End Near for Fielders?

[J.J. Smith]

More signs that it’s about over for this franchise…

-Actual attendance down to around 100 per game for Tuesday, Wednsday and Thursday; maybe 400 on Friday night. Of that total (700), probably half are season ticket holders, so actual gate revenue for four games probably in the neighborhood of $1000 total!

-Long scheduled fireworks night abruptly cancelled out of concern for disturbing the neighbors. That’s Fieldersspeak for the pyro company wanted their money upfront, so …

-AM 1220 radio pbp man Qumar Zaman gave an explanation of what’s really been going on this season on the air and then quit. Up till now, he’s avoided saying much about it. “Q”, as he’s known as, is a good at the job, and I hope he finds a better employer next time around.

-Second half of double header with Chico for Sunday cancelled without reason. No money for air travel-need to get started earlier for LONG bus trip to Yuna for game on Tuesday?

-Fielders trying to lay blame on Zion for their money problems. See Ballparkdigest.com for the links.

-Growing awareness in the area of the true nature of the ownership/management of this franchise. They are slow learners, for sure, but the truth is revealing itself to them now. Not paying the players really came back to bite them. Facebook has been powerful in getting the truth out, something Ehrenriech didn't have to contend with when he's done this in the past.

All in all, I have to doubt that the team will make it through the month extant. Will the league take them over as a road team, or just cancel their remaining schedule?

[gamecocks]

Funny to hear you say " will the League take them over " ???? ya right , as if Kevin Outcalt or his band of Tijuana Owners have real capital - mmmm think again. - When K.O. quoted " it was bizarre what happened in L.C. with Tim leaving '' - - K.O. knew the whole story from second 1 , as he always does . Dave K still has his Plain Dealer greasy hands on this sorry league even from SJ Earthquakes office {fight for another day says D.K.} . Neither Yuma nor Maui or of course L.C. will live or see another game - NAL GBL or whoever will stall payroll on next turn . or K.O. will quote the ever famous " a wire just came into Wells Fargo" .....and this is how the Olympic swimmer ROLLLLLS.......

[J.J. Smith]

gamecocks, I don't know what the league has or doesn't have-I'm just throwing the question out for discussion. I guess a third option would be to transfer Lake County's remaining schedule to another location, such as Tuscon. I heard that Tim Johnson works for the Yuma people now, and they were going to try to put another team together, asap.

Back in Zion, another dismal crowd on a beautiful Saturday night. 12-1 loss to Chico. Not going to be easy for them to find any pitching at this time of the season, especially when it's well known now that you probably won't get paid.

Here's an article about two that escaped to greener pastures...

Saltdog newcomers happy to be out of the dumps

http://journalstar.com/sports/baseball/saltdogs/article_684f349e-199a-5d86-af12-be2175b2212e.html

[GoCyclones!]

Wow, thanks for the info on this. This is a complete embarrassment. Where is the commissioner on this one? It's a black eye for this league with a dubious history already...

[GoCyclones!]

Also what did the radio announcer say was going on?

[nksports]

Saltdog newcomers happy to be out of the dumps

http://journalstar.com/sports/baseball/saltdogs/article_684f349e-199a-5d86-af12-be2175b2212e.html

And to think, nearby Omaha wants one of these teams to play in a 24,000-seat stadium.

[phanf4j]

Cyclones, you cannot embarrass the owner OR the commissioner!

[J.J. Smith]

Also what did the radio announcer say was going on?


Here's a link to it...

Audio: Minor League Announcer Quits On Air

http://www.mediabistro.com/sportsnewser/audio-minor-league-announcer-quits-on-air_b11885

[GoCyclones!]

That's gangsta

[BigSix]

The applause at the end is classic. I wonder if the applauders were blocking the door to the broadcast booth while he was giving his speech.

[Hawk87]

They actually played two minutes worth of his rant on AM980 ESPN radio here in the DC area. They were pretty clueless as to where Zion was, and what league, and any of the other circumstances unfortunately. So, they didn't really put it into context, other than it was just a "rant". However, they did say the rant sounded suspiciously similar to some fighter/wrestlers rant from a couple weeks ago. Maybe someone else would know. CP, or CM someone from wrestling or MMA??

