I have two semi-serious issues to write about today; the second one being of more importance than the first. So I’ll start with the least important one: First, I would like to apologize for not keeping my promise to update frequently this last week. There hasn’t really been a lot of news regarding the ABL [...]

Darian Sandford, switch-hitting outfielder from Park University, has signed on to play for the Alaska Goldpanners of Fairbanks for the 2010 season. Sandford is a skilled contact hitter who can consistently get on base, and uses his speed and stealing ability to put himself in scoring position. He is easily one of the fastest players [...]

Box Score: – The Summer Ball blog took note of the three Rice Owls who have made the Goldpanners’ preseason roster. Nice to see a little ABL love over at Summer Ball! – The Pittsburgh Pirates have picked up ’99 Panner Bobby Crosby. In his ABL campaign, Crosby was good for a .250 average with [...]

Not long ago, we looked at some possible rule five draft picks who are veterans of the Alaska Baseball League. The draft has since come and gone, and I’ve taken a look at who was picked to see if any ABLers will be packing their bags for 2010. The following summarizes a few moves that [...]

On Sunday I commented about Blake Wood (Bucs, 2004) making the Kansas City 40-man roster ahead of the Rule Five Draft. I stated the obvious and said that KC must see something in Wood to make room for him on the big league club’s expanded roster. To get a better idea of what that might [...]

As you may or may not know, I’m a college student. This is my last regularly scheduled week of classes. Next week is finals week. If you’ve ever gone to college you know that the next two weeks are what they call hell. I am going to studying pretty much every moment of spare time [...]

Actually, this year’s winter meetings are in Indianapolis. I’d rather go to Orlando. ( http://www.flickr.com/photos/hyku/ / CC BY 2.0 ) With baseball’s Rule Five Draft looming large on Thursday, four Major League clubs have made roster moves that will affect notable ex-ABLers. Daniel Stange and Blake Wood have been added to their parent clubs’ 40-man [...]

Over at the Summer League Forums we have been having a little discussion about how the various collegiate summer leagues rank in comparison to each other. It seems that a lot of the other summer leagues are really kicking it up a notch and giving the ABL (and maybe even the mighty Cape Cod League?) [...]

We’ve got a pretty big “odds & ends” ends for you this weekend. Lots of little bits of news about the ABL! We’ve also got some great new blog posts already lined up for today and tomorrow so keep checking back with us. Box Score: – The creators of “Touching the Game” did an interview [...]

According to the New York Times, former ABL pitcher James Paxton (Pilots, 2008) has filed a lawsuit against his college, the University of Kentucky. Paxton was drafted as a first-round supplement in 2009 by Toronto, but chose to return to college ball for his senior year. In the suit, Paxton alleges that he was asked [...]

No. I’m not talking about another flag football gunfight nextdoor. http://www.flickr.com/photos/cowbite/ / CC BY-SA 2.0 After the close of the ABL this season, Mulcahy Field — home of the Pilots and Bucs — got a bit of a facelift. The biggest makeover in the ballpark was the overhaul of the actual playing surface, which now [...]

Parkas are not part of the Goldpanners uniform. ( Photo Credit: http://www.flickr.com/photos/arthur_chapman/ / CC BY 2.0 ) The Alaska Goldpanners of Fairbanks have posted their 2010 preseason roster, so they are first in line for this year’s Players to Watch article. Following is a list of players who I felt are worth keeping an eye [...]

The year is 1982. It’s a summer like any other at Mulcahy Stadium, except this year a skinny youngster named Mark McGuire is knocking the stuffing out of the ball, hitting .404 with 10 homers and 44 RBI’s for the Glacier Pilots. Whether or not anyone predicted it, sixteen years later that same skinny kid [...]

Box Score: – The new documentary film, “Touching the Game: Alaska” will be released on Nov. 30th and is available for pre-order now. This is the second installment of the “Touching the Game” series, after the original which focuses on the Cape Cod League. You can get all the info on their website, TouchingtheGame.com. The [...]

As promised, here is the final report card for Alaska League alumni who played in the Arizona Fall League this season. It took me a little bit of time to get it out, but this last week has been crazy (Thanksgiving, etc.) so I hope you’ll excuse my tardiness. Before I go on, I just [...]