MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
Local parks, including Trenton, could be prime locations for fall ball
The scene in the stands at a Maryland Fall League game was similar almost every night. There were normally three clumps of spectators and each group was about the same size. One congregation occupied the area directly behind home plate. The other two were behind the respective dugouts.
The people behind the dugouts were the paying customers. There weren’t many, but the ones who were there were into the game. Most baseball fans consider the seats behind the dugout to be the best in the house and these people, for the most part, were rocksolid baseball fans. When they came to a Maryland Fall League game their favorite seats were available, so that’s where they alighted.
The group behind home plate were not fans. Many were major league scouts. Some were farm directors. There were even a number of general managers present. All were equipped with radar guns and stop watches and all were hard at work evaluating talent — their own and that of rivals.
You’re forgiven if you’re scratching your head and trying to recall the Maryland Fall League. If it doesn’t happen to jog your memory, don’t worry about it.
The league existed for only one year and that year was 1998. It was patterned after the Arizona Fall League, which was, itself, a relatively new concept at that time. The AFL was, and remains, a finishing school for minor league players believed to be on the verge of becoming major league players. It consists of six teams but features players from every major league organization.
The MFL was a similar league for players who had not yet reached the Triple-A level. It consisted of four teams, with each playing a 42-game schedule, beginning in mid-September and ending in early November.
After one year the league’s fathers came to the shocking conclusion that Maryland’s climate does not offer great baseball weather at that time of year and shipped the whole operation to California for 1999. There it lasted only one more year before they decided the whole thing was a bad idea and buried it forever — or so they thought.
Forever, it turns out, is a very long time.
The possibility exists that this league, in some form, might be resurrected in 2020. Perhaps Arm & Hammer Park in Trenton could be part of it. That’s simply conjecture on my part. I’ll explain my reasoning in a moment.
For the uninitiated, each of the six teams in the AFL are shared by five major league clubs and each parent club contributes five players to the team’s roster. There are safeguards in place to make sure that every team’s roster is balanced — that is that no one ends up with, say, four shortstops and no catcher.
Play begins shortly after the minor league playoffs have ended and continues into November. All six franchises are located in the Greater Phoenix area, so there are no overnight road trips.
At least, that’s how it always has worked in the past. This year everything is different and everything is in flux. The possibility exists that there will be no AFL this year. But the other extreme is also possible. There might be an AFL that consists of more games and/or more teams.
Josh Norris, a former Trentonian staffer who now writes for Baseball America, recently published an article in which he reported that a “souped-up” AFL is being considered. He also reported that a “souped-up” fall league for Double-A players (the old Maryland Fall League, if you will) is a definite possibility.
Right now any discussion is merely a projection. The only thing we know for sure is that there will no minor league season. The major leagues are planning to play a 60-game schedule that will begin in about two weeks. On opening day every team will operate with a 30-man roster and 30-man reserve squad. The reserve squad players will attempt to stay in game shape by training at a location near the parent club’s home base.
As of now, that’s the total extent of organized baseball in 2020. As of now there are no plans for any professional baseball player who is not part of his team’s 60-man super roster. That means many promising prospects will miss an entire year of development.
That number would change, at least by a little, if the Arizona Fall League is able to operate. It would change by a larger number if a similar Double-A league were hatched. The major leagues would have to bear the cost of any such league(s) but they might be deemed worthwhile.
But there are drawbacks. With the Arizona Fall League the first word is the biggest drawback. Arizona.
Arizona has been in the news lately, and not in a good way. At the present time the dreaded COVID-19 virus is affecting more people in Phoenix than literally anywhere else in the world. If that doesn’t change drastically it would be fool-hardy to ship 150 young men, along with their managers and coaches, into such a disease-ridden environment. If there’s an Arizona Fall League this year it probably can’t be conducted in Arizona. For similar reasons it can’t be conducted in Florida, Texas or California.
Perhaps that’s where we could help. Perhaps a “souped-up” version of the Arizona Fall League (or its Double-A equivalent) could be played right here. We don’t have the same climate, but we do have the facilities.
We have suitable ball parks in Trenton, Lakewood, Wilmington, Reading and Allentown, Pa. Each stadium could house two teams, with a schedule drawn up in a way that only one team would be home any particular day.
If these five locales were used there would be no need for overnight road trips. Teams based in any location could make a bus trip to any other spot, play a ball game and return the same day. Players and coaches, once tested, could be kept safely in a bubble.
With no minor leagues playing, the season could begin in August and last into October. Yes, we have the climate here to do that.
With 10 teams, each franchise would be shared by only three major league clubs. That would mean every major league club could contribute eight of its finest prospects to the league.
Who knows? It might even be feasible to permit a limited number of spectators into the games. The only drawback would be they wouldn’t all be allowed to congregate behind the dugout. Heck, even the scouts would have to spread out. I think they’d manage.
Compared to no baseball at all, this would be heaven.
Hall of Fame voter Jay Dunn has written baseball for The Trentonian for 52 years. Contact him at jaydunn8@aol.com