Weekly Sports League and Franchise Report
by Dan Krieger
Published on October 17, 2022 under International League (IL)
BASEBALL
International League: Although the Indianapolis Indians team in the Triple-A International League has been studying the appropriateness of the team's nickname and is considering a nickname change, the Native American Guardian's Association has encouraged the team to keep the Indians name.
Liga Invernal Mexicana: Mexico's top professional baseball league known as the Liga Mexicana de Beisbol (LMB) started the 2022 season of its developmental winter league known as the LIM this week with ten teams aligned in a three-team North, a three-team Central and a four-team South division. Teams will be comprised of players from 14 of the 18 LMB teams with 4 LIM teams being a combination of players from 2 LMB teams. Teams will play 24- or 28-game schedules through November.
Liga Mexicana del Pacifico: Mexico's fall-winter LMP, or Mexican-Pacific League, started its 2022 season this week with the same ten teams as last season. The LMP season runs through December.
BASKETBALL
Triple Threat Basketball League: The semi-pro TTBL recently started its 2022-23 season that features 18 teams aligned in a six-team South and a 12-team North with a schedule running into early March 2023. TTBL teams are located in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States.
The Basketball League: The minor professional TBL announced teams called the York (PA) Mighty Ants and the Los Angeles Flash have been added as teams for the league's 2023 season. The Mighty Ants have been part of the semi-pro Triple Threat Basketball League (TTBL) and are playing in the TTBL's current 2022-23 season under its company name Kingdom Abound.
Professional Basketball Association: The PBA by 1891 announced teams called the Dallas Gamblers and the Texas Terror (North Houston) have been added for the 2022-23 Fall/Winter season, which will feature 52 teams competing in a schedule from November through February. The league also operates a Spring/Summer season that runs from May to August.
FOOTBALL
Indoor Football League: The IFL announced its 2023 season schedule this week and it will feature 14 teams aligned in seven-team Eastern and Western conferences and playing from March 17 to July 15, 2023. The league line-up is basically the same as last season, except for the expansion Tulsa Oilers replacing the now-dormant Bismarck (ND) Bucks in the Eastern Conference. The IFL has also entered into a partnership with the outdoor XFL, which will start play in February 2023. This will provide a framework for transferring players between the two leagues during their respective 2023 seasons.
Champions Indoor Football: One team missing from the recently announced CIF 2023 schedule was the Wichita-based ICT Terminators, which announced plans in August to join the CIF for the 2023 season. Those plans apparently did not work out and the team stated it is playing an "unaffiliated schedule" in 2023 with plans to join a league in 2024. The Terminators are scheduled to play 2023 games against the CIF's Kansas-based Salina Liberty and Southwest Kansas Storm (Dodge City). These games are listed as non-league games on the CIF schedule.
Regional Professional Arena League: A new Regional Professional Arena League, which will announce its official league name within the next 15 days, is organizing with teams in Michigan, Ohio and Illinois. Teams called the Southern Michigan Apex (Portage) and the Battle Creek (MI) Smoke report they will be part of the new league, along with the Muskegon-based West Michigan Ironmen team that was part of the loosely organized 2022 Arena Professional Football League.
HOCKEY
American Hockey League: The minor professional AHL started its 2022-23 season this week with 32 teams aligned in a 15-team Eastern Conference with an eight-team Atlantic Division and a seven-team North Division, and a 17-team Western Conference with a seven-team Central Division and a ten-team Pacific Division. Only the Pacific Division changed from last season with the addition of the Coachella Valley Firebirds (Thousand Palms, CA) as the league's 32nd team, and the relocation of the Stockton Heat team that became the Calgary Wranglers for the 2022-23 season. Each of the 32 National Hockey League teams now has its own AHL affiliate.
Federal Prospects Hockey League: The FPHL started its 2022-23 season this week with ten teams aligned in five-team Continental and Empire divisions. All seven teams from the 2021-22 season have returned and the league added three expansion teams called the Elmira (NY) Mammoth, Motor City Rockers (Fraser, MI) and the Mississippi Sea Wolves (Biloxi). Teams will play a 56-game schedule from October 13, 2022 to April 15, 2023. The season will feature three neutral-site games in Baton Rouge (LA), which is trying to organize an FPHL expansion team for the 2023-24 season.
SOCCER
Major Arena Soccer League 2: The professional MASL2, or M2, which is the second-division indoor league to the Major Arena Soccer League, announced the Rochester (NY) Lancers2 team will be part of the league's 2022-23 season. The Rochester Lancers were part of the MASL2 for the 2018-19 season, moved up to the MASL for the 2019-20 season, and were dormant the next two seasons (2020-22). The MASL2 plans to have 14 teams for its 2022-23 season. Rochester is currently listed in a four-team North Division.
Major League Indoor Soccer: The proposed new professional MLIS announced the Springfield (MO) Demize has joined for the league's inaugural 2022-23 season and the team is listed as part of the Southern Division. The Demize was part of the amateur-level Major Arena Soccer League 3 for the past two seasons (2020-22). The MLIS is now up to 14 teams.
OTHER
Arena Lacrosse League: Canada's developmental ALL held a player draft this week to stock the new Brampton Express team that will become the eighth team in the Ontario-based ALL East division for the 2022-23 season. The four-team British Columbia-based ALL West division will return for its second season in 2022-23. The St. Catharines Shockwave team in the ALL East has been renamed the Ohsweken Bears for the 2022-23 season. The ALL 2022-23 season will run from December 16, 2022 to March 26, 2023. The ALL will again feature a women's division with a four-team Ontario-based ALL Women's East and a six-team British Columbia-based ALL Women's West.
Dan Krieger is the creator of the Weekly Sports League & Franchise Report, which has been tracking changes in the sports world's leagues, teams and nicknames since April 2007.
International League Stories from October 17, 2022
- Weekly Sports League and Franchise Report - OSC Original by Dan Krieger
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.
