Sox Officially Sever Ties With Lowell Spinners (With a Caveat)

section15

Member
SoSH Member
Mar 23, 2007
227
Bradford, MA and section 15
I guess the 'National League Brought to You by FanDuel' and the 'American Express League' rebrandings can't be too far behind.
Not too far off -

English football =

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/English_football_sponsorship
And before anyone says this is a "new" concept - one of the two NBA's predecessor leagues, The National Basketball League - had sponsored pro teams in the AAU tradition. Thus when the merger of the two leagues was completed, the Sheboygan Red Skins, Anderson Duffey Packers, and, of course, the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons - who continue on today as the Detroit Pistons. The NBL had other teams such as the Akron Goodyears, Akron Non-Skids, Chicago American Gears, etc. ... and there were also the Fort Wayne General Electrics and Indianapolis Kautskys ...

While the Duffey Packers, Red Skins, and Zollner Pistons were permitted to keep their corporate names, the Kautskys were advised to change the name to the Jets.
 

section15

Member
SoSH Member
Mar 23, 2007
227
Bradford, MA and section 15
Minor leagues are the gateway drug to lifelong baseball fandom. Killing off the minor league teams is astoundingly short-sighted.
So is the complete elimination of Red Sox games from free television. Background = I grew up, until high school, in Lawrence. In the late 50s-early 60s, it was an "economically diverse" city - there were wealthy folks, some not so well-off, and many on the edge of poverty. I was lucky - but there were some who watched the 55-60 or so games in the less-fortunate areas on WHDH-TV.

Now, one might say "ah who cares? We don't need that demographic anyway."


I do know at least one fellow who grew up in the Lawrence projects, and he became a season ticket holder as an adult. Also, with today's cord-cutting attitudes - and it's not being done just in poorer areas, but across ALL economic backgrounds - they are alienating or ignoring a future audience. Chasing the short NESN money but exposing themselves to indifference down the road.