Lower Tier Baseball

by Wimb on Aug 31, 2007 8:27 AM EDT

Well work is dead today so I thought I'd pose a question to you fellows after being inspired by Dbackskins awesome report about the Sidewinders, I though Id ask about lower league baseball.

The reason being is i've always loved lower league football over here in the UK. My own team Reading have never been a big club (although now it's starting to change) and whilst at Uni I watched alot of Lancaster City (6 leagues below the Premiership) in crowds of around 150 each week.

I just wondered how many of you actually partake in lower level baseball? What the standard is like and what the stadiums/atmospheres are like.

With the Sidewinders probably moving on will you continue to support a team that perhaps moves into Tuscon? or will you just follow the D-Backs AAA affiliate.

Anyways jut a few questions! :)

Tweet Comment 11 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

Well,

that's bit of a tough question for some us. Minor league teams can't be in the same sphere of influence (for the most part, there are exceptions) of a Major League team, so for me I don't get to experience much of the minor leagues. I live in the Phoenix area, which means that I either need to drive an hour and a half to Tucson to see the Sidewinders, or three or four to Vegas.

However, another alternative that I should take advantage of this next year is college baseball. Arizona State University (where I go, and the uni in Phoenix) is one of the better college baseball teams, so there really is no reason I don't go more often beyond laziness. I guess I'll have to make it a goal.

Personally, I would love to have a minor league team nearby to support. Of course, I would still support the D'backs first, but it would be nice to have a team that is more affordable for nice seats, and closer to my house, and more intimate, and all that. I'm like you, if I lived in England I'd have a big club to support, but I'd definately be hanging out in the lower leagues because I just love the game. It doesn't really matter what the level of prestige the league or team has.

I can't answer too much about stadia, as I haven't been to many minor league facilities, but I did like the ones I've been to. I have pretty low standards, though. Can I see the game? Check. Is there beer and hotdogs? Check.

Stay grindy, my friends.

by soco on Aug 31, 2007 10:58 AM EDT reply actions

From my experiences

If lower league baseball is available its usually taken advantage of. Here in southern Indiana we have the Evansville Otters of an independant league and it gets fantastic attendance. (couple thousand) The Otters I believe get alot of attendance because thats where our small town high school baseball heros and their careers go to die.

Tippecanoe and Pena too! (let's hope pena doesn't die after 30 days in office)

by seton hall snake pit on Aug 31, 2007 11:14 AM EDT reply actions

When I lived in Yuma, Az

the indie league teams never got much support. But then, it's Yuma.

Stay grindy, my friends.

by soco on Aug 31, 2007 8:25 PM EDT up reply actions

Thats another thing,

Do ex major leaguers ever return to the minors to play for a local affiliate or such? (its a VERY slow day at work ;) )

by Wimb on Aug 31, 2007 11:40 AM EDT reply actions

some do

you will sometimes find guys go back to the minors to look for a chance to be picked back up.

Ricky is no longer doing it, but it was an annual tradition for him to sign with a AAA or Independent team and then get picked up in mid-summer by some team that could use a .250 bat and good fielding/running skills.

The last player I can think of that is trying to keep their career alive in the minors is Jose Offerman and I only know that because he pummeled a dude with a bat after being hit by a pitch.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zsZ9rkgUgEs&mode=related&search=

by peeklay on Aug 31, 2007 1:35 PM EDT up reply actions

John Rocker

did it for a while too, flaming out with the Long Island Ducks.

What I think would be interesting but which you almost never see is guys who know they are never getting back to the bigs playing a season or two in podunk somewhere for the fans who cheered them but didn't see them up close. I guess that to be a professional athelete you have to have enough of a killer instinct that you are always hoping to get back to the top of the game.

by andrewinnewyork on Aug 31, 2007 1:42 PM EDT up reply actions

"Sphere of Influence"

I don't know about the rule that minor league teams can't be in the same "sphere of influence." That may only be true at the AAA level. Here in New York, the Mets have a AA team in Brooklyn (the Cyclones) who many people in Brooklyn follow as closely as the big league club (then again, there are people in Brooklyn who still think the Dodgers are coming back). There is also a AA Yankees team in Staten Island, but the Yankees do not bring up their own farmhands to the big team, so there is less influence there.

