Independent Baseball's Atlantic League Expansion: Go West, Young Man!

The Atlantic League, one of the premier independent baseball leagues, is in the process of expanding out West.

With teams based in Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York and Maryland, expanding anywhere other than the Northeast doesn’t make sense. But, in the crazy game of independent baseball, no region is safe and no idea is too obscure. 

While all of the teams are in the East, the Atlantic League’s newest expansion franchise is out West. To be more specific, it's in Sugar Land, Texas. 

How does something like this even get started? 

Opening Day Partners, who already owns three Atlantic League teams, pledged to bring the Sugar Land Skeeters to primetime in the 2012 season. The new franchise is the brainchild of ODP Chairman Peter Kirk and his partner, 16-time Gold Glover, Brooks Robinson. 

According to the CTPost, Kirk never put a lot of thought into the proposed expansion, until speaking with his good friend Deacon Jones, a long-time Baltimore Orioles scout and Sugar Land resident.

"I said, 'Deacon, I'd love to do it. I'd have to find the time, because we're really busy,'" Kirk told CTPost. "All the time thinking I'd be happy to do it, but it was really no opportunity for the Atlantic League in additional conversation." 

After some phone calls to determine if this project would ever get off the ground, Kirk found out that the city of Sugar Land was all for this new venture. After a referendum and the city's blessing, everything was apparently a go, including a brand new state-of-the-art stadium.

StarTex Power Field will be equipped with a hotel lobby-style box office, fully-furnished, climate-controlled skyboxes that can accommodate up to 25 guests. If that isn’t enough for an independent league team, the stadium will have multi-purpose rooms called "Super Suites," allowing the same kind of luxury accommodations to groups for events. These rooms can seat between 25 and 500 people. 

In today’s game, it’s not enough to have a single purpose stadium.

Along with Skyboxes and Super Suites, StarTex is equipped with a walkway, picnic area, lawn seating and Imperial Boxes, described as the best seats in the house. For real-time updates and photos, click here. 

Sugarland President Matt O’Brien was quoted as saying that nearly 2,000 season tickets have been sold. With nearly 6,000 “hard seats” available, the CTPost reports that the stadium can accommodate nearly 10,000. 

Independent ball seems to be taking a huge step forward! 

Even though the team has yet to begin its first season, continued talks of expansion are almost certain to be under way. And if successful, the Atlantic League might be at the forefront of something big.

Every indy league attempts to stay close to its territory, but if this expansion to the west is successful, it could also mean more expansion for other independent teams that wouldn't normally look to go out of their comfort zones. 

Extensive travel could become an issue for leagues that aren’t as financially successful.

Obviously, the impact of ODP provides an influx of revenue that can sustain the extra spending; although, in this instance, the area selected for the new franchise has been specifically selected because of its city's and state's self-sufficiency.

“It's different for the Atlantic League," Atlantic League CEO Frank Boulton said. "I think it remains to be seen. But Texas' economy, basically oil-based, has really not taken much of a hit during this recession. And I think people outside our turf realize that if they're going to have an independent team, they would like to be associated with us.'' 

The stadium is brand new, costs millions and the taxpayers are the ones who have to bite the bullet. But, according to SugarLandMagazine.com, the money spent is well worth it in the long run.

“Sugar Land’s $27.9 million minor league baseball stadium is expected to be ready for opening day in April 2012. The stadium will be funded with a portion of sales tax revenues that may only be used for economic development purposes. No general fund tax dollars will be spent on the stadium," Sugar Land Magazine said.

"In addition to the stadium serving as a community amenity," the magazine said, "a conservative cost-benefit analysis performed by Conventions, Sports & Leisure International conservatively estimates the project will generate annual economic activity of approximately $7.7 million, or a net return of $169 million over 30 years on the investment of the City and ODP."

A project that started nearly three years ago is months away from seeing live game action. You can almost guarantee Sugar Land and its fans will reap the benefits, however, this wave of expansion could be the beginning of a brand new way of thinking in independent baseball.

Devon is the founder of The GM’s Perspective

Devon is a former professional baseball player with the River City Rascals and the Gateway Grizzlies, and is now an independent scout.