If you don't build it, they will leave
In its 20 or so years of existence, independent baseball has had its share of success stories (see places like Lincoln, Neb., or some of the franchises and leagues that have been around for a decade or more). However, without ties to major league organizations to help pay the bills, indy baseball is crapshoot at best. At its worst, it's a mess for all involved. An example of the latter can be found in Zion, Ill., home of the Lake County Fielders of the North American Baseball League.
How the Fielders' situation is tied to the Wild Things and ends up on this blog is this: Steve Grife, a relief pitcher who re-joined the Wild Things Friday, spent the first half of the season with Lake County after being traded there by Washington late in spring training. The Fielders' story and Grife's recounting of his experience with the team makes you appreciate the Wild Things and the Frontier League.
A little background on the Fielders: The team was an expansion outfit last year, billing itself as having actor Kevin Costner as one of its owners. The primary owner, however, is a guy named Rich Ehrenrich, who left a trail of unpaid bills after owning the Northern League team in Schaumburg, Ill.
The Fielders lured Fran Riordan away from the Frontier League to manage the team last season. They played much of the season's first half on the road while a "temporary" ballpark was being built. Riordan got out of Lake County after the season and returned the Frontier League as the Florence Freedom's manager. It was the best move Riordan has ever made.
This year, Lake County joined the new North American Baseball League and was put in a division with teams in Calgary, Edmonton and Hawaii (can you see how money is going to be a problem?). The Fielders and the league, from what I can gather, were told that their temporary ballpark would be completed by midseason. So the NABL scheduled the Fielders to start the season with a 31-game road trip.
That's right, 31 consecutive games on the road. Two trips to Hawaii, trips to Canada, Arizona and California. The team flew from city to city, except for a bus trip from Edmonton to Calgary.
"The flights were hectic," Grife said Saturday. "We didn't always have the players and coaches on the same flight. One time, when we went to Hawaii, we were split, on two flights. By game time, we had only half the team there and no coaches. All the position players were there plus two or three relievers. The players made out the lineup. The manager got there sometime in the first inning. We ended up winning the game in 14 or 15 innings."
Throughout their seven weeks on the road, there was one serious problem: a lack of money. In part because they were on the road and not generating revenue from home games, and in part because of lousy ownership, the Fielders were rarely getting paid or their $20 meal money per day.
According to Grife, sometimes the money was there, sometimes the paychecks bounced. Meal money was always a problem.
At one point, the Fielders held a team meeting and discussed whether they should play that night's game or not, and whether they should quit or continue the season. But as Grife pointed out, how would the players get home if they decided enough was enough and they were quitting? After all, they weren't getting paid.
"Our coaches were phenomenal," Grife said. 'They were behind us 100 percent. They paid for some of our meals out of their own pockets. They kept us afloat."
So the Fielders marched on, hoping that things would change when they returned to Zion for their home opener July 3 against the Yuma Scorpions and their player/manager Jose Canseco.
Through all the troubles, the amazing part of the Fielders' story is they returned home in first place in the NABL's East Division.
"We took an attitude of us against the world," Grife said. "The team was awesome. We knew we were going to win. We would hit three or four home runs a night, steal some bases and our starting pitchers would go eight or nine innings."
The Fielders finally made it to Illinois and found that their ballpark was still a "temporary" facility. But, the home opener drew approximately 5,000 fans. And, during one game in the middle of the seven-game homestand with Yuma, Grife capped a Fielders victory by striking out Canseco to end the game.
"I kept throwing him fastballs and he kept nipping 'em and fouling 'em off," Grife recalled. "I know a younger version of (Canseco) would have hit a couple of those fastballs out of the park. I finally got him on a fastball up and in. I think he he got tired from swinging and fouling off so many pitches. He got worn out."
Still, though they were playing at home, the Fielders weren't getting paid. Shortly before the July 9 against Yuma (the next-to-last of the series), Fielders manager Tim Johnson quit. It was reported that Johnson, the former manager of the Toronto Blue Jays, hadn't been paid since May.
Out of protest, 11 Lake County players refused to play that night.
Hiting coach Pete LaCock, a former Chicago Cubs player (and son of longtime Hollywood Squares host Peter Marshall) ran the team that night. With a limited roster, he put pitchers in the field. Grife played five innings at shortstop. Some non-pitchers pitched.