It wasn't that great a rant. It did sound staged a little bit, and the "good night and good luck" at the end seemed a little dramatic. I know it can get expensive out on the road, especially if you had to pay baggage fees on your trips...but you did spend a week in Hawaii, got to spend a week internationally in Canada.

I'm in no way defending RE. I wish he'd rot in hell. I wish these guys on DC radio would've related the larger context of the episode.

Ahh..****, I'm kinda rambling.

[J.J. Smith]

I don't think it was a rant at all. I think he thought it out for a number of days and had it pretty much scripted by the time he delivered it. This story has gotten picked up by all variety of sites with varying degrees of background (and accuracy). One thing they all have in common is the "Kevin Costner is owner" angle.

Headlines such as the following are probably not what the team had in mind when they decided to tie into the Costner franchise...

"Field of Nightmares" for Kevin Costner's suburban ball club

http://www.wgntv.com/news/wgntv-costners-baseball-team-,0,7545995.story


It looks like Tucson is a non-starter as a site for the Fielders to play out their schedule...

Tucson revoking Toros lease for Hi Corbett; Wildcats, T-Padres to follow?

http://www.ballparkdigest.com/201107184024/at-the-ballpark/the-front-office/tucson-revoking-toros-lease-for-hi-corbett-wildcats-t-padres-to-follow

[wasteland]

However, they did say the rant sounded suspiciously similar to some fighter/wrestlers rant from a couple weeks ago. Maybe someone else would know. CP, or CM someone from wrestling or MMA??



CM Punk for the WWE on Raw in what they call a worked shoot.

http://www.google.com/search?q=cm+punk+rant&tbo=p&tbm=vid&source=vgc&hl=en&aq=f

I can't acess the LC guys rant, so I'd like someone to compare the 2.

[J.J. Smith]

It seems Mr. Zaman is a WWE fan...

Punk Influences Other Sports

http://www.wrestlinginc.com/wi/news/2011/0719/541909/cm-punk/

[wasteland]

INdeed it does.

Here is more:

http://awfulannouncing.com/2011-articles/july/minor-league-baseball-play-by-play-man-quits-on-air.html

[J.J. Smith]

They had a three day music festival at (on) the Zion field last weekend, and did nothing to protect the waterlogged grass. Now it's trashed and the game tonight with Calgary is cancelled. From what I've heard, it's in really bad shape and should be re sodded- something I can't see anyone paying to do at this point. So we can add inferior playing conditions to the list of the Fielders woes.

[stg2010 front office]

LC is done in Zion, after today's second game with Calgary.
too bad.
another "all road" team?

[J.J. Smith]

"Lake County Fielders threaten folding ‘within days’"

http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20110804/news/708049917/

...I could see them just cancelling the games involving Lake County at this point. Normally, that would create some big gaps, but the way the schedule is back loaded with LC home games, (they were scheduled to play the rest of their games at home except for a four game set in Maui next week) it might be the best solution for the league with less than five weeks left in the season.

[J.J. Smith]

Here's what the City of Zion has to say about the situation...

www.wlsam.com/Article.asp?id=2253720&spid=

“It has been well-publicized that the minor-league teams which played in publicly funded baseball stadiums in Schaumburg and Joliet have defaulted on their financial obligations to their host municipalities in the last year. It has been the desire of the City Council to make sure that a fair funding solution is reached which would not require the City to bail out a failed baseball team.

“The City has fully performed all of its contractual obligations to date.

“Grand Slam Sports & Entertainment, LLC, bounced several 2010 payments to the City and remains in arrears for $60,000 for last season. Despite the team’s default, the City allowed the team to play at the stadium for the 2011 season.

“Unfortunately, the team has failed to pay the City $50,000 which was due on May 30, 2011 and $75,000 which was due on July 15, 2011.

“Because of the team’s failure to comply with its contractual obligations, the City has served the team with a notice of default

[nksports]

Let me get this straight. This guy is in arrears to the city, but he is threatening to fold the team unless they pony up for a stadium. If I were the city, I'd start putting liens on any property he owns unless he pays up. If he does fold the team, tell him not to let the door hit him on the way out of town, and let any other town he shows up in about his shady dealings. This guy hides behind LLCs so no one can touch his personal assets, but this is abuse of the system, plain and simple.

[stg2010 front office]

yeppers, nksports. you got it right.

