DiFazio, Tenbrink re-signed

A couple of marquee names have been re-signed for 2016 in the AA: the St. Paul Saints secured the services of All-Star and Player of the Year Vinny DiFazio for another year, while the Kansas City T-Bones have re-signed Nate Tenbrink. Both players put up big numbers for their respective clubs so that's welcome news for fans.

Bucs buy Xs' Johnson

The Sioux City Explorers made the record books in 2015, with a 74 win season; a crucial element of that success was Patrick Johnson, who logged an impressive 15-1 record with a 2.08 ERA. No surprise that several major league teams gave the RHP a second look. On Friday (Nov. 20), the Pittsburgh Pirates bought Johnson's contract, so it looks like the Xs have a huge hole to fill in their 2016 roster.

Amarillo and Grand Prairie to merge for 2016 season

When the Can-Am League released their schedule a few weeks ago, there were no inter league games lined up with American Association teams. For those of us who follow indy ball, it immediately created a flurry of speculation regarding the impact on the AA. Thirteen teams simply doesn't work for scheduling purposes--so would we lose a team, or create a road team similar to the Can-Ams now-defunct Garden State Grays? Turns out we were wrong on both counts: the American Association 2016 schedule was released this week, along with the announcement of a 2016 merger between the Amarillo Thunderheads and Grand Prairie AirHogs. The team, known right now simply as Texas (merging the team names to ThunderHogs or AirHeads seems unlikely!) will play 25 home games at QuikTrip Park in Grand Prairie, Texas, and 25 at Potter County Memorial Stadium in Amarillo. Commish Miles Wolff said: “With 13 clubs and no interleague play, a schedule with an odd number of teams became unbalanced and difficult. We appreciate that Southern Independent Baseball, owner of the Amarillo and Grand Prairie clubs, agreed to the league’s request to operate its two teams as one in 2016. We fully expect that both teams will return in 2017 as individual entities with a full schedule in their respective markets.” Still a lot of questions to be answered, such as the team name, where players will reside, etc. Hats off regardless for a creative solution to a tough scheduling problem.

Haerther will be back in 2016

Big news from the Winnipeg Goldeyes clubhouse this week: 1B Casey Haerther has signed to play for The Fish once again in 2016. Haerther, who was an American Association All-Star for the second time this past season, is a leader on and off the field and signing him was an obvious priority. One of the foundational building blocks the Goldeyes roster starts to take shape.

Fish acquire Vick from Amarillo

With the potential loss of Josh Mazzola, the Fish have bolstered their batting and added a solid outfielder with the acquisition of Logan Vick today. Vick was one of the breakout players on the Thunderheads' roster this season, with all kinds of mojo as an offensive player. The Goldeyes sent RHP Rett Varner to Amarillo. While on the surface it looks like a steal for Winnipeg, Varner was a solid bullpen hurler who will be missed. Interesting to note is that Amarillo had traded Vick to Sioux Falls on Oct. 16 for another RHP, Cameron McVey. Someone didn't want to report and they ended up swapping back players on Oct. 20. Let's hope this trade shall stick! All I can say is: is it spring yet?

The Boys Will Be Back...

Yesterday we finally got word of which players the Goldeyes would be exercising their options on. Of course, each player must be signed to a new contract, but here's what the line-up looks like: OF Reggie Abercrombie; C Luis Alen; LHP Kyle Anderson; C Ryan Babineau; IF James Boddicker; RHP Edwin Carl; SS Casio Grider; 1B Casey Haerther; OF Adam Heisler; LHP Nick Hernandez; RHP Matt Jackson; OF Nic Jackson; LHP Jon Jones; LHP Brendan Lafferty; RHP Brad Mincey; RHP Michael Noteware; RHP Jailen Peguero; RHP Mark Pope; OF Tillman Pugh; and RHP Rett Varner. No complaints here about any names on that list--a good combination of vets and young talent. Nic Jackson had an injury-plagued season so it would be nice to see him get a full season in with The Fish. The big name missing is Josh Mazzola, who chose to play out his option in 2015. The AA's home run king for 2015 will likely get plenty of offers from other teams.

Flying Fish (Part 2)

On Oct. 13 -- the same day the Fish announced the reacquisitions of Abercrombie and Carl -- pitcher Anthony Smith was sent to the Schaumburg Boomers to complete a previous trade, while infielder Brad Boyer was put on irrevocable waivers with the purpose of granting his release. Given the up-and-down season the Goldeyes had in 2015, one shouldn't be surprised at any moves. Boyer is a dependable AA vet so I would expect another team in the league to show interest.