Continental Baseball League AKA The 80's Ugly Fat Child MLB Never Wanted

[Dr. P.R. Park III]

This dynasty will be based off of my recently released 1982 historical quickstart. I'm going to be writing mostly from the point of view of the press, and eventually, once the league picks up I'll improvise and put together a team.

Story:
In 1982, it's been five years since Major League Baseball expanded. Another major international baseball league is created in South Korea (KBO), and Japan's [league redacted] League recently created a Ni-Gun minor league for their reserve and practice squad players. In the United States, some major cities, such as Denver, San Antonio, and even Chicago and Boston, are not satisfied with their professional baseball teams, and are craving better teams. Interest in baseball swells, specifically because of free agency, and it appears that international players are seemingly developed and imported into North America in hopes for big bucks.

Oil tycoon, extreme baseball enthusiast and full-time crazy person, Rex Hearst, who is majority shareholder in three Venezuelan petroleum companies, comes up with an idea for a "Third Major League." This isn't exactly an original idea, the Pacific Coast League attempted this in the 1950's, and was essentially bought out by Major League Baseball, and the Federal League met with much haste in the early 1900's. However, Hearst is extraordinarily eccentric, and most importantly, wealthy. After the 1981 baseball season, Hearst and six other potential investors, meet at Hearsts' secluded Colorado compound, just outside Aspen. At this symposium, now famously known as the Hearst Statement, Hearst pitched his idea to his fellow businessman for a third major league in professional baseball.

In the Hearst Statement, an eight team league would form, in major cities, heavily concentrated on the East and Midwest of the United States. Hearst, a lifetime fan of the Denver Bears, forever a AAA minor league club, dreamed of having his own major Colorado franchise. Hearst and his pack agreed on terms and conditions of the league, under which Hearst would fund the majority of start-up costs, and the other six would secure rights to major cities. Hearst eventually planned on making his league an international North American league, so he called it the Continental League...

[Dr. P.R. Park III]

Billionaire Hearst Discloses League Details
November 7th, 1982 - ASSOCIATED PRESS



Eccentric billionaire, Rex Hearst, disclosed publicly his plan to organize his own "renegade" major league last night, in Denver, Colorado. Hearst mentioned the eight cities to form the league, and fielded questions from reporters on regards to potential problems with the MLB. "I could care less about the MLB. They obviously could care less about their fans. They keep limiting the competition to just a handful of teams each year. I'm tired of seeing the Yankees win the World Series every year. I'll bring the best players from all over the world to this league. I'll steal the best free agents from MLB, ***, and Mars if I want to!" Hearst said.

The eight tentative cities to host CBL franchises will be Houston, Denver, San Antonio, Phoenix, Chicago, Boston, Long Island, and Miami. Popular belief is that Hearst is going to have a very difficult time convincing current fan bases in Houston, Chicago, and Boston to convert to a new home team. None of the eight cities have formally agreed to host a ball club, but Heart's main selling point is offering a lucrative tax-incentive package to be offered to each city for hosting a team. Cities are further encouraged by the fact that they own the playing facility and will have to rent it out to Hearst at their pleasure. This puts Hearst at a disadvantage, for each city can technically charge whatever they like. But never to have his spirit broken, Hearst replied back with, "I have all the money in the world. I'll buy the city, bulldoze it, and then build my stadium." It was widely believed that Hearst was highly under the influence of alcohol and psychoactive drugs.

[Dr. P.R. Park III]

Continental League Starts Coming Together
December 28, 1982 - ASSOCIATED PRESS

Earlier last month, Rex Hearst, renowned Oil Man, discussed his plan to form his own major professional baseball league. So far, he has succeeded in having all eight proposed cities agree to terms to host a ball club. Much to the displeasure of Major League Baseball, city councils in Boston, Chicago, Long Island (a MLB market not directly housing a MLB franchise) overwhelmingly accepted Hearsts proposal to host ball clubs. "Sure, the White Sox were first place last year, but they didn't win the World Series. They haven't won a Series in decades! And don't even mention the Cubs!" said Chicago city council member John Garland.