Why the GBL/NAL would even TALK with this guy about a franchise defies credulity...until you remember that the GBL is involved. Then, it all makes sense.

The idea is to make up-front money in franchise fees, NOT to create a viable entity. Keep rolling the ponzi scheme around the board--at the expense of vendors and anyone else left holding the empty bag, but even worse, at the expense of players who don't get paid and who get jerked around by the team and the league.

This should be a no-brainer, folks. You don't get a franchise unless you can post a bond for the season expenses including rent, wages and salaries, ALL travel expenses, INCLUDING meal money, baggage fees, cab/bus fares, and a REAL operating expenses amount; balls, bats, umpire fees, game day staff, the whole nine yards. You would have to have travel arrangements accounted for to the extent it is possible BEFORE the season starts.

This will not happen because the existing scheme would immediately blow up in the faces of the the GBL front office.

It's a damn shame for the innocent parties involved--the players chasing the dream--that scumbags can take advantage of them and throw their hands up and say "hey, it's not MY problem".

[ca]

w/o any $$$ in a loop that is a travel fiasco , is this another installment of dumb and dumber ?

[WallysWorld]

I really feel for the Fielders' players as all they wanted to play was baseball and the team was darn good on their giant road trip to begin the season. I also feel for the Zion fans, but with good ownership, would there be enough fans in Zion to make the Fielders viable? Again, I make the point of good ownership.

I also feel for the rest of the NAL teams and especially those teams that are run really well like Calgary, Edmonton, Chico, the Texas teams and even Yuma. I keep on seeing comments painting the entire NAL as being a joke when there are many teams that are run well.

[stg2010 front office]

so this evening's game is cancelled because...
...they don't have enough game balls.

No, I'm not kidding.

they have some, but just a few. So they decide to go with worse than little league balls. Guys hit 'em and it's like hitting a rag ball. Doesn't go anywhere and flattens where they hit it.

Gets to the second inning before the Calgary manager and the ump decide that's it.

Pathetic.

Think the league will step in and pick up the pieces for the the sake of the players and the people who have tickets?

Think again.

Outcalt should sack up and take charge of this league. Tell that scumbag buddy of his, Kaval to take a hike and run this thing like a legit operation. for the good of the franchises and players.

Try it, Kevin, you'll be able to look yourself in the mirror again.

[robster2001]

An update on the story that "stg2010 front office" mentioned...

http://www.sportsgrid.com/weird-but-true/minor-league-baseball-team-cancels-game-because-it-doesnt-have-baseballs/

Fun quote from Calgary's Chad Ehrnsberger:


My first at bat, I was actually telling myself to not hit the ball hard cause it wasn’t gonna go anywhere. Instead I tried guiding the ball and dropping it in front of the outfielders. We were all embarrassed, as were the umpires.


They apparently did find enough real baseballs for the rest of the weekend series, save the part that was rained out.

[Texasrangers13]

Who wants to bet LC "arrives" in Maui with a ghost-team of local hawaiians (Ala the SIFL and IFL).

[J.J. Smith]

Would not put it past them. This entity called the "Lake County Fielders" has lost all meaning anyway. Not one player or coach from last years team was back for this season. The makeup of this team changes by the day after the first team was fired/traded/released. Some of the better players they picked up for version 2 are already gone. They don't get paid. They are on a 14 game losing streak. So call in the local community college players and have them give it a go.

[Round Lake Illini]

Here's a local article about the Friday night debacle. There are some priceless quotes in here from Ehrenreich:

http://www.dailyherald.com/article/20110809/news/708099971/

How about that Sunday attendance - 149! Some family reunions are bigger! :D

[J.J. Smith]

Since this is the last homestand for Maui, and they are in last place and must be losing more money every day they exist, why not send the Knuckle Princess out to play the rest of the games with locals all dressed up in Maui jerseys? You wouldn't even have to pay the locals, just let them keep the jerseys so they can have proof of their bragging rights to have at one time been "professional" baseball players. I've come to the conclusion that that's what it's really all about for most of these guys anyway.

As the song goes...

