The Frontier League of Professional Baseball opens its 28th season today as all 14 teams compete across much of the US from the suburbs of Chicago to the suburbs of New York City. After an entire season lost to the global pandemic, the 2021 Frontier League season marks a celebratory return with the added excitement of playing its first season as an official Partner League of Major League Baseball.
The league has sold the contracts of over 1,000 professional players total to all 30 Major League teams since its inception, including nearly 20 contracts during spring training before the first pitch of the 2021 season. Last week former Windy City ThunderBolts player Tommy Nance made his Major League debut with the Chicago Cubs.
The Frontier League is the largest of the four MLB Partner Leagues featuring teams spanning the Midwestern and Northeastern United States plus Eastern Canada.
Jon Danos, CEO of the Frontier League, said: “Our communities are bursting with excitement to finally return to our ballparks and enjoy the unique experiences offered by our players and staffs on and off the fields. In fact, despite some ongoing restrictions and distancing protocols, I would say the enthusiasm is palpable with all the fun and possibilities that come with Opening Day and a return to life as we know it. Play ball.â€
The 96-game regular season ends on September 12 shortly before the playoffs begin featuring the winners of the four divisions who will compete for the Frontier League Championship. The league will also play with a new twist on its tie-breaking rules. If the score remains tied following the International Tiebreaker in the 10th inning, a home run derby shall be conducted to end the game in dramatic fashion.
For the first time, the Frontier League will livestream all 672 games during the 2021 season through FrontierLeagueTV.com and through the new Frontier League app for Apple and Android devices.  The streaming initiative comes as demand for Frontier League content escalates throughout the league’s wide footprint and beyond and as, together with MLB, the league extends its reach to more and more fans in North America.
Games begin at 6:34pm EST when the Florence Y’alls host the Washington Wild Things. Other games feature New Jersey Jackals at New York Boulders, Tri-City ValleyCats at Sussex County Miners, Équipe Québec at Gateway Grizzlies, Southern Illinois Miners at Lake Erie Crushers, Evansville Otters at Schaumburg Boomers, and Joliet Slammers at Windy City ThunderBolts.
