Northeastern Pennsylvania, commonly referred to as NEPA, is the interesting northeast corner of Pennsylvania. There is certainly no shortage of activities and attractions regardless of your interests. Coal mining was prevalent throughout NEPA for many decades late in the 19th century and early in the 20th century. As the mining industry declined with the demand for anthracite coal, the area was left with not much more than abandoned coal breakers and desolate land once booming with miners and daily activity both above and below the ground. NEPA needed a spark to re-ignite the enthusiasm that once made this area a popular place to settle. Although the coal mining days were far from glamorous, they are part of history in Northeast PA.

Embracing the history of this area was just one way to bring the past back to life and reproduce our local history for those who may find it of interest. Along with the coal mines were the railroads that carried to coal to various cities including New York, New Jersey, and the surrounding areas. Scranton, in particular was named the Electric City based on the fact that it was the first city to deploy an electric trolley for public transportation. These historic bits and pieces of local history opened the doors for plenty of tourist-oriented ideas.

Brendan Hallab is a Registered Player of Australian Football Players and a student at Westfields Sports High School. We would like to let you know what a typical week consists of for this talented 14 year old defender and his family.

If you have always loved professional baseball, then it is possible for you to become involved with the industry in one way or another.  One avenue to pursue is employment with a team or league in the independent baseball league section of the pro baseball industry.  Independent baseball leagues and teams are not affiliated with any specific Major League Baseball organization, and their ultimate goal is to become a profitable enterprise.  Front office and league personnel have more flexibility in hiring people to help them reach that aim.

The question then becomes, “In what other way can I work in the professional baseball industry without being a player, manager, coach, or owner?”  Here are several starting points, each with a short description to help you better understand what is available to you:

League-level:  It is possible for you to work with an independent baseball league at the league office level.  Skills here include media relations, strategic planning, marketing, attracting major sponsors for league-wide exposure, and other similar duties. Entry-level (team):  Many independent baseball teams need help with game-day operations, ticket sales, community relations, and many other tasks to entice local organizations and individuals to spend money with the team.  You will need interpersonal, computer, phone, and event-planning skills.  In addition, the hours may be long and some physical effort will be required, especially if you work on game-day operations. Specialty skills:  You can join an independent baseball team with a number of specialty skills.  These could include online radio broadcasting, public address announcing, statistician, dealing with local and regional sports media, promotions development and implementation, online marketing, grounds keeping, stadium management, concessions skills, and merchandise/inventory management.  Even higher-level specialty skills include stadium design, graphic design for logos and sponsorship obligations, game scheduling, and raising capital for teams. Management (team):  You will need to be able to manage employees, interns, and have a good ability to deal with other executives, team owners, and the league executives.  You also will be working long hours overseeing items dealing with concessions, merchandise, stadium operations, stadium construction/renovation, speaking at the local service organizations, dealing with player contracts, and many other tasks.  You should have the ability to run a small/medium business, including accounting/payroll understanding, budgeting, networking, and many other senior-level tasks.

With over 50 independent baseball teams scheduled to play in 2010, there are several opportunities to join this industry.  Remember that your love for the game has to be tempered with the understanding that the team owner, league president, and general manager all want to turn a profit while maintaining a high standard of excellence in the local market.  If you are willing to do what you can to offer professional quality while focusing on making a profit and obtaining new fans then you have the first step needed to join independent professional baseball.