The American Association this week released its 2014 schedule. The AA will have 12 teams in the schedule and its teams will also face Can-Am League teams. The league website has not yet added the 2014 schedule, but the individual teams have released their own schedules on their respective websites. Here are two of those:
- http://airhogsbaseball.com/news/archives/2013/508/airhogs-release-2014-schedule/
- http://fmredhawks.com/pressbox/news/?article_id=820
Fargo’s link posted this alignment for the 2014 AA season:
2014 AMERICAN ASSOCIATION
North Division
- Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks
- St. Paul Saints
- Sioux Falls Pheasants
- Winnipeg Goldeyes
Central Division
- Gary SouthShore RailCats
- Kansas City T-Bones
- Lincoln Saltdogs
- Sioux City Explorers
South Division
- Amarillo Sox
- Grand Prairie AirHogs
- Laredo Lemurs
- Wichita Wingnuts
At this time it does not appear that the Can-Am League website, nor any team, has released the 2014 Can-Am League schedule. The question that remains is whether the Can-Am League schedule will be imbalanced, add a new member team, or add a travel team like the New York Federals were added in 2011. Once confirmed, that news will be published on this site.
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Excellent assessment, Editor…begging the obvious question. WHY does an already evenly matched 12 team league NEED to have ANY interleague games with another presently imbalanced league? Somebody has to get left out in the cold doing nothing, unless another makeshift team or franchise, like the travel team you noted, gets pulled in from out of the boon docks. I’m not sure this makes for a fair and balanced schedule, like it could be.
The brief look seems to indicate that the northern and central divisions bear the brunt of playing all the CanAm teams, both home AND away. Maybe it is a better DRAW to have other teams from another league come into town to spice up the CanAm schedule and attendance more. From a marketing standpoint, maybe that’s good.
But it is NOT good that the southern division hardly has to play the CanAm, and it remains to be assessed as to whether that hurts or benefits any of those teams. Guess I’ll have to make a study of that.
If CanAm goes to a travel team, it would be cool if the roster were made up of ONLY Canadian players, as a precursor to the expected addition of Ottawa in 2015. It would be good experience and exposure for those players that might not be as good as others. For the bizarre, they could always rekindle the Japanese Samurai, and bring back Warren Cromartie to manage them!! What a crazy idea!
But the AA schedule DOES appear to have an even number of games being played between divisional teams, and that will weigh heavily on the bulk of the schedule, which is good. As we saw again last season, it could be the wild card that ends up taking the title.
Secondarily, I’m not sure that a divisional title over three other teams carries as much weight as one over FIVE other teams. So I’m at a loss as to why the AA just didn’t adopt a two division set up, except MAYBE to continue to emphasize the long hot rivalries within the divisions. I think it could have HELPED the rivalry between the Sioux Cities. Wichita was fairly new, with rivalries not yet planted in cement yet. So now for them to start all over again with Texas teams isn’t that awful.
Though a much longer season, I still am not quite in favor of the Atlantic League HALF season titles. That’s really stretching it just to put up a flag that has little meaning, although I like the concept of starting afresh at mid season, seeking another bona fide opponent for the playoffs. This especially aids teams who did NOT “lose” players to the affiliateds or majors, or even to other indy leagues.