Fielders Out For The Season

The Lake County Fielders minor league baseball team is officially throwing in the towel.

While the team originally opened with great expectations and great fanfare, the Lake County Fielders have since been the subject of lawsuits and reportedly left players, coaches and staff unpaid.

Team owner Richard Ehrenreich had partnered with baseball fan and Academy Award-winner Kevin Costner to form the minor league baseball team. While Costner was more of a silent partner, Ehrenreich battled with the City of Zion to finish building the team's stadium. The city said the team owed  them $185,000 in rent before the stadium would be built.

Former staff member . It was just one example of various problems faced by the team.

The Fielders decided to throw in the towel on the 2012 season, and issued the following statement on April 9:

Dear Friends and Fans,

As the 2012 baseball season approaches, we'd like to provide a status on our plans going forward. 

With no existing stadium in Zion, we will not be participating in any formal baseball league play this upcoming season. 

As many of you know, every league has minimum stadium standards that must be met prior to participating in league play (generally, at least 3,000 permanent fixed seats with a capacity of at least 5,000, locker rooms, plumbing and electrical infrastructure, concession stands, etc). League stadium standards are required for many reasons, ranging from the fans' experience at each game, to the ballclub's ability to earn a profit and sustain operations. 

For the past two seasons (2010 and 2011), leagues have provided the Fielders with a special exception to their stadium standards based on the City's representations that the stadium construction was imminent. The Fielders played during those two seasons, without a stadium and at extraordinary financial loss, in reliance on the better days that would lie ahead once the City built the stadium. Regrettably, the City still hasn't commenced stadium construction, so the Fielders simply have no choice but to suspend plans for a 2012 league season, and look to 2013 and beyond.

We remain hopeful that the City will build the stadium it promised the community, and in the meantime, we will look to utilize the stadium property in ways that provide the community with some benefit and use. 

Thank you to all who continue to support our efforts. We receive your letters and emails daily, and continue to see new subscribers to our e-Newsletter, occasionally from those that actively supported a stadium in Zion from the very beginning. We hope that this project has a happy ending for the community, our employees, and all those who support what we've done over the past 6 years.

Best regards, 

The Lake County Fielders