Hearst has said that of the 8 eight ball clubs, five of them have signed tentative leases with the cities. So far though, no team has disclosed their respective team names or logos.

[NYY #23]

I always like "alternative" leagues. I'll be following along, good luck!

PS - It looks like you've got Miami listed twice in the list of cities.

[PhillieFever]

Rex Hearst looks suspiciously like one of my favorite writers ever, I wonder if it's him in disguise??? LOL. I'll be following along.

[Dr. P.R. Park III]

Thanks, I'll change it. I always thought Hunter S. Thompson would make a great commissioner of ANYTHING!

[Dr. P.R. Park III]

Denver & Miami Franchises Revealed, Hearst Names CBL Commissioner
January 7th, 1983 - THE SPORTING NEWS


Rex Hearst, revered madman, named former Major League pitcher Bill 'Spaceman" Lee commissioner of the newly anointed Continental Baseball League. Lee, who retired last November at age 36, went 3-1 with a 2.72 ERA in 43 IP for the Montreal Expos. Lee, often referred to as "Spaceman" has been one of Major League Baseball's most eccentric and interesting players. Hearst and Lee, who have been friends for over twenty years, will make quite the combination. Hearst also introduced his Denver franchise yesterday as the Colorado Rockies. Hearst showcased the teams logo and colors, and said that the jerseys will have to be a surprise.

Down south, Miami franchise CFO Ricky Aldiris introduced the Miami Atoms. The city of Miami has quite a storied history with baseball, they've hosted one for the past twenty years, including one in the International League from 1956-1960. However, with the Miami franchise comes a bit of conflict. Discussions between the CBL and MLB have resulted in vastly different points-of-view for the fertile baseball market of Florida, especially the Miami-Dade area.

MLB commissioner Bowie Kuhn claims that Hearst and his "degenerate league" are trying to exploit a market that the MLB has developed slowly and carefully for decades. Hearst stated that the city approved his franchise, and has already committed to having a major league level professional baseball franchise, something Major League Baseball obviously could not provide. Kuhn, one of the most unpopular commissioners amongst MLB owners, is projected to be ousted sooner rather then later, especially after he seemingly permitted another major league to establish itself within current MLB markets.

[Dr. P.R. Park III]

Spaceman Canned After 3 Days In Office, Named Manager for Rockies
January 11th, 1983 - THE SPORTING NEWS

Rex Hearst with Dr. Oscar Acosta, 1971

In a bizarre turn of events, Continental League commissioner Bill "Spaceman" Lee was fired just three days after being named head of the league by League Chief Financial Officer Rex Hearst. Hearst then named the disgraced Lee manager of his Denver franchise, the Colorado Rockies. "Well, I thought I had a good run as chief, but I think I should be wearing a uniform, or something. I don't think anyone should be given that amount of responsibility." Lee said. Hearst in turn named attorney Dr. Oscar Acosta the league's sophomore commissioner. Acosta, who has never been involved with professional baseball, is considered a maniacal genius with people and numbers, reasons cited by Hearst. "Whatever you do, don't look him in the eye," Hearst was quoted as saying.

The Continental League kicks off a series of three Owners meetings, the first being in March, in Las Vegas, NV. The second and third meetings are tentatively planned for June and August of this year. At the meetings league rules and technicalities will be discussed and voted upon. Hearst has long been a vocal proponent of drug testing, something deemed ironic for a man who has seemingly lived his entire adult life under the influence of psychotropic drugs. "I've never taken steroids! If I have, I would own Aaron's home run records, you swine!"


