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AA American Association

Weekly Sports League and Franchise Report

by Dan Krieger
October 8, 2007 - American Association (AA)


BASEBALL

- Major League Baseball: Early next month, the Tampa Bay Devil Rays are expected to announce a change of its team nickname and logo to the Tampa Bay Rays.

- Pacific Coast League: All of the necessary financing documents were signed and league approvals granted to allow work to begin on a new Triple-A stadium in downtown Reno (NV). The Tucson Sidewinders will move to Reno for the 2009 season, when the stadium is expected to be completed.

- Southern League: The Double-A West Tenn Diamond Jaxx franchise, which has been on the market for a couple of years, has finally been sold. The sale is still subject to league approval. The team has one more year left on its current lease in Jackson (TN), where it ranked last in average attendance. One rumor had the team eventually moving to Nashville, where the Pacific Coast League's Sounds were having trouble building a suitable Triple-A stadium and could consider moving.

- Northern League: With the Northern League owners' meeting being held this week, rumors again surfaced about the Edmonton Cracker-Cats and Calgary Vipers leaving for the California-based Golden Baseball League. Apparently, the Northern League has waived the travel subsidy charged to Edmonton and Calgary that helped defray costs of other teams traveling to Alberta. The Alberta teams and GBL teams would face a similar travel situation, if the teams left the Northern League.

- Frontier League: Investors were moving forward with plans to build a ballpark in the Waterford Township, northwest of Detroit in Oakland County. The group is seeking a team in the Frontier League. The town of Ypsilanti, just east of Ann Arbor (MI) and west of Detroit, was considering a privately financed ballpark. Earlier discussions about the project suggested pursuit of a Frontier League franchise, but no specific league was currently mentioned.

- American Association: The AA will operate with at least ten teams in 2008, but the futures of the St. Joe (MO) Blacksnakes and Coastal Bend Aviators were uncertain. The league has added the new Grand Prairie Airhogs in the Dallas-Fort Worth area, along with an unnamed Wichita (KS) franchise. The Coastal Bend Aviators, based in Robstown near Corpus Christi (TX), ranked eighth in attendance of the ten teams last season. The owner of the Aviators was granted rights to the new Wichita franchise and rumors started about a move of the Coastal Bend club to Wichita. The AA stated that the Wichita club is a separate entity from Coastal Bend. If Coastal Bend moves out, United League Baseball, which has six Texas-based teams, would be interested in the market. The Double-A Texas League operates a franchise in the area called the Corpus Christi Hooks. As of now, the AA alignment has Wichita replacing St. Joe in the North Division and Grand Prairie replacing Coastal Bend in the South Division:

North Division South Division

Lincoln Saltdogs El Paso Diablos

St. Paul Saints Fort Worth Cats

Sioux Falls Canaries Grand Prairie Airhogs

Sioux City Explorers Pensacola Pelicans

Wichita Shreveport Ports

- Can-Am League: The league continues to pursue a lease at Ottawa's Lynx Stadium where a Can-Am franchise could play next season. The International League's Ottawa Lynx team has moved to Allentown (PA) for 2008, but there were unsettled lease issues with the departing team's previous owner that have slowed the new lease process.

BASKETBALL

- Premier Basketball League: The proposed PBL, which plans to begin its first season in January 2008, held its inaugural draft for its ten current franchises-Arkansas, Chicago, Dallas, Maryland Nighthawks, Minnesota Ripknees, Quad City Riverhawks, Reading Railers, Rochester RazorSharks, Rock River Fury and Wilmington Sea Dawgs. Arkansas and Chicago were new to the list of franchises and a proposed Bridgeport (CT) team was no longer listed. There was also no mention of an International Touring Team that was announced previously.

- Circuito Mexicano de Basquetbol (CIMEBA): The CIMEBA team known as Chamanes de Estado de Mexico-Tultitlan is in trouble and unable to pay its players and coaches. After a three-year layoff, the CIMEBA Mexican basketball league restarted in late August with eight franchises.

FOOTBALL

- Arenafootball2 (af2): After six seasons in the af2, the Bakersfield Blitz will not be fielding a team in the 2008 season. The Blitz entered the league as an expansion franchise in 2002. The af2 also announced that the Fort Wayne Fusion will not return in 2008. The league had two proposals by other groups, but they did not meet league requirements. United Indoor Football reportedly had potential ownership groups wanting to bring a UIF franchise to Fort Wayne, but there was a short timetable to prepare a team for next season.