To level the playing field, Canseco decided to let some of his pitchers play the field. Canseco even pitched six innings, throwing fastballs and knuckleballs. Grife had one hit off Canseco.
LaCock quit after the game but was fined $2,500 by the league for "making a farce of the game."
Earlier that day, the Fielders players had filed for free agency because they were not being paid. By Monday (two days later), 13 of them became free agents. Nine others were traded. Grife was among those released.
In all, the Fielders had four managers in less than a week and either released or traded 23 players in three days.
"It came down to a lot of promises that weren't kept," Grife said. "When we became free agents, you should have heard the cell phones ringing. A lot of teams were looking for players. We had two pitchers go to Windy City, one to Normal."
Grife called Washington manager Darin Everson, who offered the right-hander another shot with the Wild Things and, yes, a regular paycheck.
Here are a few links to stories about the Fielders' fiasco:
Read the story here.
Read the story here.
How the Fielders' situation is tied to the Wild Things and ends up on this blog is this: Steve Grife, a relief pitcher who re-joined the Wild Things Friday, spent the first half of the season with Lake County after being traded there by Washington late in spring training. The Fielders' story and Grife's recounting of his experience with the team makes you appreciate the Wild Things and the Frontier League.
A little background on the Fielders: The team was an expansion outfit last year, billing itself as having actor Kevin Costner as one of its owners. The primary owner, however, is a guy named Rich Ehrenrich, who left a trail of unpaid bills after owning the Northern League team in Schaumburg, Ill.
The Fielders lured Fran Riordan away from the Frontier League to manage the team last season. They played much of the season's first half on the road while a "temporary" ballpark was being built. Riordan got out of Lake County after the season and returned the Frontier League as the Florence Freedom's manager. It was the best move Riordan has ever made.
This year, Lake County joined the new North American Baseball League and was put in a division with teams in Calgary, Edmonton and Hawaii (can you see how money is going to be a problem?). The Fielders and the league, from what I can gather, were told that their temporary ballpark would be completed by midseason. So the NABL scheduled the Fielders to start the season with a 31-game road trip.
That's right, 31 consecutive games on the road. Two trips to Hawaii, trips to Canada, Arizona and California. The team flew from city to city, except for a bus trip from Edmonton to Calgary.
"The flights were hectic," Grife said Saturday. "We didn't always have the players and coaches on the same flight. One time, when we went to Hawaii, we were split, on two flights. By game time, we had only half the team there and no coaches. All the position players were there plus two or three relievers. The players made out the lineup. The manager got there sometime in the first inning. We ended up winning the game in 14 or 15 innings."
Throughout their seven weeks on the road, there was one serious problem: a lack of money. In part because they were on the road and not generating revenue from home games, and in part because of lousy ownership, the Fielders were rarely getting paid or their $20 meal money per day.
According to Grife, sometimes the money was there, sometimes the paychecks bounced. Meal money was always a problem.
At one point, the Fielders held a team meeting and discussed whether they should play that night's game or not, and whether they should quit or continue the season. But as Grife pointed out, how would the players get home if they decided enough was enough and they were quitting? After all, they weren't getting paid.
"Our coaches were phenomenal," Grife said. 'They were behind us 100 percent. They paid for some of our meals out of their own pockets. They kept us afloat."
So the Fielders marched on, hoping that things would change when they returned to Zion for their home opener July 3 against the Yuma Scorpions and their player/manager Jose Canseco.
Through all the troubles, the amazing part of the Fielders' story is they returned home in first place in the NABL's East Division.
"We took an attitude of us against the world," Grife said. "The team was awesome. We knew we were going to win. We would hit three or four home runs a night, steal some bases and our starting pitchers would go eight or nine innings."
The Fielders finally made it to Illinois and found that their ballpark was still a "temporary" facility. But, the home opener drew approximately 5,000 fans. And, during one game in the middle of the seven-game homestand with Yuma, Grife capped a Fielders victory by striking out Canseco to end the game.
"I kept throwing him fastballs and he kept nipping 'em and fouling 'em off," Grife recalled. "I know a younger version of (Canseco) would have hit a couple of those fastballs out of the park. I finally got him on a fastball up and in. I think he he got tired from swinging and fouling off so many pitches. He got worn out."
Still, though they were playing at home, the Fielders weren't getting paid. Shortly before the July 9 against Yuma (the next-to-last of the series), Fielders manager Tim Johnson quit. It was reported that Johnson, the former manager of the Toronto Blue Jays, hadn't been paid since May.
