. It operates mostly in cities not served by
teams and is not affiliated with either. Though not part of the official minor league system, its level of play is considered comparable to low A-level. The league was formed in 1993, and is the oldest currently running independent league.
Teams in the Frontier League must recruit and sign their own players, which usually consist of undrafted college players or one-time prospects who have been released by their teams. Frontier League rules limit teams to three "veterans" (those with three or more years of professional experience), two two-year players and seven one-year players (those with at least 150 professional at-bats or 50 innings pitched). The other half of the 24-man roster is confined to rookies. Players cannot be older than 27 as of January 1.
Pay in the Frontier League is minimal, as each team has a salary cap of $72,000, and the league minimum is set at $600 per month. Due to the low pay, players typically live with host families.
The first league champions were the Zanesville Greys. Only four teams have won more than one championship: Springfield in 1996 and 1998, Johnstown in 1995 (as the Steal) and in 2000 (as the Johnnies),
(now Traverse City) in 2001 and 2002, and Windy City in 2007 and 2008. The
(including years as Portsmouth and Springfield) are currently tied for the most league championships with each franchise winning three.
, becoming the first player from the Frontier League to make it to the Majors. His story was a "feel good" human interest story for part of the summer. A week later
Although the league doesn't have any teams located in the city proper with Major League teams, it does nonetheless have teams located within the markets of Major League teams.
) each have one. A third Chicagoland area team, the McHenry County K-Nines, is expected to open in Woodstock, IL after 2012. The Wild Things in particular have been able to market themselves as a successful alternative to the
due to the Bucs' long-term losing, which currently dates to the Frontier League's founding in 1993.
| Frontier League |
| Division |
Team |
Founded |
City |
Stadium |
Capacity |
| East |
Evansville Otters The Evansville Otters are a professional baseball team based in Evansville, Indiana, in the United States. The Otters are a member of the West Division of the Frontier League, an independent baseball league which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball...
|
1993 |
EvansvilleEvansville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Indiana and the largest city in Southern Indiana. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 117,429. It is the county seat of Vanderburgh County and the regional hub for both Southwestern Indiana and the...
, IndianaIndiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
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Bosse FieldBosse Field, is a baseball stadium located in Evansville, Indiana. Built in 1915, it is the third oldest ballpark used for professional baseball on a regular basis in the country, surpassed only by Fenway Park in Boston and Wrigley Field in Chicago.It is the current home of the Frontier League...
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5,181 |
| Florence Freedom The Florence Freedom are a professional baseball team based in the Northern Kentucky city of Florence, located near the city of Cincinnati. The Freedom are a member of the West Division of the Frontier League, an independent baseball league...
|
1994 |
FlorenceFlorence is a city in Boone County, Kentucky, United States. The population was 29,951 at the 2010 census.-History:The Florence area was originally known as Crossroads, because of the convergence of several roads from Burlington and Union at Ridge Road...
, KentuckyThe Commonwealth of Kentucky is a state located in the East Central United States of America. As classified by the United States Census Bureau, Kentucky is a Southern state, more specifically in the East South Central region. Kentucky is one of four U.S. states constituted as a commonwealth...
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Champion Window FieldChampion Window Field is a stadium in Florence, Kentucky. It is primarily used for baseball and is the home field of the Florence Freedom independent league baseball team of the Frontier League...
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4,500 |
| Lake Erie Crushers The Lake Erie Crushers are a professional baseball team based in Avon, Ohio. It is a member of the independent Frontier League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball.The Crushers won the Frontier League Championship in their inaugural season...
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2009 |
Avon -Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 11,446 people, 4,088 households, and 3,143 families residing in the city. The population density was 548.4 people per square mile . There were 4,291 housing units at an average density of 205.6 per square mile...
, OhioOhio is a Midwestern state in the United States. The 34th largest state by area in the U.S.,it is the 7th‑most populous with over 11.5 million residents, containing several major American cities and seven metropolitan areas with populations of 500,000 or more.The state's capital is Columbus...
