Frontier League Welcomes Tri-City ValleyCats as 16th Member

 The Frontier League has unanimously accepted the Tri-City ValleyCats as the league’s 16^th member.  The ValleyCats had been members of the New York-Penn League and were an affiliate of the Houston Astros.

Tri-City began play at Joseph L. Bruno Stadium in the 2002 season.  Joseph L. Bruno Stadium is located on the campus of Hudson Valley Community College in Troy, New York.  Over the past five seasons the ValleyCats have averaged over 4,100 fans per game.  They won the New York-Penn League championship in 2010, 2013, and 2018 and hosted the NYPL All-Star Game in both 2008 and 2017.  The Tri-City ValleyCats franchise has been recognized with a variety of awards throughout the baseball industry to go along with personal accolades for key officials, including Rick Murphy (President), Matt Callahan (General Manager), and Michelle Skinner (Assistant General Manager). In 2015, ValleyCats founder, Bill Gladstone, was named King of Baseball in recognition for his longtime dedication and service to baseball.Frontier League Commissioner Bill Lee says, “We are honored and excited to welcome the Tri-City ValleyCats to our League. They enjoy a tremendous reputation in professional baseball for their strong ownership and exemplary management. The ValleyCats also have a great fan base. We are anxious for their fans to see Frontier League baseball. 2021 could not start better for the Frontier League than to have the ValleyCats join our family.”“We are excited to join the Frontier League and eager to start this new chapter in ValleyCats baseball. We feel that this opportunity is the best fit for our fans, franchise, and facility as we look forward,” said ValleyCats President, Rick Murphy.  “We would also like to thank Commissioner Bill Lee, the entire leadership of the Frontier League, and the fifteen other teams for welcoming us as new members.”

“The Boulders are thrilled with the addition of the ValleyCats to the Frontier League,” commented Shawn Reilly, President of the New York Boulders.  “The Gladstone family runs one of the best organizations in all of minor league baseball. To have them join our League is very exciting and reinforces our league as the premier Major League Baseball Partner League.  We look forward to many years of spirited competition to win the title as the best Frontier League team in New York State.”

Founded for the 1993 season, the Frontier League is the largest and longest running independent professional baseball league.  An official Partner League of Major League Baseball, the Frontier League features 16 clubs stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River and from the Ohio River to the St. Lawrence Seaway.  The Frontier League annually moves the most players into Major League Baseball organizations of any of the independent leagues.