The offseason that was: 2017-18 edition
No one mourns the end of a baseball offseason. Baseball is imminent, and that's what really matters. Nonetheless, that which happens during the offseason has a huge impact on what occurs during it. In advance of Minor League Baseball's Aprill 5 Opening Day, this article takes a look at some of
No one mourns the end of a baseball offseason. Baseball is imminent, and that's what really matters.
Nonetheless, that which happens during the offseason has a huge impact on what occurs during it. In advance of Minor League Baseball's Aprill 5 Opening Day, this article takes a look at some of the biggest developments that took place from October to March.
Movers and shakers
For the first time since 2011, this coming season will not feature a team playing in a new market. There is one new stadium on the horizon, however, as the Augusta GreenJackets have replaced Lake Olmstead Park with SRP Park. The latter facility is located across the Savannah River in North Augusta, South Carolina, meaning that the team has switched states despite still playing in the same market.
Three new ballparks are slated to open in 2019, however, with significant progress made on all of them throughout the course of the offseason. A facility in Fayetteville, North Carolina, broke ground this past August. It will house the Houston Astros' Class A Advanced Carolina League affiliate; that franchise is currently entering its second and final season as the Buies Creek Astros.
On Feb. 1 the city of Amarillo, Texas, broke ground on a ballpark. That ballpark will serve as the home of the Double-A Texas League franchise currently operating as the San Antonio Missions. (In a corresponding move, the Triple-A Colorado Springs Sky Sox will relocate to San Antonio.)
Several weeks after Amarillo, Las Vegas broke ground on a ballpark of its own. It will house the Triple-A Pacific Coast League Las Vegas 51s, who are currently entering their final season at Cashman Field. The stadium will simply be called Las Vegas Ballpark, thanks to a naming rights deal with the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.
The 51s are currently a New York Mets affiliate, but that relationship will end at the conclusion of the 2018 season. The Mets have purchased the Syracuse Chiefs, who will serve as their Triple-A affiliate from 2019 through at least 2025. Other Major League clubs who recently purchased a Minor League affiliate this season include the Texas Rangers (Class A Hickory Crawdads) and Milwaukee Brewers (Class A Advanced Hickory Carolina Mudcats).
Meanwhile, in the Mexican League, a franchise previously located in Veracruz moved to Laredo -- both of them. Tecolotes Dos Laredos (Owls of the Two Laredos) will split their home games between Nuevo Laredo, Mexico, and Laredo, Texas.
Finally, after 14 seasons as the Astros, the Rookie-level Appalachian League club located in Greeneville, Tennessee is now the Greeneville Reds. After the Houston Astros' organization decided to depart the league, the Cincinnati Reds quickly swooped in.
New looks
The Greeneville Reds were one of just teams to debut new logos during the offseason. The others were the Gwinnett Stripers (formerly the Braves), Tampa Tarpons (formerly the Yankees), Augusta GreenJackets (in conjunction with their move to a new ballpark) and the Hudson Valley Renegades.
The biggest new logo news of the offseason occurred just last week as 33 teams will be participating in Minor League Baseball's Copa de la Diversion initiative. Each of these 33 teams will assume a Spanish-language identity at various points during the 2018 season as part of a larger Hispanic heritage celebration.
The issues of the day
- Minor League Baseball's latest round of pace-of-play initiatives included one new rule that generated a lot of attention, as all extra innings will now begin with a runner on second base. The reaction from fans was largely negative, while those within Minor League Baseball have offered a variety of generally more nuanced responses.
- Following in the footsteps of their Major League brethren, an increasing number of Minor League teams have expanded ballpark safety netting to where it now encompasses the far end of both dugouts. On March 28, the Fresno Grizzlies became the most recent team to announce expanded safety netting. "This is the new status quo," said Grizzlies president Derek Franks.
- The Lexington Legends announced that Emma Tiedemann will serve as their lead broadcaster this season. Tiedemann, who spent the 2017 season as the number two broadcaster for the independent St. Paul Saints, joins Kirsten Karbach of the Clearwater Threshers as the only female lead play-by-play broadcaster in Minor League Baseball. The Frisco RoughRiders are the only other Minor League Baseball team to employ a female broadcaster. Melanie Newman was recently hired as the team's number two broadcaster, working alongside Ryan Rouillard.
In memoriam
- Matt Pruzinsky, Columbus Clippers clubhouse manager.
- Rick Hader, a.k.a. Myron Noodleman, ballpark entertainer.
- Derby, Trenton Thunder bat dog.
Benjamin Hill is a reporter for MiLB.com and writes Ben's Biz Blog. Follow Ben on Twitter @bensbiz.