In a last bit of news, three more CBL franchises revealed themselves, all of whom are currently within MLB markets. The Houston Texans will play at Delmar Stadium, which belongs to Texas Southern University and is most often used for football. The Chicago Cougars were unveiled as well, in front of an enthusiastic group of just a little over 100. The Cougars will play at Rosemont Horizon. However, given the odd dimensions and current usage of the Rosemont, the franchise was given a deadline by the city and must meet attendance and revenue benchmarks within a 2-year period. The city of Chicago has been in active discussions with White Sox ownership the past year in regards to building a new stadium. It is presumed that if the Cougars are successful in Chicago, they will take over Comiskey Park if the White Sox move. Lastly, the Boston Americans revealed their logo, amongst a steady crowd. VP of the Americans, Armando Mendoza, disclosed the teams efforts to secure Boston College's Alumni Stadium, which has a capacity of over 44,000. The college has insisted that Alumni would not be a permanent home, and many doubt the success of another Boston franchise. The remaining three franchises, Phoenix, San Antonio, and Long Island, are still working with their respective municipal governments in finalizing lease agreements. Details should be publicized soon.

[Dr. P.R. Park III]

Continental League Already In Ice
February 26th, 1983 - THE SPORTING NEWS

Rex Hearst, the crazy curator of the Continental League, is already in trouble, even before the first league pitch. After successfully negotiating rights and leases with five of the leagues eight cities, the remaining three, San Antonio, Phoenix, and Long Island, are refusing to grant the league access to sufficient major league level facilities. And with the refusal from those three cities, Boston and Houston are now threatening to drop out, to save their city the embarrassment of being associated with Hearst and his wacky experiment. San Antonio, Phoenix, and Long Island offered the league inferior indoor facilities, but nothing that compares to MLB standards. "Well, it's not a big deal. I'll think of something genius." Hearst was quoted as saying.

Hearst then declared that he would lock himself in his Aspen compound for two weeks with only Peyote and corn tortillas, so he could fully envision his baseball dream.

[Dr. P.R. Park III]

Hearst Back With Even Crazier Plan
March 30th, 1983 - ASSOCIATED PRESS

Rex Hearst resurfaced to the public earlier this week, looking especially wild and crazy. To the media, he introduced an even more bold and elaborate plan in tandem to his already proposed Continental League. Hearst is completely scrapping his Continental League, and reinventing it as the Major Indoor Baseball League, still with the same eight franchises. His plan calls for inferior and realistic playing facilities, and more importantly, according to Hearst, an extremely innovative way of playing the game. "They have adapted soccer, football, tennis, pretty much every other sport that incorporates a ball to an indoor setting, and altered the rules accordingly. I think if done properly, this could be an extremely fun experience. The best part, the limited dimensions means more home runs! More home runs means more strategy for managers!" Hearst rambled. Hearst said it was definitely possible to renegotiate leases with all eight cities. Hearst said that all owners/operating officials of each franchise will meet July 1st-3rd, 1983 in Las Vegas, NV to draft a league constitution and official playing rules. Contrary to popular belief, Hearst also said that each team has the option to host try-outs, but he insists that his league will still consist of world class players.

[NYY #23]

Nice twist, I didn't see that coming.

[Robster49]

This post just brought me out a long posting retirement. Incredible twist.

What's the league founder's policy on illegal and performance enhancing drugs?

[Dr. P.R. Park III]

1984 MAJOR INDOOR BASEBALL LEAGUE PREVIEW
July 1st, 1983 - THE SPORTING NEWS

EASTERN LEAGUE



BOSTON AMERICANS

GM: Armando Mendoza
MANAGER: Bob Montgomery (1970's Boston Red Sox Catcher)
VENUE: Boston Garden Arena (14,890)

CHICAGO COUGARS

GM: Sam Bauer
MANAGER: Frank Howard (WSN/LAD 1970's)
VENUE: UIC Pavilion (10,075)

LONG ISLAND INDIANS

GM: Nick Wentworth
MANAGER: Bill Rigney (MLB Manager 50's-60's)
VENUE: Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (16,234)

MIAMI ATOMS

GM: N/A
MANAGER: Del Crandall (PCL manager)
VENUE: Dinner Key Auditorium (6,900)

[Dr. P.R. Park III]

