Summer Leagues

Well it has been a busy week, so I apologize for the delay. Tonight I'm just throwing out a proposal/idea for a future college summer league.

A little background, I know the area pretty well, and have a couple connections that helped me along the way.

Without further adieu, the Altitude Baseball League (sidenote, yes, the blog is AltitudeSports, but the leagues name comes from the state being "high-altitude")

College summer leagues are a popular diversion in the midwest (Northwoods League), New England (Cape Cod/NECBL), Southeast (CPL) and even Alaska. Yet one region that is really devoid of summer league baseball is Mountain West. Specifically speaking, UTAH is devoid of Summer League baseball.

Currently players from Utah who wish to play summer league baseball and stay in Utah wind up in the Wasatch Wood Bat League... which is essentially a twice a week adult league for college and future college players. Decent concept, awful execution. Utah plays right into the perfect summer league model. The state of Utah features some beautiful ballparks that go underutilized. So for the first season I'd target 4 teams playing a 45 game schedule (15 vs. each team). Now here is where Utah becomes beneficial...the distance between the majority of the population is no greater than an hour in any direction from the capital, Salt Lake City. As such here are some potential venues...

Kearns, UT (Gates Field) (2500 Capacity) (Designed specifically for high school/college level play, perfect facility).
Murray, UT (Ken Price Ballpark) (5000 Capacity) (Renovated in the mid-2000s for the Babe Ruth World Series, currently used for high school baseball).
South
West Jordan, UT (Cate Field) (1000's Capacity) (Cate Field was also renovated in the 2000s and is home to the Salt Lake Community College Bruins).
Provo, UT (Larry H. Miller Field) (2,710 Capacity) (Built in 2001 for the Pioneer League Provo Angels, who ultimately moved 15 minutes up the road to Orem. The stadium is now used as BYUs home field).

The benefits to a summer league is Utah extend well beyond the logistical simplicity. Growth for example would be easy. Many of the high schools in Utah have gorgeous ballfields with grandstands, and while they may not hold 1000 people they could certainly draw 250-500 with no issues. Even the ski-town of Park City (though it's field has no seating) could be the perfect draw for college kids looking to have a little fun and play some ball (at 7000' feet).

Furthermore, head six hours south of Salt Lake and you have St. George (90 minutes from Las Vegas), and easily could host a Southern division, with teams in locations like Mesquite, Henderson, Cedar City, St. George, and even Las Vegas. Head north and you could expand to Logan, Idaho Falls, and Pocatello. For now though, I figure the key is to keep the cost down. As such, the longest trip a team would have to make in 45 minutes at the moment. By doing this, you eliminate many major expenses (hotels, buses) and allow the players to return "home" nightly.

Primarily you would expect the league to draw players from six states, Utah, Idaho, Colorado, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada. Even if they only come from Idaho and Utah you will still be getting some decent talents. College of Southern Idaho is a former national champion for NJCAA, Salt Lake Community College was the #1 team this season, Dixie State is a former NAIA National Champion, Utah is a Pac-12 program, BYU is a WCC program. Currently, many of the states top players are either leaving the state or playing in low-level summer leagues. While certainly some of the best players will go to the Cape Cod League or Alaska or even the WCL, but on that same accord many players from those areas would love to come to Utah or see what it has to offer.

In talking with a coach from the top 5A program (largest high schools in Utah) that has produced 5 drafted players in the last three seasons, and put over 20 players onto college programs in the last four years, he agreed that Utah is the perfect market for a new summer league. The advertisers are out there, the infrastructure is there, the only thing missing is the teams and ultimately the community support.

Thoughts? Questions? Comments?