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Independent Ball

Frontier League Introduces Sudden Death Baseball

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Last season, the Frontier League decided extra inning games with a homerun derby. While exciting at times, the homerun derbys took time to set up and still took a while to decide a winner. This year, it has developed a plan to end games with an inning of sudden death baseball.

See the official press release below:

The Frontier League of Professional Baseball announced the introduction of a sudden-death tiebreaker to determine the winner of extra-inning games.

For any regular season game tied at the end of regulation (nine innings for a traditional game and seven innings for a double-header game), and remaining tied following one inning of play using International Tiebreaker (ITB) rules, a sudden death inning will determine the winner.

Field managers will meet with umpires with the home manager choosing offense or defense. For the team on offense, the player on the lineup card immediately preceding the batter due up will start on first base. The defensive team will have three outs to prevent the offense from scoring. If the team on offense scores they will win the game, while if the defensive team retires the side without scoring a run, they will win. As with the ITB runner, if the runner placed on first base scores, the run will be unearned. The sudden death rule guarantees that no game will be played beyond 10.5 innings or beyond 8.5 innings for a double-header game.

“While sudden death will not happen every game, we believe when it does it will have the fans on their feet,” commented Kevin Winn, Deputy Commissioner for On-Field Operations. “Created by a former manager, this initiative received overwhelming support of our current field managers and Rules Committee.”

The rule was first proposed by former Florence field manager Dennis Pelfrey, who currently manages in the San Francisco Giants’ organization. It was refined by a committee of Frontier League managers and administrators, including managers Andy McCauley of Evansville, Quebec’s Pat Scalabrini, and Ottawa’s Bobby Brown.

“Short of playing traditional extra innings, the sudden death tiebreaker is the best option for determining the outcome of a game,” stated McCauley, the Frontier League’s winningest active manager and 2021 Manager of the Year. “With regard to game time, injury prevention, and a baseball strategic outcome I feel the new sudden death rule could be an innovative solution.”

The Frontier League of Professional Baseball is an official Partner League of Major League Baseball and the largest of its kind in professional baseball. The Frontier League has moved over 1,000 players to MLB Teams in its 29-year history. The 2022 Frontier League season opens on Thursday, May 12. Please visit www.frontierleague.com.

Independent Ball

Frontier League, Can-Am League Join Forces

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Official Press Release (FrontierLeague.com)

FRONTIER LEAGUE, CAN-AM LEAGUE TO JOIN FORCES

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(Watch the press conference HERE courtesy of KDKA Pittsburgh)

Two of Independent Professional Baseball’s oldest and most established Leagues are pleased to announce that they will join forces. Beginning with the 2020 season, five former members of the Can-Am League will merge into the Frontier League.

Members of the Frontier League and the new teams from the Can-Am League will make up the 14-team circuit. The New Jersey Jackals, Quebec Capitales, Rockland Boulders, Sussex County Miners and Trois-Rivieres Aigles will play in the Can-Am Division. The Washington Wild Things and Lake Erie Crushers will join the Division as well. The seven remaining teams, the Evansville Otters, Florence Freedom, Gateway Grizzlies, Joliet Slammers, Schaumburg Boomers, Southern Illinois Miners and the Windy City ThunderBolts, will compete in the Midwestern Division.

The League will be the largest in all of Independent Professional Baseball. It brings together strong ownership groups, teams and facilities from each League. It also has some of the longest running teams in the industry. The Evansville Otters began play in 1995 and the New Jersey Jackals started in 1998. Major markets such as New York, Chicago, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Quebec City and St. Louis will be well represented.

The Frontier League is the oldest independent professional baseball league in the country. It began play in 1993. The League just completed its 27th consecutive season. In those 27 seasons, over 1000 players have been signed by MLB teams. 38 of those players have advanced to play in Major League Baseball.

The Can-Am League’s predecessor was the Northeast League that began play in 1995. Prior to the 2005 season, the Can-Am League name was officially adopted. During those years, more than 135 players have signed contracts with MLB clubs and 16 have advanced to play in Major League Baseball.

Frontier League Commissioner, Bill Lee, who has held that position since 1994, will continue in that role. He states, “I am extremely excited and privileged to be able to make this announcement. These discussions have been ongoing for almost 2 years. The 2019 Frontier League/Can-Am League All-Star Game was the first major step in the Leagues working together. We believe this merger strengthens Independent Professional Baseball as a whole. I want to thank everyone from both Leagues that have worked so hard to make this happen.”

Kevin Winn, Executive Director of the Can-Am League says, “It has been my honor to be a part of this groundbreaking deal and I can’t thank all parties involved enough for getting us to this historic moment. I look forward to seeing where our newly formed alliance heads next and all the Independent Professional Baseball history that is yet to be written.”

All members of the League will be working together to help strengthen all aspects of the Frontier League. Expansion is at the top of the list. The League will be looking at all potential expansion opportunities from the east coast to the Mississippi River in the United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. Marketing, sponsorship and promotional efforts will also be areas of focus.

2020 will be 28th season for the Frontier League. All teams will play a 96-game schedule. Opening Day will be Thursday, May 14th. The regular season will conclude on Sunday, September 6th. The full 2020 Schedule will be released on Monday, October 21st.