For The Love Of The Game

This is a Reprint from March 22,2010.
By Tommy Leavitt. Tommy Leavitt Loves Baseball and he writes and blogs about it. He can be reached at ondeck99@hotmail.com or his blog http://baseball1967.blogspot.com/



Monday, March 22, 2010
Love OF The Game
When you grow up playing baseball and looking at baseball cards you start to form your love of the game and your favorite team or players!Now kids and adults are playing MLB games on WII,
Play Station or XBOX. Kids nowadays have their ds ,psp,kindle and soon the ipad. Info is everywhere. You can surf the web and pick up info at any time of day on your favorite Team, franchise,
or ballplayers.We all follow players on the way up but what happens when the Lights go out and the Party is over. How about if the Party never started ? It does not take away your love for the game.


Baseball is everywhere and I thought you might like to go where some former stars go every night all summer long . We are going to the Independent leagues. Seven Leagues come to my mind off
hand and you can use the baseball search engine on my site to find info for game times if you live in the areas where they play. The first League I keep an eye on is the United League down in
Texas. Ita started May 16, 2006`. I just like the names of the teams . Two always come to mind the Amarillo Dillas in Amarillo ,Texas and the Coastal bend Thunder in ,Robston ,Texas.
I may buy a Dillas hat soon ,if I can hide it from the wife. I always just think of an Amadillo getting caught in a west Texas thunderstorm in a Flashflood and floating away.
Nothing to do with baseball I know but thats what I think of. The baseball must be good down in Texas because ole Nolan Ryan came from there and he was pretty good I would say!

The next league I watch is the Northern League founded in 1993. This league has stadiums that seat 4000 to 8000 people and again some pretty colorful names.
The league is populated by teams like the Joliet Jackhammers from Joliet, Illinois . All I can think off is the Blues Brothers playing baseball and causing mayhem in the process.
The league also sports teams like the Winnipeg Golden Eyes in Winnipeg ,Manitoba. You have to love baseball to roadtrip on a bus from Joliet ,Illinois to Winnipeg,Manitoba .
Do not ever tell a baseball player that he has not paid his dues because even if you are a superstar you started some where and rode some buses in the process.In the Can Am League
you will fiind the Belleville Basher( Brian Daubach) managing a team this year Yes the daubberr ,Brian Daubach the former Red Sox will manage the new Pittsfield, Massachusetts team
the Pittsfield Colonials.They will compete against teams from Canada as well, like the Quebec Capitales,where Eric Gagne was plying his trade last year.

In the American Association you have teams like the St Paul Saints, Wichita Wingnuts ,Grand Prairie AirHogs and the Pensacola Pelicans. Major League Umpire Lance Barrett started in
The American Association.Former Saint Paul Alum Kevin Millar is trying to make the Chicago Cubs this year. Kevin is baseball famous for keeping it all fun and crazy in the clubhouse ,
check out the 2010 Pensacola Pelicans video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FEYenCQZzJ8&feature=player_embedded this could be a future Millar. Hunter Davis could be a future star.
These players are playing to get there but what is wrong with a little fun on the way?


In the Atlantic League this year they have TOSHHISA NISHI former japanese Star with the Lancaster Barnstormers and the Newark Bears proclaim the signing of former Yankee prospect
Fernando Seguignol.
The Bears have some great Alumni including Hall of Famer Rickey Henderson after the superstar years. Rickey Loves Baseball so much he would not retire! The Bears can also claim Jared
Weaver and Ruben Sierra as Alumni. My favorite is the coach of the Somerset Patriots Sparky Lyle.
I stiil have not gotten over Danny Cater for Sparky Lyle ,or Larry Anderson for Jeff Bagwell ,and I think David Murphy for Eric Gagne may rank up there eventually.The Frontier League will bring
you the Big News that Dmitri Young has signed on to be a VP and Sr. Advisor for Baseball Operations for the Oakland County Cruisers in Waterford ,Michigan. This league also has teams like
the Washington Wild Things in Washington,Pa.and another favorite of mine the River City Rascals in O'Fallon ,Mo.
These team names are great and the baseball is great too.The final League I check in on is The Golden Baseball League. The Motto of this League is "WE LOVE BASEBALL".This league is
only a few years old but they have some great names associated with it Darrell Evans,Tim Johnson,Garry Templeton and Phil Nevin. The league has internet podcasts,and claims a couple of
Alums in the majors Chris Jakubaustas a former Fullerton Flyer and Scott Richmond former Edmonton Crackercat. You have to love a league that claims Bret Boone as one of your managers .
Boone comes from baseball pedigree his dad Bob Boone played in the majors from 1972-1990 and his grandfather Ray Boone played in the majors from 1948-1960. His brother Aaron is the
first MLB player to come back from OPEN Heart Surgery. Bret had a great career in the Majors and has picked a great place to start his new career Victoria,BC isn't a bad locale. It is on my
bucket list to visit , before I finish my journey.
Have Fun visiting these Independant Leagues and Teams and remember that if you want to take that Baseball journey across America someday include some of these teams in your stops.
Remember to root,root,root for the home team!