Lexington Legends join league that is ‘professional partner’ of Major League Baseball
The fate of the Lexington Legends was uncertain after the December announcement that the team would no longer be part of Major League Baseball’s farm system. Along with dozens of other clubs, the Legends became casualties of MLB’s restructured arrangement with its network of minor league affiliates.
We now know what the immediate future holds for Lexington’s professional baseball franchise.
The Legends have joined the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB). The league is considered a “professional partner” of MLB, though ALPB teams are not affiliated with MLB organizations — as the Legends were with the Kansas City Royals from 2013-2019 and the Houston Astros from 2001-2012.
The ALPB was established in 1998 and in 2016 became the first independent professional baseball league to sign a working agreement with MLB.
“We are thrilled to continue our relationship with the Lexington Legends as they join the Atlantic League in 2021,” MLB Executive Vice President of Baseball Operations Morgan Sword said in a statement issued by the Legends on Thursday. “We have developed an excellent working relationship with the Legends and congratulate them on this next step for the franchise.”
Even before becoming an official MLB partner, the ALPB offered players a viable path into the ranks of major league organizations. According to the ALPB website, in the league’s previous 23 years of operation more than 950 of its players have signed contracts with major league organizations and more than 100 have eventually been promoted to MLB rosters. In addition, more than 70 former ALPB coaches or players have become managers or coaches in MLB organizations.
Former ALPB players currently on MLB rosters include pitcher Chris Mazza of the Tampa Bay Rays, Miami Marlins pitcher Ross Detwiler and pitcher Nik Turley of the Oakland Athletics.
Several noteworthy former stars also made it back onto MLB rosters late in their careers following stops in the ALPB, including Jose Canseco, Ruben Sierra, Tim Raines and Rickey Henderson
“Joining the Atlantic League is the perfect next step for this franchise. We are beyond excited and thankful for the Atlantic League and Major League Baseball for assisting in making this happen,” Lexington Legends President and CEO Andy Shea said. “Fans can expect to see high-caliber baseball, names they recognize, and players that are from Kentucky and the incredible college baseball programs in our state.
“We did extensive due diligence on what our next step should be. It was clear from the beginning that our fans, community and the game of baseball will continue in Lexington as a member of the premier MLB Partner League.”
As part of the agreement, Major League Baseball is allowed to test experimental playing rules and equipment during Atlantic League games. The Atlantic League has tested rules involving larger bases, shortening inning breaks and limiting defensive shifting and mound visits. The leagues also partnered to test radar-tracking technology to assist home-plate umpires in calling balls and strikes.
“The other piece is the relationship with players,” Shea said of the arrangement between MLB and the ALPB. “There’s a smooth easy working arrangement so if an MLB team wants to sign a player from an Atlantic League team, they can do it and the guy can be there in less than 24 hours.”
The Legends become the seventh ALPB franchise, joining the Gastonia (N.C.) Honey Hunters, York (Pa.) Revolution, High Point (N.C.) Rockers, Lancaster (Pa.) Barnstormers, Long Island (N.Y.) Ducks and Southern Maryland Blue Crabs. The league hopes to expand to 12 teams in the near future.
Rather than win games, the main task of minor league baseball teams is to develop their players to the point they can be promoted up the organizational ladder of their MLB affiliate. On its website, the ALPB says “Atlantic League clubs pay players to win baseball games, not apprentice in baseball’s developmental levels.”
“We are very excited to add such a high-caliber ball club to our league,” Atlantic League President Rick White said. “We congratulate Andy Shea and the entire Legends organization. The Legends bring a tradition of outstanding baseball, operating excellence and dedication to their community that make them a perfect fit for the ALPB.”
In 20 years as a member of minor league baseball’s South Atlantic League, the Legends won three championships (2001, 2018, 2019). When the 2020 minor league season was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic, the Legends opted to strike out on their own and play an independent season.
The club cooperated with the Florence Y’alls and put together a series called “The Battle of the Bourbon Trail,” with each club fielding two separate teams that played each other on a rotating basis. The four rosters consisted of former MLB, minor league and college players, many of whom had ties to the state of Kentucky.
The Legends will be managed by PJ Phillips, Shea announced during a question-and-answer session streamed on the Legends’ Facebook page Thursday. Phillips managed one of the Legends’ squads during the Battle of the Bourbon Trail. He was selected by the Los Angeles Angels in the second round of the 2005 MLB Draft and played 12 seasons in the minor leagues as part of the farm systems of the Angels and Cincinnati Reds. His brother, Brandon Phillips, is a former MLB All-Star for the Reds and played under PJ Phillips during the Battle of the Bourbon Trail.
Shea told the Herald-Leader that he expects “to have about half of the roster filled within the next couple of weeks, and the rest of the roster within a month after that.” The Legends were not allowed to officially sign players before Thursday.
“We should get a lot of MLB guys that get released during or at the end of spring training,” Shea said.
Though no longer affiliated with an MLB franchise, the Legends have a new league to call home when this year’s ALPB season kicks off May 28. The team’s home opener at Whitaker Bank Ballpark is scheduled for June 1. A full schedule is expected to be announced soon.
“We are very excited about this opportunity,” Shea said. “I truly feel it’s a perfect fit for this community, our organization, and for the game of baseball.”
This story was originally published February 18, 2021 at 4:25 PM.