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All Pro Freight Stadium |
5,000 |
| London Rippers The London Rippers are a professional baseball team based in London, Ontario, in Canada. The Rippers are a member of the Frontier League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball...
|
2007 |
London London is a city in Southwestern Ontario, Canada, situated along the Quebec City – Windsor Corridor. The city has a population of 352,395, and the metropolitan area has a population of 457,720, according to the 2006 Canadian census; the metro population in 2009 was estimated at 489,274. The city...
, OntarioOntario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
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Labatt ParkLabatt Memorial Park is a baseball stadium near the forks of the Thames River in central London, Ontario, Canada. It is in size, has 5,200 seats and a natural grass field...
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5,200 |
| Southern Illinois Miners The Southern Illinois Miners are a professional baseball team based in Marion, Illinois, in the United States. The Miners are a member of the West Division of the Frontier League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball...
|
2007 |
MarionThe city of Marion is the county seat of Williamson County, Illinois. The 2010 census counted 17,193 residents, making Marion the 25th most populated city outside of the Chicago Metropolitan Area, in Illinois, and the second most populous city in Southern Illinois, outside of the Metro-East, behind...
, IllinoisIllinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
|
Rent One Park |
7,000 |
| Traverse City Beach Bums The Traverse City Beach Bums are a professional baseball team based in the Traverse City, Michigan, suburb of Blair Township, in the United States. The Beach Bums are a member of the East Division of the Frontier League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball...
|
1995 |
Blair Township Blair Township is a civil township of Grand Traverse County in the U.S. state of Michigan. As of the 2000 census, the township population was 6,448.-Communities:...
, MichiganMichigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
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Wuerfel Park Wuerfel Park is a 3,518-seat baseball-only stadium in Blair Township, Michigan, USA, that hosted its first regular season baseball game on May 24, 2006, as the tenants of the facility, the Traverse City Beach Bums, took on the Kalamazoo Kings. It was built as a new home of the Beach Bums baseball...
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4,660 |
| Washington Wild Things The Washington Wild Things are a professional baseball team based in Washington, Pennsylvania, in the United States. The Wild Things are a member of the East Division of the Frontier League, an independent baseball league which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball...
|
1997 |
North Franklin Township, PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania is a U.S. state that is located in the Northeastern and Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. The state borders Delaware and Maryland to the south, West Virginia to the southwest, Ohio to the west, New York and Ontario, Canada, to the north, and New Jersey to...
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CONSOL Energy ParkCONSOL Energy Park is a 3,200-seat multi-pupose baseball stadium in North Franklin Township near Washington, Pennsylvania that hosted its first regular season baseball game on May 29, 2002, as the primary tenants of the facility, the Washington Wild Things, lost to the Canton Coyotes, 3-0. The...
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5,000 |
| Division |
Team |
Founded |
City |
Stadium |
Capacity |
| West |
Gateway Grizzlies The Gateway Grizzlies are a professional baseball team based in the St. Louis suburb of Sauget, Illinois, in the United States. The Grizzlies are a member of the West Division of the Frontier League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball...
|
2001 |
Sauget Sauget is a village in St. Clair County, Illinois, United States. It is part of Greater St. Louis. The population was 249 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Sauget is located at ....
, IllinoisIllinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
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GCS BallparkGCS Ballpark is a minor league baseball facility in Sauget, Illinois , that serves as the home ballpark for the Gateway Grizzlies of the Frontier League. The Grizzlies' ballpark was built in time for the start of the 2002 season, under the original name of GMC Stadium. GCS Ballpark features...
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6,000 |
| Joliet Slammers The Joliet Slammers are a professional baseball team based in Joliet, Illinois, that play in the independent Frontier League. They play their home games at Silver Cross Field in Joliet. They replaced the Joliet JackHammers of the Northern League after the franchise was crippled by numerous...
