GBL wins judgment vs. Canseco

Remember a few years back when Jose Canseco suited up for the Armada in 2006?  Good times indeed.  The league released a statement yesterday saying that the GBL has won its lawsuit over Canseco after a judge found he breached his marketing agreement with the league.  The Long Beach Press-Telegram and LA Times ran with the story about how Canseco skipped out on his marketing appearances.

It's amazing the roller coaster this guy has been on in the past five or so years. He writes "Juiced" and has the entire baseball world shun him. Years later he comes back with a book "Vindicated" after everyone discovers that his first book wasn't full of horse manure. So now he looks like he's going to rise again, and he claims he has dirt on A-Rod who we now know used. But the guy is losing money hand-over-fist (who isn't in this economy), and now he's got to pay a quarter-million dollars to the Golden Baseball League.

Might be time for another book, eh?

IT'S LIMA TIME!!!

All right Armada fans, get ready for a big treat in 2009. Some amazing MLB talent will be taking the mound for the Fleet this summer. Jose Lima is in the house! Here's the official release:

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:


Lima Time Returns to L.A. as Jose Lima Signs with the Long Beach Armada
Major League All-Star Selects Golden Baseball League to Showcase his Comeback


LONG BEACH, Calif. (March 27, 2009) –- The Long Beach Armada of the independent professional Golden Baseball League (GBL) have announced that they have agreed to terms with former Major League All-Star pitcher Jose Lima on a player contract for the 2009 season. Lima, who won 21 games in a season with Houston and was fourth in the Cy Young voting, pitched in the major leagues for the New York Mets in 2006, was the top pitcher in the Mexican League in 2007, and pitched in the Korean professional league in 2008. He will join Manager Garry Templeton's Long Beach Armada squad that has sent 17 players back to major league organizations including five last year and Cincinnati Reds' big leaguer Adam Pettyjohn.

"I'm excited to have Jose Lima pitching for us this year," said Long Beach Armada Manager Garry Templeton. "His experience, skill, and leadership will be a great benefit to us. I'm glad that we have the opportunity to showcase his skills and give him the chance to rejoin a major league club."

Lima, 36, broke into the major leagues as a 22-year old rookie with Detroit in 1994 and was traded to the Houston Astros a few years later where he became one of the most successful and flamboyant starting pitchers in the major leagues. He was a Natonal League All-Star in 1999 and went on to pitch in three National League Division Championship Series. In 2004, he went 13-5 for the Los Angeles Dodgers and threw a complete game against St. Louis in the NLDS which was the first Dodger playoff victory since the 1988 World Series. Well known for his colorful personality and entertainment skills, Lima would regularly have crowds chanting his name when he pitched, had the term "Lima Time" coined by the media to describe his unique presence while playing, sang the national anthem at major league games, has recorded as a bachata musician, and even had Fantasy League strategies named for him.

"It will be a lot of fun for our fans to experience the passion and joy that Jose brings to the game," said Long Beach Armada General Manager Tony Soares. "We will definitely have special promotions and fan activities on the nights he pitches and give the Armada faithful lots of "Lima Time!"


About The Golden Baseball League
The Golden Baseball League, Presented by Safeway Inc./VONS, is the premier professional independent baseball league operating in the western United States, Canada, Mexico. The ten Golden Baseball League teams include the Calgary Vipers in Calgary, Alberta Canada; the Chico Outlaws in Chico, CA; the Edmonton Capitals in Edmonton, Alberta Canada, the Orange County Flyers in Fullerton, CA; the Long Beach Armada in Long Beach, CA; the St. George Roadrunners in St. George, Utah; the Yuma Scorpions in Yuma, AZ; the Tijuana Potros in Baja California, Mexico; the Tucson Toros in Tucson, AZ; and the Victoria Seals in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada. Over 90 GBL players have been acquired by major league baseball or professional international baseball organizations during the last four years and over 50 former major leaguers have played in the GBL including MLB All-Stars Rickey Henderson, Jose Canseco, and Felix Jose. For general information, please visit our League web site at www.goldenbaseball.com.

About Safeway
Safeway Inc. is a Fortune 50 company and one of the largest food and drug retailers in North America based on sales. The company operates more than 1,800 stores in the United States and Canada and had annual sales of $35.6 billion in 2003. The company’s common stock is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SWY.

2008 Videos

Hey fans, look what we've dug up. Here's some great video from games, mid-inning contests, and all over Blair Field during the Long Beach Armada's 2008 season. Who knows, perhaps you might even find yourself in some of these gems. Check 'em out!

Armada wins home opener vs. Yuma
Post-game fireworks show on Opening Night 2008

Arby I & Josh have a dance off
Couples Balloon Popping contest

Little boy celebrates his birthday at Blair Field
Mid-inning dance contest
Live hermit crab racing promotion

Oh, and there's still SO much more to come. Keep checking back for all the great clips.

Word gets around: Temp is back in town

The word is spreading quickly that G-Temp is back in the GBL.

[Press Telegram]
[USA Today]
[Our Sports Central]

The former OC Flyers skipper will lead the Fleet this season after spending this spring as a manager in the GBL's Arizona Winter League.

Here's a quick throw-back to the announcement from when Templeton was named manager of the Fullerton Flyers...

