The Nogales Desert Ghosts never got off the ground as a member of the proposed indy pro American West Baseball League and is or was facing allegations of interstate fraud and forgery, but it appears the franchise has been resurrected as the Yuma Desert Ghosts from the new Western Association of Professional Baseball. FlynnAgain Productions designed the logos for the new Ghosts. View Facebook page. View Twitter page.
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So it’s been over a month… where’s the announcement about the team and the phantom league?
They wouldn’t join a Mexican league if their aim is to showcase Colombian talent in the US and that’s been their goal all along. I agree with an earlier comment that it would be tough to gain traction anywhere in the Southwest with a model like that given the previous experiences and outcomes. Still, this Western Association thing is a mystery and frankly, sounds like yet another money grab. I hope people, including myself, do as much research as possible before even considering getting involved with this. I do find it pretty perverse that the Desert Ghosts Facebook page is asking for sponsors to inquire already, being that they are the only team I can find in this shadow league! Cart before the horse a little…maybe?
Another suggestion I would have is the Freedom League. Why not rent out a Spring Training ballpark in AZ for the summer and play in the Freedom League. Travel would be minimal, and I’m sure the Freedom League would welcome expansion as it generates more money. @Dann you are right about showcasing Colombian talent that is one of the main goals for this franchise, which I don’t mind in some aspects but can see why it would be a problem. With all this said I still believe the Liga Norte de Mexico would be the way to go… Five of the six teams are within five hours of Yuma.
Can someone shed some light on this “Western Association of Professional Baseball?” This has stink all over it!!
Instead of creating a new league why doesn’t the Desert Ghosts ownership group try to get a team in the Liga Norte de Mexico. Geographically Yuma fits the bill. Although it looks like the Liga Norte de Mexico is ready to rock ‘n roll for 2014.
Who are the other teams?? Pac Association Merger??
Where’s the next city for the Western Association? Tucson?
That link to the fraud claim is an odd one – the page it links to doesn’t seem all that official, links to the Nogales team web site address and the question e-mail is a team e-mail. Twitter page has the Nogales logo as a backdrop, though there have been some posts in the last week. Including one from a guy who says (in Spanish) that he’d rather get these guys in a ring and fight them. Also, the new team’s site isn’t up and under construction, it links to Century Link. And yumadeegeegeez.com? Geez is right. I hope these people have been behind the scenes selling since summer – as Mr. Dittrich pointed out months ago, it’s far too late at this point in the fiscal year to successfully launch a new team or league. Nice logo though, and good looking hats, maybe they feel that’s enough. Good luck to the phantom team and league.
Any inquiries in regards to the team can be made at info@yumadeegeez.com we will make an announcement regarding the state of the team next week. For the record, that webpage was hijacked by a disgruntled web designer. All claims and accusations are false and being addressed through the proper channels.
Neil, thanks, that clears that up. Good luck to the team and league.