- World Indoor Football League: The WIFL could be dead after only one season. Last week, the Augusta Spartans and Columbus Lions left for the American Indoor Football Association. The Osceola Ghostriders planned to fold and the Daytona Beach Thunder wanted to join the arenafootball2. The league's other remaining franchise, the Tallahassee Titans, had switched to the WIFL after playing in the 2007 AIFA. The Titans were facing financial problems and would need additional funding to stay alive for a 2008 season.

- United Indoor Football: The Rockford Raptors will not return to the UIF due to the uncertainty of how many teams will be part of the league next season. The league has apparently lost three of the six teams from the 2007 Eastern Conference-the Evansville Bluecats, Lexington Horsemen and the Ohio Valley Greyhounds of Wheeling (WV). Rockford could switch to the American Indoor Football Association or the 7-on-7 Continental Indoor Football League. The Rockford Raptors entered the UIF in 2006 when the Huntsville-based Tennessee Valley Raptors moved to Rockford.

- American Indoor Football Association: The AIFA announced that the Montgomery Bears will not play next season due to low attendance this past season. The league hopes to return to the city in the future, but at another venue. The team's owner had taken over the National Indoor Football League's Montgomery Maulers franchise during the 2006 season. After the 2006 season, the team left the NIFL and was renamed the Montgomery Bears. The owner then organized the AIFA for the 2007 season. Due to an illness of the owner of the Florence Phantoms, the AIFA owner and president has taken over the franchise until another local owner can be found. The team is expected to be part of the 2008 season. The AIFA has added at least six new teams for 2008-the Fayetteville Guard and Wyoming Cavalry from the NIFL; the Augusta Spartans and Columbus Lions from the World Indoor Football League; the expansion Florida Stingrays (Fort Myers); and the Baltimore Mariners, who replace the Blackbirds.

- American Professional Football League: The Galveston (TX) Tidalwave and the Kaufman County (TX) Crunch are two possible additions for the 2008 season of the APFL indoor football league. The Kaufman County team is based in Terrell, which is just east of Dallas. HOCKEY

- North Eastern Hockey League: A press release on the Findlay Freedom web site states that the team has suspended operations for the 2007-08 NEHL season. The league had only three other teams listed in Pittsburgh, Rome (NY) and Simcoe (Ontario).

- Professional Inline Hockey Association: The PIHA's Pro Division has increased from 25 to over 40 teams for its upcoming season. The Eastern Conference has added an Atlantic Division and a Southeast Division to go with the Northeast Division and Mason Dixon Division. The Western Conference has added a Southwest Division and a Pacific Division to go with the Gateway Division and Rocky Mountain Division. A proposed division in Southern California plans to start play next season. The PIHA also operates a Minor Division that currently has about 28 teams.

SOCCER

- United Soccer Leagues Premier Development League: The group that wants to bring a USL First Division team to Victoria (British Columbia) will operate a USL PDL franchise in 2008, as a way of preparing for a First Division team that will start in 2009. The Victoria PDL team is expected to be part of the league's Northwest Division. The First Division Vancouver Whitecaps also plan to operate a PDL team in 2008.

- Canadian Soccer League: The CSL is looking to expand its International Conference with franchises representing various ethnic groups in the Toronto area. The league currently has teams represented by Italian, Portuguese, Croatian, and Serbian communities, along with an African team announced for 2008. The CSL started the International Conference in 2006.

OTHER

- National Lacrosse League: The NLL's new Boston franchise for the upcoming season will be called the Boston Blazers. The NLL's predecessor, the Major Indoor Lacrosse League (MILL), had a Worcester-based team called the New England Blazers for three seasons (1989-91). This team moved to Boston and played as the Boston Blazers for six seasons (1992-97). When the MILL was reorganized as the NLL for the 1998 season, the Boston franchise went dormant and has not had an active franchise since 1997.

Dan Krieger is the creator of "Leagues, Teams & Nicknames", which tracks the changes in league alignments, franchise movements and team nicknames in today's sports world. The latest version can be found at http://www.lulu.com/content/774026. Dan can be contacted at dankrieger@leaguesteamsnicknames.com.

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