Some Independent Leagues Have Vanished, But They Still Leave Reasons to Be Remembered

It is only natural that some leagues would vanish since the experiment that turned into today’s successful modern day Independent Baseball is now 21 years old.  No one could have expected more than two decades to pass without the landscape of cities, teams and leagues being altered.

But even though such leagues as the Northern, Northeast, Golden and numerous others are no longer active (the Northern League could have a new life in a year or two) they are hardly forgotten.  How could they be with some of the players who were a part of them not only active but still in the major leagues.

Seattle closer Tom Wilhelmsen almost certainly would be out of baseball if not for the Golden League having a team in his hometown of Tucson , AZ. The determination of Boston ‘s steadily improving Daniel Nava would have been missed if Chico , CA did not have a team in the same league.  Arizona ‘s side-arming reliever Brad Ziegler might not have had the chance to excel without the Northern League although Schaumburg , IL , where he pitched, is now part of the Frontier League.  And Red Sox reliever Craig Breslow, now on a rehab assignment to get his left arm back in shape, most likely would have become a doctor if the Northeast League did not exist to give him a second baseball life even though the New Jersey Jackals still play, now as part of the Can-Am League.

Jerome Williams and Dane DeLaRosa, both working out of the Los Angeles Angels bullpen, spent time in the Golden League, although they also were in the Atlantic League , and DeLaRosa added the American Association to his Independent Baseball journey.  Both of those leagues are very much alive today, and seem poised to draw another 4.5 million spectators again this season.

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Colabello, Schepel Post Big Minor League Stats

When tracking Independent grads now in affiliated minor leagues, we once again single out longtime Can-Am League first baseman Chris Colabello (Worcester, MA and Nashua, NH) because his six home runs share second place in the Triple-A International League , only one off the league lead.  The Minnesota farmhand is hitting .338 with a .390 on-base percentage and 15 RBI in 20 games.

Two others who, like Colabello, started their careers in Indy leagues are putting up impressive pitching stats in the Class A Midwest League as teammates on the Arizona farm club in South Bend , IN.   Kyle Schepel is the headliner because he threw a seven-inning no-hitter in his second start, then came back with five more shutout innings the next time out, but Brandon Sinnery (London, Ontario, Frontier League, and Lincoln, NE, American Association) also has been good with 13 shutout innings in which he has both started and relieved.

“It was snowing before the game for a while; even 30 minutes before we started it was pretty chilly” Schepel told MLB.com of his no-hitter, but in what had to be a major understatement added “it turned out to be a nice day”.  The 22-year-old has a 1.50 ERA for three starts, following up on a 4-7, 3.66 season with Rockford , IL in the Frontier League one year ago.

Don’t Chit Chat on the Mound

While it is too early for the Atlantic League to have analyzed much data from its first week, the speed up tactics give some hint of working.  “We were at 2:35 for (an) 8.5 inning game (in which)15 runs scored,” Peter Kirk said one report from York , PA showed.  “And just as interesting, (there was) no noticeable ‘rushing’ in the game – just a nice pace.”

Kirk, who owns multiple teams and is out front in seeking expansion sites, said the league is “not only hoping to shorten games but is trying to get a better understanding of the things that have the most impact on the pace of the game.”  He explained that factors being weighed include the number of mound visits, and time for between-inning promotions.

By BOB DUTTON The Kansas City Star

Updated: 2013-03-26T05:37:57Z

              (This is an excerpt from the column Bob Wirz writes year round on Independent Baseball.  Forty columns are planned during 2013.  Fans may subscribe at www.WirzandAssociates.com , enjoy added stories on the blog www.IndyBaseballChatter.com , or comment to RWirz@aol.com .  The author has 16 years of major league baseball public relations experience with Kansas City and as spokesman for two Commissioners and lives in Stratford, CT.)