South Coast League
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 South Coast League logo |
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| Sport | Baseball |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2007 |
| No. of teams | 6 |
| Country(ies) |  United States |
| Ceased | 2007 |
| Last champion(s) | South Georgia Peanuts |
| Official website | www.southcoastleague.com |
The South Coast League of Professional Baseball(SCL), based in Conyers, Georgia, was a professional, independent baseball organization located in the Southeastern United States. It operated in cities not served by Major or Minor League Baseball teams and was not affiliated with either. It folded after its first season in 2007.
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[edit] History
The league was formed in October 2006. In a press release in October, league Chief Executive Officer Jamie Toole, a former Carolina League executive with a number of teams, cited the desire to field professional baseball teams in municipalities that lacked access to professional baseball.
Poorly conceived and weakly executed, the league was a disaster from the start as they could only get leases in less than desirable baseball markets [1], shut down one market (Bradenton) after a week and turned the team into a traveling team, did not generate significant sponsor or off-season ticket revenue, had a bloated and inexperienced league staff that was burning hundreds of thousands of dollars even before the season began, attracted a low level of players, and didn't have the capital resources to properly market and promote the teams. This turned into a modern independent league disaster ranked only ahead of the mid-season folds in 2003 of the Canadian Baseball League and Arizona-Mexico League and the one week existence of the Golden State League in 1995.
Funded primarily by Pete Ferro, owner of the Northern League's Joliet Jackhammers, he put the league in the hands of Jamie Toole who had been a mid-level front office employee in Joliet a few years earlier and had many short stints in numerous roles in affiliated baseball with the Pirates organization and in the Carolina League. The inability for revenue to even come close to covering costs led Ferro to decline to continue to invest and the league collapsed and struggled to finish the season. The Champion South George Peanuts received no playoff bonuses or rings, players and staff throughout the league are still owed pay, vendor's across the league remain unpaid, and very few players ever made it out of the SCL to major league organizations. [2]
The league gave a blackeye to the legitimate independent baseball leagues that are thriving across the U.S. and Canada and led by respected and reputable individuals such as Miles Wolff and Frank Boulton.
The league's only season was documented by the TV show, "Playing for Peanuts."
On March 29, 2008, Sports Illustrated reported that league CEO Jamie Toole had resigned and the league had canceled the 2008 season.[3]
[edit] 2007 League Standings
[edit] First Half
- South Georgia Peanuts 33-11 (.750)
- Macon Music 30-15 (.667)
- Bradenton Juice 24-20 (.545)
- Aiken Foxhounds 22-23 (.489)
- Anderson Joes 13-32 (.289)
- Charlotte County Redfish 12-33 (.267)
[edit] Second Half
- Macon Music 28-16 (.636)
- South Georgia Peanuts 26-17 (.605)
- Anderson Joes 24-20 (.545)
- Bradenton Juice 23-22 (.511)
- Aiken Foxhounds 18-23 (.439)
- Charlotte County Redfish 10-31 (.244)
[edit] Notes
- Macon, Georgia was announced as the first team of the league.[1]
[edit] References
- ^ "Fox24 Action is Back on the Diamond in Macon". Fox24.com. http://www.fox24.com/article.asp?pkid=4878 Fox24. Retrieved June 6, 2006.
[edit] External links and references
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