Why has baseball failed again in Calgary?
Posted Oct 2, 2011 8:18 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Local experts are scratching their heads trying to explain the latest casualty on the Calgary baseball scene.
Thanks to financial problems, the Calgary Vipers have joined a list of failed local franchises in the history books that includes the Expos, Cardinals, Cannons and Outlaws.
John Ircandi, Managing Director with the successful Okotoks Dawgs south of Calgary, tells the Calgary Herald that you can’t blame the weather, since it’s basically the same for his organization. But he adds, as a pro team the Vipers lacked the same professional swagger that the Flames and Stampeders enjoy.
A former GM of the Triple A Calgary Cannons, John Traub points the finger at aging Foothills Stadium, saying the ballpark is antiquated.
The demise of the Vipers isn’t because of a lack of grassroots interest in the game. Calgary has over 6,000 youth ballplayers between the ages of 5 and 18.