Out of protest, 11 Lake County players refused to play that night.
Hiting coach Pete LaCock, a former Chicago Cubs player (and son of longtime Hollywood Squares host Peter Marshall) ran the team that night. With a limited roster, he put pitchers in the field. Grife played five innings at shortstop. Some non-pitchers pitched.
To level the playing field, Canseco decided to let some of his pitchers play the field. Canseco even pitched six innings, throwing fastballs and knuckleballs. Grife had one hit off Canseco.
LaCock quit after the game but was fined $2,500 by the league for "making a farce of the game."
Earlier that day, the Fielders players had filed for free agency because they were not being paid. By Monday (two days later), 13 of them became free agents. Nine others were traded. Grife was among those released.
In all, the Fielders had four managers in less than a week and either released or traded 23 players in three days.
"It came down to a lot of promises that weren't kept," Grife said. "When we became free agents, you should have heard the cell phones ringing. A lot of teams were looking for players. We had two pitchers go to Windy City, one to Normal."
Grife called Washington manager Darin Everson, who offered the right-hander another shot with the Wild Things and, yes, a regular paycheck.
Here are a few links to stories about the Fielders' fiasco:
Read the story here.
Read the story here.
Labels: Fran Riordan, Jose Canseco, Lake County Fielders, North American Baseball League, Pete LaCock, Steve Grife
15 Comments:
Now that we don't have Todd Marlin to blame anymore, I think ALL the heat should be placed on Darin Everson to either 'put up or shut up'. This guy has had a lot of time to get things right and we still don't see any real results. Everson needs to feel the pressure just as Todd did. Smiley picked this group of players and it makes you wonder what the hell he was thinking at that time.
The Wild Things ride to the depths they have now reached all started with the “Great Reporter Lockout” of 2007. Things have gone to pot since that infamous incident.
We need to flush the whole lot of them, owners included, and get a fresh start. A new broom always sweeps cleaner and there is a lot that needs to be swept away. Get back to fielding a competitive team, start treating the customers (fans) as if they are important and not just an inconvenience that must be tolerated.
Unfortunately, at least for me, a lot of my friends at CEP will not be renewing their season tickets next year.
That is sad and I will miss them. I’m not quite ready to throw in the towel just yet. Anyway, I know it ticks off ol’ Stu Williams when he sees me sitting there. That’s worth the price of admission all by itself!
Ima Fraid
It sure sounds like Iam Fraid is Ron Wilson.
Ima Fraid (Ron Wilson) or whoever you are,I agree with you 100%!
and now, to top it all---dude strikes out, and ends up at second base on the passed ball. SECOND BASE!!! then to third on one wild pitch and scores on another. these jokes are just as bad as the ones from that clueless host on the espy's...
Wild things blow a 7 run lead in the 7th inning tonight. Then lose the game. .... Hahahahahaha!
The Pirates are in 2nd place a half game out of first place with a loss yesterday.
The Wild Things are in last place, 7.5 games out of first place after a loss yesterday with 44 games to play assuming all games will be made up.
Who would have predicted both of these events in the respective preseasons?
Also noteworthy, Radio Randy commented during the game yesterday that Traverse City used to be one of Chris Sidick's favorate stadiums to play in.
But since they installed "artifical turf" the balls are slowed down so much that it hurts a fast runner who is used to beating out hits. Randy didn't follow up with the appropriate question.
How does Chris like the effects of "TPT" is Washington this year?
Wild things didn't blow a 7 run lead Bilardello did. This boy can not pitch he gives up runs every time Darin puts him in. It's time to say good-bye to Bilardello.
the next time anybody wants to say anything bad about radio randy, just put yourself in his shoes, having to not only watch, but describe for the radio audience, that complete, total embarassment of a final two innings wednesday night. then, just shut up.
“Hahahahahaha!”
So, what is funny about the Wild Things loss? What is funny is that Ernie Banks remains on their roster, Darin Everson remains as manager, the Wild Things continue to pick up players that are nothing but others teams castoffs, and they continue to waste their pitchers best efforts.
Even worse, the ownership group seems not to care at all. I would not be too shocked to see the Wild Things suspend operations in another year, or two. Just like the Kalamazoo Kings. Maybe Stu Williams should spend more money on the team instead of $65 bucks on a Wild Things game jersey!
