Pittsfield May get Professional Baseball

[necblfan]

Article here from the Berkshire Eagle.

www.berkshireeagle.com/ci_13997784

This is a bit strange for me. In 2007, Pittsfield finished fourth in the league in attendance with around 1,400 per game. However, the past two seasons they've finished 6th (about 900) and 7th (about 800) in attendance. The lowest attended team in the Can-Am last year was the American Defenders of New Hampshire, with a little over 1,000 per game. The next lowest team averaged nearly 1,700 per game.

For anyone without background info on the topic, a Dan Duquette-led (yes, the former Red Sox GM) ownership group owns both teams. The American Defenders of New Hampshire had struggled attendance-wise prior to this offseason's move and the Pittsfield team has had difficulty putting a quality product on the field lately. Pittsfield has missed the playoffs in 4 of its 5 seasons.

If pro baseball does force the NECBL out of Pittsfield, I would love to see the league move into the Nashua, NH, or Norwich, CT, markets which have been vacated by pro ball. If the NECBL does manage to stay in Pittsfield, would the league PLEASE get the All-Americans OUT of Lowell. They simply can't be expected to compete with an NYPL team in the same town.

[Andrew]

Thanks for the link NECBL fan.

[mark]

I agree with NECBLfan, Pittsfield's attendance has been on the decline for several seasons.

But if the Pittsfield move does happen it won't be too bad for the NECBL as there are far better cities it could lose to the pros.

[necblfan]

It looks like the team will be moving. Though I haven't seen a news article yet, the recently updated "About Us" page at the league site says that the American Defenders are moving to Bristol, CT. The link is below and the bit is right at the bottom of the page.

www.necbl.com/about.htm

If they do choose a new name, I'd love to see them revive the "Bristol Nighthawks," a team name from the early days of the league.

[mark]

So that's confirmed now, thanks for the heads up.

[mark]

If the NECBL does manage to stay in Pittsfield, would the league PLEASE get the All-Americans OUT of Lowell. They simply can't be expected to compete with an NYPL team in the same town.

It looks as if you might have got your wish, necblfan.

www.nashuatelegraph.com/sports/localsports/709595-222/pro-baseball-is-gone-but-city-is.html?i=1

[necblfan]

Thanks for the heads-up Mark. That would be very exciting indeed. With even decent numbers in Nashua, the leaguewide attendance figures would jump significantly. Lowell did far better than usual last year and still only got around 200 per game (the league average was about 950). I hope the games at Holman are well attended.