1/3/2012-The Pecos League has been bombarded with questions from citizens, fans, critics, and everyone else who has a 505 area code. This beer issue has really taken off and people are either on one side or the other.
Here are the facts:
The Pecos League of Professional Baseball Clubs wants a to play baseball in Fort Marcy Park in the Summer of 2012 in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Santa Fe happens to be one of the political cities in the United States, very different than any town in the entire Pecos League Region. The citizens of Santa Fe and the leaders of the city of Santa Fe are very familiar with the Pecos League and the benefits the league has brought to other New Mexico Cities. The Pecos League is not asking for $500,000 to bring a team in, we are willing to accept Fort Marcy in current condition and grow with the team and the league. The Pecos League obviously wants to be in Santa Fe to increase exposure of the Pecos League and to bring family entertainment to Santa Fe, a city that actually needs it. "This should be expected in Santa Fe, political debates are the norm. If they get beer passed this could be a big event, Fort Marcy can be perfect for this league." says Las Cruces Vaqueros General Manager Miguel Salcedo, who was born and raised in Santa Fe. Miguel has also been with the Vaqueros since the team was formed in 2009 and sees great potential in Santa Fe.
Will Webber is the person that got the ball rolling with the Santa Fe Team. He was the man who spearheaded talks between Robert Romero, Ronald Trujillo and Andrew Dunn.
The Pecos League tried to put a team in Santa Fe in 2011 and begged Santa Fe for an exhibition game in the 2011 season when Ruidoso played Roswell in Clovis and in Pueblo. Andrew Dunn went to Santa Fe twice. Originally the two teams were supposed to play at Fort Marcy and made the Pueblo game a doubleheader and moved another game in the series to Roswell. Barbara Lopez with the Santa Fe Parks and Recreation Committee said the field was not available under any circumstances. The facts were the field was sitting idle and was used as a backup field for an AABC League.
In an interview with Will Webber last week Pecos League Commissioner Andrew Dunn stated that he wanted to play in Santa Fe no matter what for the 2012 season. The purpose of the interview was to announce the hiring of Bill Moore. This rattled leaders of the city and the city council as they are trying to get votes so alcohol can be passed.
Many people read the article and took it that the Mountain Lions were coming to Santa Fe no matter what. Well Mountain Lions are very mobile animals and can be a very mobile team. If the situation is not right the Mountain Lions can move to one of many cities within the region. The Pecos League wants the Mountain Lions to play in Santa Fe. There are two swing votes that can go either way. Current Vote count is believed to be 3-3, if the swing votes split the tie is broken by the Mayor. Many people would love for this to happen to put pressure on the Mayor.
"Let's play ball" says Bill Moore who will be head coach of Mountain Lions. The Pecos League has to move forward with signing of players and putting a quality ballclub together. "We are going to have six teams, regardless of this election, Coach Moore needs to get to work. Anyone who has ever worked with Bill Moore will tell you he is a great coach and great individual, I think the people of Santa Fe will love him. We are baseball people we don't like going to all of these meetings and playing games we just want a situation where we have a chance to be viable and the rest we will take care of" says Andrew Dunn Pecos League Commisioner.
"Alot of the players are considering signing with Pecos League have Santa Fe at the top of their list. Players from across the Country know where it is unlike all of the other cities. "
The conversation that keeps coming up is the hockey team the Santa Fe Roadrunners, the Roadrunners were a minor league hockey team that failed because they didnt sell beer. They played out of the Genoveva Chavez Community Center in Santa Fe. The team lasted 3 years but didn't sell beer and ultimately moved to Topeka, Kansas. The Pecos League and NAHL Hockey League have absolutely nothing in common. The NAHL Hockey League had huge long expensive road trips such as all over Texas, Springfield and Texarkana. Hockey dried up all over the South after the NHL Strike. The Roadrunners didn't have beer, but in their defense Santa Fe has no connection with the game of hockey, there is no heritage or connection. No one in Santa Fe grew up playing hockey that is for sure. Baseball is a different story. Many Santa Fe natives are huge baseball fans and the game has been in Northern New Mexico for generations. And when the Mountain Lions take the field they will be playing against much closer opponents that people actually know such as Las Cruces, Roswell, Alamogordo, Trinidad and Alpine. The Pecos League is New Mexico Based and has three others teams in New Mexico and Santa is in the center of the footprint.
There have been talks of the city putting up money for the Pecos League to come and not sell beer. The Pecos League is open to all options as long as it a viable option. If it shows strong commitment from the City of Santa Fe that they want the Pecos League and that is what is important. Like our other cities we plan on being in Santa Fe permanently not for 1-2 years. We need commitment and support. For information on the Mountain Lions visit http://santafe.pecosleague.com