Everybody in the '‘baseball operations’ department seems to not give a damn. I suspect they really do care but are not skilled enough in player evaluation to put together a winning team.
One thing is for certain, something’s wrong and I believe it is a lack of commitment to excellence throughout the organization from top to bottom.
The turf at Traverse City "slowed down" the balls so much Chris Sidick had 10 hits in the last three games. I guess if he played on grass he might have gone 12 for12. Also when the ball is slowed down on the infield it HELPS a fast runner. Someone needs to explain these things to Natural Grass.
Love the headline in the O-R "Wild Things blow 7-run lead."
Hahahahahahahaha!
if you wonder why nobody wants to play for the Wild Things all you need to do is read this blog. Counting the reasons:
1. "Wild things didn't blow a 7 run lead Bilardello did. This boy can not pitch he gives up runs every time Darin puts him in. It's time to say good-bye to Bilardello."
2. "What is funny is that Ernie Banks remains on their roster."
3. "Everybody in the '‘baseball operations’ department seems to not give a damn."
4. "Blake, or is it Blank, Ochoa? Another God awful throw to 1st base."
5. "speaking of pitiful, how about the miserable post-break defense by the circus that seems to stay in town."
6. "Now, this year’s version of stupidity is Ernie Banks."
7. "Ernie has had ample opportunity to display that he has nothing to contribute."
8. "I don’t know how you can maintain the interest level that it takes to continue to write about a hopeless organization, and it’s motley collection of so-called baseball players."
9. "Did you see that AWFUL throw to second base last night? NOBODY could have caught that ball! THIS is an all-star catcher? Lord help us! His “agent” aka hie wife, sure sold the Wild Things a real bill of goods."
10. "Scott Lawson displayed his inability, or unwillingness, to execute even the most basic fundamentals of the game."
11. "Cut Blake Ochoa also.
He can't even bat Ernie Banks weight."
12. "Over the last few years things have gone downhill at a rapid pace. It’s almost like a virus has infected the entire organization. Everything from ticket sales, concessions, the attitude of employees and yes, even general clean up has just gotten worse, and worse. Three times during the last home stand, I saw trashcans over flowing before the game even started."
13. "i'm beginning to find myself rooting for the other teams."
14. "Blake Ochoa an All-Star? This guy can’t hit and has spent more time chasing pitched balls he muffed than he has running the bases. What a crock of a choice this is."
15. "Ochoa would not be an all star in a t-ball league."
16. "this is the most pitiful, embarrassing, inept, incapable, useless, disappointing, unsuccessful collection of batters perhaps in the history of the frontier league."
17. "will anybody notice that i am not going to any more games? probably not because hundreds of others have long grown tired of the motions this team."
18. "Hope Ernie Banks is the next to go."
19. "I heard the Josh Banda was finally sent packing – is that a fact? It would sure be nice if they did the same to
that “dominant hitter”, Ernie Banks."
20. "The Ugly:
Banks and Banda."
I could have included some remarks about a "little guy with a clipboard" but being a fan of a team in the West Division I don't know what you folks in Washington are talking about with that one. All of those remarks were made in the last month on this blog. no wonder the Washington fans are considered trailer trash by the rest of the Frontier League.
"if you wonder why nobody wants to play for the Wild Things all you need to do is read this blog."
Are you Kidding me? Any player that really wants to play base baseball wil play anywhere!
Have you ever tried reading a blog in other Frontier League cities? They are almost non existant. Just about zero interest in the entire League.
If you don't like this blog then just don't read it. I hope you are not so challenged that you can't figure that out! It's our team and we have to watch this stuff every day the Wild Things play. We have every right to voice our views, and we will! So, go back to reading the Hayseed Gazette.
kidding, right? the hottest hitter in all of baseball right now is at the plate and you get caught stealing? you are kidding, right?
"kidding, right? the hottest hitter in all of baseball right now is at the plate and you get caught stealing? you are kidding, right?"
AND THEY DID IT AGAIN FRIDAY NIGHT!!!!
note to mr. smily....right now, when sidick is batting---all bases runners have a "do not steal" order.
Stealing with two outs and Chris Sidick at the plate is a GOOD idea. You want to get the baserunner into scoring position so he can score on a single. If he's thrown out, then you have your leadoff hitter as the first batter in the next inning. Solid strategy, especially when you consider Kevyn Feiner was 14-for-14 in stolen base attempts until Tuesday.
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