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2011 |
JolietJoliet is a city in Will and Kendall Counties in the U.S. state of Illinois, located southwest of Chicago. It is the county seat of Will County. As of the 2010 census, the city was the fourth-most populated in Illinois, with a population of 147,433. It continues to be Illinois' fastest growing...
, IllinoisIllinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
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Silver Cross FieldSilver Cross Field is a baseball field located in Joliet, Illinois. The stadium was built in 2002 and holds 6,016 people. It is the home of the Joliet Slammers.In December 2010 the Joliet Jackhammers were sold to Steel City Baseball LLC...
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6,016 |
Normal CornBeltersThe Normal CornBelters are a professional baseball team based in Normal, Illinois, which is part of the Bloomington-Normal metropolitan area. They began play in May 2010 as a member of the Frontier League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball...
|
2010 |
NormalNormal is an incorporated town in McLean County, Illinois, United States. It had a population of 52,497 as of the 2010 census. Normal is the smaller of two principal municipalities of the Bloomington-Normal metropolitan area...
, IllinoisIllinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
|
The Corn Crib |
7,000 |
| River City Rascals The River City Rascals are a professional baseball team based in O'Fallon, Missouri, in the United States. The Rascals are a member of the West Division of the Frontier League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball. From the 1999 season to the present, the Rascals have played their...
|
1993 |
O'Fallon O'Fallon is a suburban city along Interstate 70 between Lake St. Louis and St. Peters in Saint Charles County, Missouri. It is part of the St. Louis Metropolitan Statistical Area. As of the 2010 census population of 79,329, it is the seventh largest city in the state and the largest in St. Charles...
, MissouriMissouri is a US state located in the Midwestern United States, bordered by Iowa, Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, Arkansas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Nebraska. With a 2010 population of 5,988,927, Missouri is the 18th most populous state in the nation and the fifth most populous in the Midwest. It...
|
T.R. Hughes Ballpark |
5,150 |
| Rockford RiverHawks The Rockford RiverHawks are a professional baseball team based in the Rockford, Illinois suburb of Loves Park, in the United States. Currently, the RiverHawks are a member of the Frontier League, which they previously played in from 2002 until 2009. From the 2002 season to 2005, the RiverHawks'...
|
1993 |
Loves Park Loves Park is a city in Winnebago County, Illinois, United States. In recent years, the city spread across the eastern Winnebago county line and now reaches into Boone County, Illinois...
, IllinoisIllinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
|
Road Ranger Stadium |
4,246 |
| Schaumburg Boomers The Schaumburg Boomers are a professional baseball team based in Schaumburg, Illinois, that will begin play in the independent Frontier League for the upcoming 2012 season. Home games are played at Alexian Field...
|
2011 |
SchaumburgSchaumburg is a city located in Cook County in northeastern Illinois. A common misspelling of the city name is Schaumberg, a spelling which persists on some modern maps. Schaumburg is located just under northwest of downtown Chicago and approximately northwest of O'Hare International Airport. As...
, IllinoisIllinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
|
Alexian FieldSchaumburg Baseball Stadium is a stadium in Schaumburg, Illinois formally known as Alexian Field. It is primarily used for baseball, and was the home field of the Schaumburg Flyers minor league baseball team from 1999 through 2010...
|
6,000 |
| Windy City ThunderBolts The Windy City ThunderBolts are a professional baseball team based in the Chicago suburb of Crestwood, Illinois, in the United States. The ThunderBolts are a member of the East Division of the Frontier League, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball...
|
1999 |
Crestwood Crestwood is a village in Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 11,251 at the 2000 census. In April 2009 the Chicago Tribune reported that for 20 years the city had been drawing its drinking water from a well that was contaminated with toxic chemicals.-Geography:According to the...
, IllinoisIllinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
|
Standard Bank Stadium |
3,200 |