be sold, change leagues

[wasteland]

Info starting to leak.....

ROCKFORD (WREX) - The Rockford RiverHawks will be sold and rejoin the Frontier League as soon as next week, a source close to the team tells 13 Sports Director Mike Morig.

The RiverHawks had already made the move from the Northern League to the North American League this summer. Now it appears they're going back to the league they played in from 2002-2009.

The source also says owner Kurt Carlson will sell the team to the owners of the Chillicothe Paints. The Paints are from Ohio and currently play in the Prospect League.

According to the source, Carlson will remain the owner of Road Ranger Stadium, and the RiverHawks will pay him rent to play at the stadium.

The RiverHawks have a press conference scheduled for Monday and we will have plenty more on this story for you then.

http://www.wrex.com/Global/story.asp?S=14362341

[wasteland]

Roster:

http://www.frontierleague.com/rosters/rockford.php

[wasteland]

Also interesting, Rockford made a trade with Traverse City on the 29th:

LOVES PARK, Ill. – The Rockford RiverHawks are in the midst of an overhaul of the pitching staff.

Rockford’s only professional baseball team announced on Monday that it has acquired right-handers T.R. Keating, Wade Morrison and Chris Krepline. Keating and Morrison were free agents; Krepline was picked up in a trade.

Keating is a former Baltimore farmhand. The Orioles drafted him out of the University of Northern Colorado in the 34th round in 2008. He split last year between the Class A Delmarva Shorebirds of the South Atlantic League and the short-season A Aberdeen IronBirds of the New York-Penn League. Keating combined for a 5-5 record and a 3.12 earned-run average and three saves in 26 relief appearances. He averaged more than a strikeout an inning, with a strikeout-to-walk ratio of 4-to-1.

Morrison spent last year in the American Association with the Grand Prairie AirHogs and Sioux City Explorers. He combined for an 0-1 record and a 6.58 ERA in eight appearances in his rookie season. At NCAA Division II Morningstar College, Morrison was a three-time all-Great Plains Athletic Conference selection and 2009 GPAC Pitcher of the Year.

Krepline was acquired from the Traverse City Beach Bums for pitcher Peter Woodworth. Each player signed with his now-former team over the winter. Kepline has no prior pro experience. Last spring, Krepline was 4-1 with a 6.75 ERA in 10 appearances with Carthage College.

The RiverHawks also released pitcher Jon Huizinga. Last year, Huizinga was 3-1 with a 3.64 ERA and two saves. He made 43 appearances to tie Adam Kroft’s team record in that category.

http://mystateline.com/fulltext-sports?nxd_id=241336

[phanf4j]

Because of the age limit (27 for all intents & purposes) and significantly lower salary cap in the FL, many of the players listed on the roster won't make the final cut.

[wasteland]

ROCKFORD — The Rockford RiverHawks are in limbo again, and this time they need to hurry to get ready for the upcoming season.

Rockford’s only professional baseball team moved from the Frontier League to the Northern League two years ago, then chose become part of the North American League this past offseason when several Northern teams went to the American Association.

Now the North American League has lost teams, most recently Schaumburg, and the RiverHawks are struggling to find a league again. They are scheduled to open the season May 26.

“We have to make another decision, but we definitely have not finalized anything yet,” recently hired RiverHawks general manager Brad Sholes said. “We are working on getting this figured out, and we know we don’t have much time.”

Sholes said the team is working closely with both the North American and the Frontier leagues, and that they will most likely be a member of one of those two leagues very soon. A tentative news conference has been called for Monday afternoon.

“It looks like those are the two options right now,” Sholes said. “I’m sure everybody is working real hard to get this done. We will be playing baseball soon, we know that.”

Calls to all three leagues were not returned.

http://www.rrstar.com/updates/x816840184/RiverHawks-could-head-back-to-Frontier-League

[J.J. Smith]

According to this story at ballparkdigest.com...

http://www.ballparkdigest.com/201104043710/independent-baseball/features/riverhawks-leave-nal-new-riverhawks-enter-frontier-league

...the old Rockford RiverHawks will exist in name only from now on. Probably had to do it this way to avoid debt and contractual issues.

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ROCKFORD — The Rockford RiverHawks are going through a major metamorphosis, and, they believe, it’s coming just in time for the new season.

They also admitted it will be a challenge to adjust to so many changes — a new ownership group, a new league, new players and, possibly, a new manager and coaching staff — with spring training kicking in on May 7 and the season opener just around the corner.

“It is a challenge. It is, no doubt,” said Dave Ciarrachi, the team’s director of baseball operations.

“Getting the players that fit the mold of the Frontier League, getting the coaching staff structured, and putting a good product on the field day in and day out this quick is tough. But that’s always a challenge. We’re ready for it.”

The RiverHawks originated as a Frontier League franchise in Portsmouth, Ohio, in 1993 and moved to Springfield in 1995. They have been in the area since 2002, won a Frontier League championship in ’04 and have played at Road Ranger Stadium since ’06. The team did spent the 2010 season in the Northern League.

Though they have missed the playoffs the past two seasons, the new leaders believe this team can win in the Frontier League right away.

“We won’t use all this as an excuse. We expect to go out there and win right now,” said Chris Hanners, one of the Frontier League’s founders and owners of the Chillicothe Paints of the Frontier League from 1993 to 2008. “We’re not coming to this dance empty-handed. We like what we have here, and we’re just going to try and build on it.”

One of the big issues surrounding a move from the Northern League and the North American League — which Rockford never played a game in — is the stricter rules and limitations in the Frontier League. No one over 27 can suit up in the Frontier League, and they allow fewer veterans on a roster.

However, according to RiverHawks general manager Brad Sholes, 12 of the 14 players currently under contract are eligible under the Frontier League’s regulations. One of those that is not, longtime standout Rich Austin, who was a player/coach last year, is expected to stay on with the team in some capacity.

“It’s been tough on all the players because it’s been so up-in-the-air,” Austin said. “The move to the Frontier League doesn’t include me as a player, and I’ve gotten some calls to play, but this is my home now, and I want to stay on and help this program grow. I think it will.”

The team is expected to begin announcing coaches’ and player’s movements as soon as Wednesday. Because of the Frontier League schedule, Opening Night for the team’s 10th season has been moved to May 20. The RiverHawks host Traverse City at 7:05 p.m.

Staff reporter Jay Taft can be reached at 815-987-1384 or jtaft@rrstar.com.

Changes

Three major developments with the RiverHawks that were discussed during Monday’s news conference were:

Management: The RiverHawks managing member for the past three years, Kurt Carlson, is stepping down, and Dr. Chris Hanners and an investment group based out of Chillicothe, Ohio, have acquired the lease to Road Ranger Stadium and will operate the RiverHawks. Ciarrachi, a former majority owner, is expected to stay on with the team in the same director of baseball ops capacity.
Affiliation: The RiverHawks will rejoin the Frontier League and will take over the schedule and rights to the players from the Kalamazoo Kings, who ceased operations for 2011 on Monday as well.
Personnel: Manager Bob Koopmann and his coaching staff — as well as the 14 players currently under contract — will be reevaluated and a decision will be made on their futures in Rockford shortly