Patrick LaForge, governor (general manager) of the indy pro North American League’s Edmonton Capitals, would like to see Triple-A baseball back in Edmonton, and he’s willing to partner with the Vancouver Canadians (Single-A, Northwest League), Calgary Vipers (North American League), and Winnipeg Goldeyes (indy pro, American Association) to make it happen.
We are not sure what LaForge is thinking. If the idea is to bring a higher level of ball back to Canada across the board, there is no Triple-A team available for relocation north, let alone four of them, even if opposing Pacific Coast League president Branch Rickey changed his tune.
For a higher level of ball to return to Canada, we think MLB/MiLB would have to authorize a new affiliated league in Canada (like the Mexican League), or the four markets mentioned, plus others, would have to launch a new Triple-A-level indy pro Canadian circuit modeled after the Atlantic League. That said, all scenarios seem pretty pie in the sky at this juncture. Read more here.
ballparkbiz.wordpress.com 
It would seem that a “super-independent” league in Canada… something like the CFL in football…. would be a great idea. Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Regina,Winnipeg, Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec City. Only Regina would need to build a ballpark to make a solid 8-team league. I would think a national airline sponsorship could be attained to reduce travel costs.
JD,
I would love to see it, if it were done right. It has been eight years since the Canadian Baseball League trainwreck, so maybe the pollution has cleared.
Alan
Well said by the editors. The professional baseball agreement calls for each major league club to have only ONE class AAA farm club. That places a finite number on the AAA classification… 30 teams. So, Edmonton would have to purchase one of the 30 current AAA franchises and secure permission to relocate it from the league in which the purchased franchise currently operaties. This “finite” number of affiliated teams at all levels (AAA, AA, A, short-A, and Rookie) is the reason affiliated franchises are so much more costly to secure at all levels. If it weren’t for independent ball, the Canadian cities of Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg and Quebec would be out of professional baseball completely.