One day after the summer collegiate Midwest Collegiate League announced that Jamie Toole had pulled the Will County CrackerJacks and Illinois Lincolns out of the league, he announced his “Rise Up” campaign/slogan representing a new, fresh start for the 2013 season in a yet-to-be-identified new circuit for his teams. Read more here.
First, this campaign seems a bit silly and smells of a marketing gimmick to sweep whatever truth there is under the rug. Second, there are really no economical league choices out there for his teams to take up residence. The summer collegiate Prospect League has at least a $175,000 franchise tag. The summer collegiate Northwoods League? Well, let’s not even go there. That’s a rich man’s game now. That leaves a new league, which Toole might not have a problem introducing. We all know about the defunct South Coast League, and the proposed Super Independent Baseball league is still sitting out there with a website, although it has not been updated with news since 2010.
We also caught wind of another possible issue today, as a source tells us that another one of Toole’s sports properties, the Chicago Jets, an independent rookie-level baseball club where players apparently pay for pro-scouting exposure, folded mid season. While this has not been corroborated, the team’s website has not been updated with news since late June. The club’s schedule shows games through July 29.
Here is a link to his new plan – looks like he just moved all of the garbage teams under one umbrella http://midwestfarmleague.webs.com/
looks like he is doing it on a budget with all free websites
Thanks. I will post something about it.
Alan
Why is Jamie making an announcement about Rising Up when he only had a few games left for his teams to finish out the season. I think someone needs to get a hold of him to explain the sudden departures of both of his teams from the league.
Somebody tell this loser to just go away already. Everywhere he goes he leaves a trail of broken promises, failed leagues, and debt.
Who cares why do we write about him? He’s a failure and for some reason people keep giving him seed money to get these teams rolling
Ron:
You answered your own question. Not everyone is in the know. By sharing information, we shed light on situations that can harm our industry’s reputation and maybe even alert potential investors, host communities, and other stakeholders.
Sara:
Toole was given a chance to explain, and he did. Read the story via the link below:
http://heraldnews.suntimes.com/sports/13890969-419/goss-jamie-toole-removes-crackerjacks-lincolns-from-league.html
That doesn’t mean his excuse makes sense.
Alan