Yesterday we looked at Florida's Gulf Coast League. Today we travel across the country to the hot deserts of the Phoenix Metropolitan Area's Arizona Rookie League. Like many other leagues its history has featured no-hitters, the longer the history the more no-hitters have been pitched. Some leagues waited several seasons to see their first and in some cases only no-hitter. Several leagues have witnessed no-hitters on the day the league first opened play.
When the Arizona Rookie League opened play on June 23, 1988, they had five MLB teams backing its four clubs. One of those clubs was backed by both the Mariners and Red Sox. That club was one of the more interesting clubs in minor league history. The two clubs would alternate days which the two clubs prospects would play a scheduled game. If one club needed an extra player, they would simply borrow them from the other organization. I believe that the team even had two managers. Even if a player was borrowed from the other team, he still wore the uniform of his parent club.
On July 18, 1988 the leagues wait for for its first no-hitter ended when the Padres Jeffery Hart pitched a 3-0 gem in Scottsdale against the Brewers, who had traveled from Peoria for the game. Although his 5-0 league record did earn him a late season promotion to the Northwest League, he never got higher then Class A ball, leaving the game after 3 seasons.
Today the league has 12 clubs playing in three divisions, unlike the GCL, league teams do play outside their division. This because the league is so tight geographically, that the longest road trip for a team is about an hour. The Chicago White Sox are the only team currently training in the Phoenix Area that does not have a team in the league. the might pick up two teams next year when the Diamondbacks and Rockies move north, from Tucson.
Tomorrow we are leaving the youngsters behind and looking at the Old timers.
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