WESTERN LEAGUE


COLORADO ROCKIES

GM: Rex Hearst
MANAGER: Bill Lee (former MLB RHP BOS/MON)
VENUE: McNichols Sports Arena (17,171)

HOUSTON TEXANS

GM: Terry Gray
Manager: George Scherger (MiLB Manager)
VENUE: Sam Houston Coliseum (9,200)

PHOENIX BULLS

GM: Domingo Cavazos
MANAGER: Cot Deal (MiLB Manager)
VENUE: Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum (14,870)

SAN ANTONIO GUNSLINGERS

GM: Juan Ramos
MANAGER: Don LeJohn (San Antonio Dodgers skipper 1970's)
VENUE: Freeman Coliseum (11,700)

[Dr. P.R. Park III]

Robster49,
From the Commissioners Office of the MIBL: "Psychoactive and psychotropic drugs are strictly permitted. LSD, Peyote, DMT, Marihuana, etc. These could be considered spirit-enhancing drugs! Not performance-enhancing, insanity! Steroids are purely evil and therefore banned for eternity." -Dr. Oscar Acosta.

[Dr. P.R. Park III]

Indoor League Finalized, Aims To Rob MLB in 1984
July 5th, 1983 - ASSOCIATED PRESS

MIBL founder Rex Hearst on phone in Las Vegas, NV

Rex Hearst and his motley crew of financiers finalized all details involved with the official Major Indoor Baseball League this past week. The owners defined official game rules for "Indoor Baseball" and voted on the 1984 schedule, among other things. A basic outline follows:

1.) 154 games played
2.) DH rule used in both leagues
3.) Season starts April 14th, with Spring Training scheduled to start in Las Vegas, NV late February
4.) Wild card playoff system adopted
5.) 22 player roster/ Practice squad maximum of 15 players
6.) Players granted free agency immediately, absolutely no reserve clause
7.) A formal salary cap of $7.5 million was adopted for 2-year experimental period
8.) Each franchise has scheduled player try-outs for the late Fall, but it is expected that no players will be signed.

The actual rules of baseball were not altered, however given the limitations of most of the playing facilities, rules regarding roofs/lights/foul territory were expanded/created/altered.

On an interesting note, Hearst has already sold the rights to the leagues championship series to Chesterfield, maker of fine cigarettes, so the championship series will be a best-of-7, Chesterfield Grand Championship Series. Hearst has also sold advertising rights and facility naming rights (something he insists he reserved the right to during the playing season) to Budweiser, Schlitz, Coors, and Marlboro.

[Dr. P.R. Park III]

Side note: Anyone interested in being created as a player/character for the "try-outs" please submit:

Name
Position
Country

I'll let the game create the attributes.

[Dr. P.R. Park III]

Perconte First Player to Defect to MIBL, Signs to Absurd Contract
November 30, 1983 - ASSOCIATED PRESS

INF Jack Perconte was the first player in Major Indoor Baseball League history to sign a professional contract, with the Boston Americans. Perconte, a below-average player in the MLB with the Seattle Mariners, is a decent contact hitter with extremely fast legs, but absolutely no home-run power. His contract comes to the tune of 4-years, $3 million dollars! American's GM Armando Mendoza signed Perconte to the deal, after Perconte hit for .259, in 343 AB for the Mariners during the 1983 season. He did have 13 SB, but was caught stealing 7 times. Most people don't believe the terms of the contract, and feel that it's Rex Hearst's way of gaining free publicity for his league. Real contract or not, more and more players are becoming increasingly interested in the mystical and bizarre Major Indoor League, and the latest MLB player rumored to defect is former Detroit Tigers catcher John Wockenfuss, who hit .236 with 15 HR's.

[Dr. P.R. Park III]

Looking for more Try-Out players!

Name:
Position:
Country:
DOB:
Birth Place:

[AthleticsFan]

I'm Gonna Be The First One to Tryout for this Indoor Baseball League

Name: Eleno Jianoran
Position: 3B
Country: Philippines
DOB: 8/7/1960
Birth Place: Manila