The independent way

by Trey Nosrac

They were dreamers.

In 1993, a group of people formed an independent baseball league. They called it the Frontier League of Professional Baseball. From scratch, they began finding locations, players, managers, general managers, ownership groups – and writing new rules. I was there for the debut season and spent more than a decade inside this challenging business world.

The original vision was simple: bring professional baseball to fans in cities across West Virginia, Kentucky, and Ohio. The league launched with eight teams, though two folded faster than plastic lawn chairs. Others joined. Today, the Frontier League continues to operate, with 18 teams in 18 cities.

Independent baseball didn’t stop there. Today, there are eight independent professional baseball leagues in the United States, each with its own structure and business model:

• American Association — 12 teams

• Atlantic League — 10 teams

• Frontier League — 18 teams

• Pecos League — 16 teams

• United Shore Professional Baseball League — 4 teams

• Pioneer League — 12 teams

• Empire League — 4 teams

• Mavericks Independent Baseball League — 4 teams

The central questions of this column are straightforward:
Is the independent baseball model (and other independent sports) applicable to harness racing? Could a person — or a group of people — create a harness racing league of their own?

No one is suggesting that independent harness racing could copy the baseball model or replace the current racing model based on gambling. These are horses of a different color. Independent baseball carved out its niche in a shifting entertainment landscape through trial and error, as well as stubborn persistence. The road was rocky – but navigable. The real question is whether harness racing could learn from that experience and attempt something similar.

In my view, the answer hinges on passion – both from those who would build an independent league and those who would participate in it.

In baseball, enthusiastic entrepreneurs have repeatedly stepped up to the plate under an independent model. These owners seem to relish freedom: freedom from bureaucracy, freedom from a top-down structure, freedom to fail or succeed on their own terms. They accept the gamble. To my knowledge, no one has attempted to create a fully independent, self-contained league for standardbred racing – one free from subsidies, casinos, or external lifelines.

No one gets rich in independent league baseball – not the players, not the staff, not the cities, and certainly not the investors. Survival is the ultimate goal, but it is a challenging goal. The economics are stacked against the independent way and always have been. But baseball has answered the challenge. Harness racing has not.

The difference between affiliated and independent baseball is subtle on the field and enormous off it. A rough analogy is the difference between opening a local diner in a small town and opening a Burger King franchise. For the consumer, it’s the difference between buying a sweater at Walmart or Amazon versus buying one at a small-town shop like Nancy’s Fancy Clothes.

Take northeast Ohio. The Lake County Captains are an affiliated team, tied directly to Minor League Baseball and, ultimately, Major League Baseball. Players are drafted young and paid well. The organization benefits from deep financial backing, strong sponsorships, and the infrastructure provided by MLB.

Less than 50 miles away are the Lake Erie Crushers, an Independent League team. The talent level on the field is remarkably similar. The business model is not. To go the independent route is to go it alone.

Players, owners, and operators in independent baseball continue to grind for minimal financial reward. Are any such people willing to step up to the plate in our sport?

Years ago, I interviewed an early Frontier League owner as he chalked the foul lines, sweat dripping from his forehead. He was a successful middle-aged businessman — likely a millionaire many times over — but brand new to baseball.

“Well,” he said, “I have three revenue sources: ticket sales, advertising, and concessions. My market is limited to people willing to drive about 15 minutes. We play 120 games. Sixty are at home, and more than half of those are money losers because they’re on weeknights. That leaves maybe 15 or 20 weekend games with profit potential. Last year, we had six weekend rainouts and a few games that reached over 100 degrees. So now I’m down to maybe a dozen games where I even have a prayer of making money – and that doesn’t come close to covering expenses.”

I asked, “So why are you doing this?”

He shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s just so damn much fun. And every August, when everyone’s exhausted, owners are bleeding cash, and we’re all swearing we’ll never do this again… some of us do.”

He pushed the chalk cart another 20 feet, stopped, turned back, removed his cap, wiped his brow, and smiled.

“You know what?” he said. “When I look back on my life, I suspect these years — trying to make an impossible sports venture work — are the ones I’ll remember most.”

Could harness racing create a league of its own? Could a few entrepreneurs step outside our prison with golden bars and go it alone – not as a hobby, but as a business? Would participants trade the existing carrot of massive purses for a little less money – and a lot more fun?

Next week: A few founding principles for a league of our own.