Independent Ball

The Heartland of America Baseball League is Done… At Least for This Year

3 Comments

According to Jeff Kessinger of the CC Headliner, the Heartland of America Baseball League (HoABL) has officially left Ozark. In an article posted today, June 19th, Kessinger confirmed with manager Bart Zeller that the league is done for the 2015 season.

Players arrived in Ozark to begin preseason work at the beginning of June and league organizers told local media that the league’s first games would be held July 4. But sources informed the Headliner News earlier this week that those players were sent home. Bart Zeller, manager of the Heartland League’s Ozark Zephyrs, confirmed that June 19.

“The players were told to go home until further notice,” Zeller said. “There was no time limit given.”

Zeller himself is headed out of state.

“If I had to make a guess, I would say (the league) probably won’t happen this year,” Zeller said.

However, the Headliner reports that there still may be good news coming out of Ozark.  The Ozark Pro Baseball league is still planning on playing games starting next month and is still in talks with the owners of Price Cutter Park.

You can read the entire article from the CC Headliner HERE.

Independent Ball

Frontier League Draft Class Part Three – One Month Later

3 Comments

We are about one month into the Frontier League season, so it is time to check in to see how the players from the 2015 draft are doing with their teams.

14 drafted players started the season on a roster for Opening Day, but as of June 12th, only 10 remain.

The four players released were:

  • Sheehan Planas-Arteaga, OF, Windy City, R2 – Released on May 22nd after going hitless in 2 games with 3 AB.
  • Zach Stoner, C, Windy City, R2 – Released on May 25th after playing in 5 games.  He was batting .235 in 17 AB.
  • Connor Jones, OF, Frontier Greys, R1 – Released on May 26th after 5 games and 10 AB. He was batting .200.
  • Robbie Buller, RHP, Gateway, R2 – Released on May 31st after pitching in 5 games (7.1 IP) with a 3.68 ERA.

Here are the updates for the remaining 10 players in the league:

  • Nick Grim, RHP, Rockford, E – Has pitched in 5 games (4 starts) with a 0-2 record. In 16.2 IP, he has a 5.94 ERA.
  • Kevin Jefferis, RHP, Normal, R1 – Was placed on the DL from June 2nd – 10th.  Has appeared in 5 games with a 1-0 record. In 9.2 IP, he has 15 K and a 3.72 ERA.
  • Scott Harkin, RHP, Gateway, R2 – Has pitched in 8 games with a 0-1 record. Despite the 1 loss, he has the lowest ERA on the team at 1.28 with 14 K in 14 IP.
  • Ty Nelson, OF, Lake Erie, E – Has played in 20 games. In 70 AB, he has a .257 avg and is leading the team in HR with 4.
  • Joe Iorio, RHP, Washington, R1- Has appeared in 5 games with 7.2 IP.  His current ERA is 5.87.
  • Kyle Bogese, RHP, Frontier Greys, R2 – Has pitched in 6 games (4 starts) with a 0-4 record. In 18.1 IP, he has a 5.40 ERA.
  • David Russo, LHP, Rockford, R2 – Has appeared in 7 games with a 1-0 record. In 8.1 IP, he has a 5.40 ERA.
  • John Fidanza, C, Washington, R1 – Has played in 13 games. In 41 AB, he has a .244 avg.
  • David Duncan, RHP, Florence, R1 – Has pitched in 5 games (2 starts) with a 0-1 record. He has a 7.71 ERA in 11.2 IP.
  • Jack Clearly, C, Joliet, E – Has played in 17 games with an impressive .314 avg in 51 AB.

(All stats courtesy of Pointstreak).

I look forward to following these players more as the season progresses and as we draw closer to the All-Star break.  In the upcoming weeks, I will be doing individual posts with some of these players.  My first post will be with the Washington Wild Things draft picks –  Pitcher Joe Iorio and Catcher John Fidanza.

You can also check out Part One and Part Two of the Frontier League draft class by clicking on the links.

If you don’t want to miss any future posts, be sure to subscribe!

Writing and sharing stories about Independent Baseball.