More common for a player past his prime is to go to Japan than to finish a career in the Minor Leagues (though it has happened, and not only in Bull Durham -- last I heard Ricky Henderson was still out stealing bases for some local affiliate).

Both of the New York stadiums (I can't bring myself to say 'stadia') are great, as is the Bridgeport field (which I have never been too, but I have seen from the train). I've been to Cyclones games, and tried to root for kids from Arizona no matter what team they are on (they list the HS or college of players in the program, so when I see some kid that went to St. Mary's it's fun to give him a holler of support).

So I think it's fun, but you don't have the loyalty of the big leagues (and unlike how I understand football teams work, the team itself cannot move up or down a league -- the best players leave for the top club, so you don't have a consistent sense of the team getting better and better).

by andrewinnewyork on Aug 31, 2007 12:44 PM EDT reply actions

It might be just AAA

I just know that often (especially in a smaller baseball market such as ours) that they won't put a minor league team too close simply because it would be competition. In Arizona, with less tradition in baseball than Illinois, Missouri, New York, et cetera, it makes more sense to keep the minor league teams away.

Stay grindy, my friends.

by soco on Aug 31, 2007 8:26 PM EDT up reply actions

Minor League Baseball

...is great. Don't get me wrong - I love watching the big boys play, but there are things to be said about watching the 'lower leagues'.

#1 is value for your dollar.
#2 is the focus on baseball - yes they have crazy promotions and such but the very fact these teams have no money to spend keeps you from being inundated by light and sound every inning.
#3 is it is convenient and hassle free (much less stressful to drive even 1/2 an hour to a AA or AAA game, park and find your seat than if you lived 10 minutes from Chase).
#4 is the value for your dollar
#5 is the chance to see future superstars
#6 is the value for your dollar
#7 is no idiotic visiting fans (usually)
#8 is value for your dollar
#9 is a strong team/community connection
#10 is value for your dollar

You're probably noticing a trend about now. It IS a great value. I used to drive down from Flagstaff to watch the Phoenix Firebirds in Scottsdale when they were around. When I would visit my parents in Sierra Vista, I'd always drive back up to Tucson at least once to catch the Toros. In Indiana, I paid .50 a seat to watch a semi-pro team play in the local city park. It was well attended (in the hundreds some nights) and was a fantastic way to spend a midwest summer evening.

While you have some diehard fans of a minor league team, given the roster movement I've found most attendees to simply be fans of baseball first and foremost. Minor league baseball allows that - there is little gnashing and wailing of teeth if your team gets beat. The absence of any appreciable stakes involved allows you to bask in the game itself. They lost? So what - I just spent a great night watching professional baseball in great seats for the price of a movie ticket or two (if that).

While not the minors - I love Spring Training. While people will rightfully complain that it ain't what it used to be, it still is a low(er) cost way to enjoy the sights and sounds of baseball played by the some of the best in the world. Couple that with the hope and excitement each season brings - it's an unbeatable combination. I probably enjoy the Spring Training games as much, if not more, than most regular season games I end up attending.

by cavscout on Aug 31, 2007 1:51 PM EDT reply actions

Slightly different

One of the big differences between baseball and football - actually, between American sports and sports elsewhere - is that the structure of the former is based purely on money, not merit. Last year's Tucson Sidewinders, for example, could probably have given the 2006 Devil Rays a run for their money. But no matter how good, a minor-league team will never be promoted to the majors, or even play a major-league side in a meaningful game.

This is in sharp contrast to competitions like the FA Cup, where a large part of the magic is "giant killing" exploits where teams from a much lower level beat bigger, richer, more famous outfits. Classic examples would be the amateurs (teachers, dock workers and office clerks) of Calais reachiong the French Cup final in 2000, or Wrexham, then the last-placed team three levels below the top flight, beating reigning champions Arsenal in 1992.

I've never been to a minor-league game, unless the AFL counts? I think I'd find it hard to get emotionally involved in a team, knowing they are entirely subsidiary to the success of the parent franchise. I'd rather have an independent team, I think.

by Jim McLennan on Aug 31, 2007 7:20 PM EDT reply actions

Valid points....

....Jim, I've always wondered why the major league sides face each other in Spring Training, surely some form of knockout cup would be alot more fun and really get people interested in the season from day one.

You can just imagine the Sidewinders vs Yankees and Smokies vs Vegas....

by Wimb on Sep 5, 2007 8:59 AM EDT reply actions