A Look Around The Leagues

by Walter L. Johnson II
Published on November 7, 2004 under American Basketball Association (ABA)

Well, long time, no see, much less read or write! It's time to think some random thoughts on the world of minor league sports since the writing of the last "ALATL" column. So, what are we waiting for? Let's get going!

MINOR LEAGUE OFF-SEASON REPORT: We'll start things off by firing up the hot stove! As you probably by now, the Boston Red Sox won their first World Series in what seems like a dozen generations, first by rallying from a three games to none deficit to down the hated New York Yankees in seven games, then, of course, making quick work of the St. Louis Cardinals in the Fall Classic. But while Red Sox fans celebrated that long awaited world championship, Boston had mixed results with its farm system, at least in terms of wins and losses. The Red Sox organization finished the 2004 season with a combined record of 349-346, and a percentage of .502, according to MinorLeagueBaseball.com. The Oakland A's organization, on the other hand, had the best winning percentage among farm systems, finishing with a combined record of 400-295, good enough for a .576 winning percentage this past season. By the way, don't feel too sorry for the Yankees, or at least not their farm teams in 2004, as the Bronx Bombers took home two league titles.

AFL/af2 CHANGES: The Arena Football League, and its developmental league, arenafootball2, as always, have undergone some huge changes for the 2005 season. In the AFL, three teams folded, as the Carolina Cobras, Detroit Fury, and Indiana Firebirds all ceased operations during the off-season. The departure of those franchises left the AFL with 17 teams in 2005. Previous reports had the Firebirds sold to new management during the off-season. However, the AFL didn't act on the sale of the team in time for the dispersal draft, thus leaving Indiana inactive for now. Perhaps the Indiana Firebirds will become another version of the Nashville Kats, a franchise that vanished only to be reborn.

Meanwhile, in the af2 league, at least two franchises recently called it quits during the off-season, as the Columbus (Ga.) Wardogs and the Hawaiian Islanders closed their doors after four years each. A third franchise, the Cape Fear Wildcats of Fayetteville, N.C., chose to move to Albany, Ga. after three years. The Wildcats decided to leave the Carolinas due to low attendance despite being one of the winningest franchises of the past three seasons.

In other af2 news, Amarillo, Tex. landed an expansion franchise for 2005, as the Amarillo Dusters came into the fold. The addition of Amarillo currently gives the arenafootball2 league a total of 24 franchises for next spring. But, as always, the possibility exists that more teams may either move to another market, or fold altogether before that time.

ABA SLATE SET: The American Basketball Association finally revealed its schedule after its whirlwind expansion of the past summer, as at least 35 teams will play at least 36 games in a regular season that tips off Sat. Nov. 13, and ends on Sun. Mar. 13, 2005. In addition, the ABA changed its divisions to Red, White, and Blue, matching the colors of its official basketball. And the expansion hasn't stopped yet. In fact, far-flung places such as Brooklyn, N.Y., Birmingham, Ala., Toledo, Ohio, and even Reno, Nev. already are in the works for the 2005-06 season. It'll be interesting to see how the ABA addresses this dizzying rate of expansion.

BACK TO BASEBALL: A lot of changes have been made on the minor league baseball landscape this past off-season, as several teams have re-located for the 2005 season. The El Paso (Tex.) Diablos, who spent many years in the Texas League, have decided to pack up and head all the way to Springfield, Mo., of all places. In response, the independent Central Baseball League responded by allowing the former Alexandria (La.) Aces to move to El Paso, thus becoming the Diablos.

In other off-season moves, the former Edmonton Trappers moved to Round Rock, Tex., located just outside of Austin, Tex., and became the Round Rock Express. The "new" Express will compete in the Pacific Coast League, while its former Class AA counterpart now calls Corpus Christi, Tex. home.

Finally, the former Northeast League changed its name to the Canadian-American Association of Professional Baseball, Ltd., or the Can-Am League, for short. However, the franchises and locations will remain the same for 2005.

HOCKEY HAPPENINGS: Last, but not least, this column wouldn't be complete without talking about the lockout that has affected the NHL so far this season. Of course, due to this stalemate between the players and owners, NHL arenas throughout North America have been quiet so far. But that hasn't stopped the minor league franchises from taking the ice. In fact, if you're reading this column, you probably want to hop in your car, and get your hockey fix from a team closer to home. In most cases, a work stoppage like the one NHL has usually benefits the minor leagues, at least in the short term. But should the lockout force the cancellation of the entire NHL season, it'll be interesting to see if attendance at minor leagues can continue to rise. After all, the future of the game, especially financially, has to be the most important issue here.

NETCASTS: The NHL may not be in action, but the minor leagues play here, only on the OSC "Netcasts" page. Just log on to oursportscentral.com, and click on the "Netcasts" page to listen to multiple games no matter where you are. And don't forget to log on to OSC for all of the latest news on your favorite team.

Note: OurSports Central no longer actively covers the American Basketball Association (ABA) as a professional league due in part to its inability to publish and play a schedule and the transitory nature of many of its teams. For information on professional minor leagues, please see OSC's basketball section.

American Basketball Association Stories from November 7, 2004

• A Look Around The Leagues - OSC Original by Walter L. Johnson II

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the writer(s), and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.