Sport Baseball No. of teams 4 Most recent
champion(s) Utica Unicorns Number of teams 4 | Founded 2016 Venue(s) Jimmy John's Field Official website USPBL.com Country United States of America | |
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United shore professional baseball league
The United Shore Professional Baseball League (USPBL) is an independent baseball league started in May of 2016. Each team in the USPBL will play a full 50-game regular season schedule from May through September, with an all-star game and championship game at the conclusion of the regular season. The games are played at Jimmy John's Field.
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History
The United Shore Professional Baseball League was founded by Andy Appleby, a former senior vice president of the Detroit Pistons and Palace Sports and Entertainment. The league has three teams based in Metro Detroit, with all games being played at Jimmy John's Field in Utica, Michigan. The $12 million ballpark has seating for 4,000 and was built on capped brownfield that previously served as an unlicensed dump for household waste.
The league is aimed at 18–25 year olds who either went undrafted out of college, or who have been released from prior minor league contracts. The pay is expected to range from $600–$800 per month with housing provided by host families. It is meant to give players recently graduated from college or with limited minor league experience a chance to stay in baseball shape and give them an opportunity to be signed to contracts with MLB affiliated minor league teams. All league revenue comes primarily from sponsorship partners and other advertisements, ticket sales and ballpark concessions.
The Utica Unicorns won the initial league championship with a 5–0 win over the Birmingham-Bloomfield Beavers on September 11, 2016.