I had a friend was a big baseball player
back in high school
He could throw that speedball by you
Make you look like a fool boy
Saw him the other night at this roadside bar
I was walking in, he was walking out
We went back inside sat down had a few drinks
but all he kept talking about was

Chorus:
Glory days well they'll pass you by
Glory days in the wink of a young girl's eye
Glory days, glory days

[smallballfan]

Love the quote from Eisenriech's letter. He must have been trained by Fox News. No matter what the story is, turn it around to make it sound like you're not supporting the troops - THAT will get people on our side!

"Ann Coulter here, reporting that players are upset with the quality of baseballs in Illinois. If they only supported our boys overseas this kind of liberal whining would not be happening!"

Sad that this train wreck is happening but guess its true, people can't take their eyes off a train wreck.

[J.J. Smith]

From "patriot" Ehrenreich in the Daily Herald article...

"Ehrenreich wrote the players and umps needed to search their souls for what's important in life if they believed suddenly ending the game was justified or proper for the fans and community. He said it's likely the crowd included parents visiting children at nearby Great Lakes Naval Station.

“Last night, something tragic happened,” Ehrenreich wrote. “No, not a baseball game that was suspended because some ballplayers thought the quality of the baseballs was subpar. (Thirty) American soldiers were killed in Afghanistan in the deadliest day for American forces in the last 10 years.”"

************************************************** ************************************************** ************

"Patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel."

Boswell tells us that Samuel Johnson made this famous pronouncement that patriotism is the last refuge of a scoundrel on the evening of April 7, 1775. He doesn't provide any context for how the remark arose, so we don't really know for sure what was on Johnson's mind at the time.

However, Boswell assures us that Johnson was not indicting patriotism in general, only false patriotism.

[WallysWorld]

I showed someone that article about the baseballs and Ehrenreich’s comment about the fallen US soldiers and he came back with this classic sarcastic line: “A true professional would go out there and play, he wouldn’t whine about his paycheque bouncing. To do otherwise is an insult to the brave men and women who died defending their country.”

[AZdev]

Tonight's LCF/Maui game has been postponed, citing LC travel intinerary. Just yesterday(Tues.) Ehrenreich was saying that they had not yet decided whether to make the trip to Maui. This , the day before the first game of a 4 game series. You just knew they weren't going to get there at that point. Maybe they are still planning to go or are on their way , getting there a day or so late?? or maybe they will just fold. I was wondering why they didn't make up a few of the Calgary games, since Calgary had nothing on the schedule till Friday.I guess Calgary couldn't change travel plans.

[Round Lake Illini]

Tonight's LCF/Maui game has been postponed, citing LC travel intinerary. Just yesterday(Tues.) Ehrenreich was saying that they had not yet decided whether to make the trip to Maui. This , the day before the first game of a 4 game series. You just knew they weren't going to get there at that point. Maybe they are still planning to go or are on their way , getting there a day or so late?? or maybe they will just fold. I was wondering why they didn't make up a few of the Calgary games, since Calgary had nothing on the schedule till Friday.I guess Calgary couldn't change travel plans.

Postponed because of Lake County's travel itinerary?! Tuesday was an off day for them so this is a bogus excuse. I could see them just blowing off this series since it is the last 4 road games on their schedule, then playing the rest of the home games with whatever players they can find (players willing to play for free, of course! :mrgreen:).

[J.J. Smith]

From the league website...

"The North American League is disappointed to announce that the Lake County Fielders have eliminated themselves from the league by failing to appear for their scheduled series today. Schedule changes will be announced shortly.

http://www.northamericanleague.com/view/northamericanleague"/news/news_30105

They should never have let this team in to start with. This was totally predictable. Wouldn't be too surprised to hear Maui hangs it up, too. Nothing but red ink and losing out on the island this year.

[AZdev]

I guess the league waited for the Fielders to officially not show up in Maui, before making the decision to boot them from the league. They had to know beforehand, but Ehrenreich probably didn't say anything. It seems that there is no communication between the NAL and some of it's teams at all.
I wouldn't be suprised if the NAL right now is trying to resurrect the Tijuana team to playout the Fielders schedule on the backfields at Yuma!

[J.J. Smith]

The following ran tonight on ABC TV...

http://abclocal.go.com/wls/video?id=8302339&pid=8302359

Despite what there PR guy says, they knew a permanent stadium was not going to be built this year. They chose to go ahead with playing this season, and, as almost everyone predicted, it blew up on them. Now they want to blame everyone else for their own stupidity. Typical.

