Tribune-Herald
Tribune-Herald
The Hawaii Stars will return for another season of independent baseball, but under a new league name: Pacific Association of Professional Baseball Club.
The league is an outgrowth of the North American Baseball League, which ceased operations in November and will include teams carried over from the North Division, the Stars, Na Koa Ikaika Maui, San Rafael Pacifics and Sonoma County Grapes.
The Pacific Association will play interleague games with the Japanese Baseball Challenge League, one of two independent leagues in the country. In September, a joint club of Stars and Na Koa play a home-and-away exhibition series against the Ishikawa Million Stars of the BCL.
“Baseball speaks a common language,” said Hawaii at Maui owner Bob Young, “and the ardent passion of our fans in California and Hawaii and the fans in Japan for this continued international competition after our exhibition series in 2012 spurred our Japanese partners and the Pacific Association to broaden our horizons in all aspects of our baseball operations and businesses. It is an exciting development and opportunity for baseball at this level and gives the players in the independent baseball system further opportunities to reach their goals of making the show.”
Former Dodgers outfielder and San Rafael manager Mike Marshall was named commissioner for the Pacific Association, which is working on a schedule and website.