LONG BEACH ARMADA NAMES GARRY TEMPLETON THIRD MANAGER IN FRANCHISE HISTORY

Here's the official announcement. Ladies and gentlemen, we present to you Garry Templeton.

LONG BEACH, Calif. – The Long Beach Armada Professional Baseball Team announced today that 16-year Major League veteran Garry Templeton will manage the team during the 2009 Golden Baseball League 5th Anniversary Season. A former local standout at Valley High School in Santa Ana, Calif., Templeton brings a wealth of experience to the Armada both from his career as an All-Star shortstop in the National League and from his time as a manager in the Triple-A Pacific Coast League.

“We’re looking forward to his leadership on the field,” said Armada General Manager Tony Soares. “Just as important as his experience as a manager is having his presence felt in and around the Long Beach community.”

From 1998-2001, Templeton managed in the Anaheim Angels system going 294-272 (.519) during that time. He managed the Cedar Rapids Kernels (1998) and Erie Sea Wolves (1999) before taking over the Triple-A Edmonton Trappers of the PCL in 2000. Templeton spent the 2001 season managing the Triple-A Salt Lake Stingers. After spending two seasons managing the Northern League’s Gary Railcats (2003-2004), Templeton came to the Golden Baseball League during the inaugural 2005 season as skipper of the Fullerton Flyers. As the Flyers

manager for the team’s first three seasons (2005-2007), he helped build the team’s foundation, leading them to the 2006 GBL Second-Half Championship. Armada and Golden Baseball League fans will now see this familiar face managing the home team at Blair Field in Long Beach instead of sitting in the visitor’s dugout.

The St. Louis Cardinals selected Templeton in the first round of the 1974 amateur draft with the 13th overall selection. The switch-hitting shortstop debuted in the big leagues in 1976 and spent six seasons with St. Louis before being traded to the San Diego Padres for the 1982 season. After a productive decade in San Diego, the Padres traded him to the New York Mets during the 1991 season, his final year in the Major Leagues. Templeton was selected to the NL All-Star team three times (1977, 1979, 1985), won two NL Silver Slugger Awards (1980, 1984) and led the NL in hits in 1979 with 211 while becoming the first ever player to record 100 hits from each side of the plate in a single season, a feat that has only been accomplished one other time.

“At this particular stage, I’m looking forward to coming over and putting these guys back in the playoffs,” said Templeton. “I think they still have a good nucleus with the [players] coming back, and if I can take what they got and add to it, I think we can win a championship.”

Templeton will take over a team that finished the 2008 season hotter than any other team in the Golden Baseball League. The Armada won 11 of its final 15 games to clinch the GBL South Division Second-Half and earn a playoff berth. The Armada fell to the rival Orange County Flyers (formerly Fullerton Flyers) in the fifth game of the best-of-five division championship series. Templeton replaces former Dodger catcher Steve Yeager who managed the Armada for one season after replacing the team’s first skipper Darrell Evans.

Templeton is the fifth new manager in the Golden Baseball League for 2009. In November, the expansion Victoria Seals named former Armada skipper Darrell Evans manager. In December, the Orange County Flyers named former big-leaguer Phil Nevin manager, the Tucson Toros introduced former Blue Jays skipper Tim Johnson, and MLB veteran Greg Cadaret became the manager of the Chico Outlaws.


Long Beach Armada / GBL information
The Long Beach Armada – the 2008 GBL South Division Second-Half champions – is an independent, professional minor league baseball team located in Long Beach, Calif. The league, which was founded in 2005, consists of 10 teams from California, Arizona, Utah, Western Canada and now Mexico. The Armada plays its home games at historic Blair Field, which first opened in 1958. The team offices are located at 2900 Orange Ave, Suite 203, Signal Hill, CA 90755. Visit the Armada at www.longbeacharmada.com.

Get ready for major announcement!

Hey Armada fans,

Get ready because a major Long Beach Armada announcement is coming up very soon this week.  Stay tuned to LongBeachArmada.com and the blog right here as some big news is around the corner.  We're about to rock this ship!

Armada @ Girl Scout Cookie Kickoff

The Girl Scouts of Greater Los Angeles hosted its annual Cookie Kickoff - that's right, it's cookie time! - and the Long Beach Armada's Arby I and Sean Buller went to let everyone know of all the exciting baseball just around the corner. Check out some of the great pictures and video from Saturday's event at Hollywood Park in Inglewood.

Arby I found another red-feathered parrot at the booth next to us.

Birds of a feather...

The amazing Sean Buller...

The incomparable Lisa Axelrod, who basically set up the entire event for the Girl Scouts. She'll be at the Girl Scout's Day at the Ballpark this upcoming summer. Stay tuned to the Armada's website for more information about the upcoming Scout Day 2009!

The young ladies who taught Arby I the "cookie macarena" dance... (you must see the video)

Arby I tries his hand, er feathers, at goaltending in the Chivas inflatable...













Some of the cute and cuddly animals at the booth next to ours. Well, cute, but I don't know how cuddly this porcupine would be.

Videos from the Armada at the Cookie Kickoff

Arby I playing in a tent


Arby I does the "Cookie Macarena"


Arby I plays goalie