After some back and forth, it looks like the Fielders are officially out of the NAL. They claim they are going to continue to play games against some mystery opponents. The bar just can't go any lower for this crew.

[J.J. Smith]

Here's a press release from the Fielders...

August 11, 2011

Zion, IL. The Lake County Fielders, a minor league baseball team in Zion, IL, provided notice to the North American League yesterday that the team may be terminating its membership in the league for a variety of reasons that include the burdensome travel and expense of a schedule that included flying to Maui 3 times in one season. The Fielders will weigh its options to play in other leagues for the 2012 season, but in the meantime, the team is prepared to continue its 2011 home season schedule against a lineup of opponents that will be announced in the days to follow.

"The team had no choice," said team spokesman Bernie DiMeo of DiMeo Communications. "No independent minor league team could financially survive the expense of flying to play every opponent, and to Hawaii no less. The Fielders are the furthest team in the league from Maui, yet the league scheduled them to make 3 trips there compared to 1 trip for all the other teams in the league. That just makes no sense, and no team should be held to a schedule that is so financially inequitable."

"Its no secret that we're living in tough economic times, and the Fielders are doing whatever it takes to provide the community with its hometown team and an affordable time at the ballpark," continued DiMeo. "The Fielders are excited about the weeks remaining this summer, and will provide a unique and daring schedule that will include all the baseball and fun that fans are accustomed to enjoying.We'll be adding some twists along the way, but you'll have to come out to the park to see it for yourself!"


...they're "excited about the weeks remaining this summer"? Whatever you say, Bernie. And I guess they just figured out that flying a baseball team from Illinois to Hawaii is kind of expensive. Slow learners, those Fielders.

[robster2001]

"The team had no choice," said team spokesman Bernie DiMeo of DiMeo Communications. "No independent minor league team could financially survive the expense of flying to play every opponent, and to Hawaii no less..."

Did Hawaii move farther from the mainland between March and August?

The Fielders knew they were going to be flying to Maui when the Frankenstein's Monster known as the North American League was welded together... the time to complain was back when the schedule was drawn up, not after you've suddenly figured out that travel costs money...

I feel sorry for the few solid teams in the NAL -- they are so spread out that there is simply no viable league for them to play in. Those teams may wind up facing the same fate as Lawton-Fort Sill did in basketball... unable to play because there's nobody to play against.

[AZdev]

So Outcalt still wants the Fielder's in the league next year.
“It certainly was a difficult season for the Fielders,” Outcalt said. “Hopefully everything gets resolved so they'll continue (to play in the league).”This after all the bs and a 17 game series against another Semi-Pro team.The Fielders mk3 were not even the Fielders anyway.Outcalf acts like the team only had a few bumps in the road.
They blew off Maui without even the decency to let them know they were not going to show up for the series.The Fielder's were suppose to be fined 25k for each game they blew off in that series.
When asked about this Fielders spokesman DiMeo replied (from dh).
“They didn't come here, either,” he said, referring to a series scheduled in Zion last month that the Maui team blew off. “If we have to pay them, they have to pay us.” At least Maui let them know after they were stood up. What a joke guy and what a joke team.

[AZdev]

The Fielder's are still signing players after the season is over. This has got to end sometime. They are now raiding the Kenosha Kings roster!

On the line next to occupation, Kenosha Kings shortstop Joe Ferro can finally pencil in professional baseball player.

Ferro and teammate Randy Johnson signed professional contracts with the Lake County Fielders of the independent North American Baseball League just minutes after the Kenosha Kings completed a 17-game exhibition series against the troubled Zion, Ill.-based team Monday at Fielders Stadium.

[ca]

what do you do with the field ?

[J.J. Smith]

Everything was carted away as soon as the final game was played. All that remains is a diamond, dugouts, light poles and fencing. The city was leasing the land. I suppose it will just sit as it is until someone comes up with a new use for it. I'm sure some college wood bat league has it's eye on the site, but things are so mucked up at this point, it's had to tell where it will go. It's going to be lawsuits and threats of lawsuits for the time being.

So the Fielders are signing Kenosha Kings to "professional" contracts? What a farce this whole thing is. The Kenosha Kings helped keep alive an organization that screwed over everyone, including fellow baseball players and coaches,
so they could get their 15 minutes of attention. Losers.