American Association of Independent Professional Baseball
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 American Association logo |
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| Sport | Baseball |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2006 |
| No. of teams | 14 |
| Country(ies) | United States Canada |
| Most recent champion(s) | Grand Prairie AirHogs |
| Most titles | Fort Worth Cats (2) |
| Official website | Official website |
The American Association of Independent Professional Baseball, based in Durham, North Carolina, is a professional baseball league founded in 2005 and independent of Major League Baseball (MLB). It operates in the states of Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, Texas, and the Canadian province of Manitoba, mostly in cities not served by MLB teams or their minor league affiliates.
Miles Wolff is the league's commissioner.
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History
The American Association was founded in October 2005 when Northern League teams left that league. Following the folding of the Central Baseball League, five teams from that league joined with the four former Northern League franchises, and to even things out an expansion team was placed in St. Joseph, Missouri. The league began play in 2006, with a 96-game schedule. The Fort Worth Cats defeated the St. Paul Saints 3 games to 2, to win the first league championship. The same two teams met for the 2007 title, with exactly the same result. In 2008, the Sioux Falls Canaries won the league championship series 3 games to 1 over the Grand Prairie AirHogs.
The 2012 season, schedule has been increased to one hundred games which will feature five teams from the Canadian American Association of Professional Baseball. These teams include; Newark Bears, New Jersey Jackals, Rockland Boulders, Québec Capitales and the Worcester Tornadoes.
Current franchises
Former teams
- Shreveport-Bossier Captains - Team joined the Hall of Fame Baseball League. Franchise moved to Laredo, TX to become Laredo Lemurs
- Coastal Bend Aviators - founding member of league, originally from Central Baseball League, folded after 2007
- Pensacola Pelicans - founding member of league, originally from Central Baseball League, folded in preparation for new Double-A Southern League team to begin play in 2012
- St. Joe Blacksnakes - founding member of league, expansion franchise, folded after 2007
- Fort Worth Cats - founding member of the league, had its membership revoked by the league on October 26, 2011 after failing to provide the league with a letter of credit. Joined North American League.
Champions
- 2006 - Fort Worth Cats
- 2007 - Fort Worth Cats
- 2008 - Sioux Falls Canaries
- 2009 - Lincoln Saltdogs
- 2010 - Shreveport-Bossier Captains
- 2011 - Grand Prairie AirHogs
All-star game
The American Association has hosted an annual All-Star Game since its inception. The venue changes annually. The league's first All-Star game was played in El Paso, Texas on July 18, 2006, which pit a team of American Association All-Stars against an All-Star team from the Can-Am League. Its current format pits the all-stars from each division against each other. There was no All Star game in 2011.
- Game results
- 2006 - AAB 5, Can-Am 3
- 2007 - South 6, North 4
- 2008 - South 11, North 4
- 2009 - North 6, South 2
- 2010 - South 12, North 3
- 2011 - No All-star game played
- Most Valuable Players
- 2006 - Jake Whitesides, (St. Joe Blacksnakes)
- 2007 - Jorge Alvarez, (El Paso Diablos)
- 2008 - Brian Fryer, (Fort Worth Cats)
- 2009 - Trevor Lawhorn, (Sioux Falls Canaries)
- 2010 - Chris Garcia, (Shreveport-Bossier Captains)
- 2011 - Lee Cruz, (Amarillo Sox)
See also
References
- ^ "League History". American Association of Independent Professional Baseball official website. http://www.americanassociationbaseball.com/office-history.php. Retrieved 2011-11-23.
- ^ http://www.americanassociationbaseball.com/cgi-bin/dist/news_new.cgi?id=1319646773
External links
- American Association of Independent Professional Baseball official website
- aabfan.com - American Association Baseball Fan's Guide
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