Efforts by the Alaska Goldpanners to rejoin the Alaska Baseball League have stalled for another year, with Goldpanners general manager John Lohrke left questioning the sincerity of the league’s invitation.
“They emailed us an invitation with their terms,” Lohrke said. “I reviewed the terms with our board, I was asked to clarify some elements, and after I emailed back to do so — to clarify the elements in the offer — I received an email saying they accepted our denial of league membership and would move forward without us for the 2024 season.”
It was in 2016, under new ownership, that the Alaska Goldpanners decided to withdraw from the ABL. The organization, according to Lohrke, was on the brink of bankruptcy and could not afford to travel to Anchorage four times for league games. At the time, Lohrke said he explained to the league it was a temporary, last-ditch effort to save the club, and that they were confident they would be in position to rejoin the league within a few years.
The league has recently implemented a $5,000 a fee and the requirement for a majority vote among the current five teams as terms for re-entry.
“It’s something specifically aimed at us,” Lohrke said.
In response to an email from the Daily News-Miner inquiring about the status of the Goldpanners quest for reinstatement, general manager of the Anchorage Bucs and current president of the ABL Shawn Maltby, wrote, “The panners (sic) will not be a part of the league next summer. We made every attempt to make it happen but the panners (sic) didn’t agree with some of the rules that were put in place. We will make another attempt next year.”
Among questions that Lohrke and the Goldpanners board of directors had were items in the ABL addressing the condition of the field at Growden Memorial Park; coordination of travel and lodging for ABL teams coming to Fairbanks; whether the Goldpanners would be a voting member of the league during a proposed three-year probationary period; what were the terms of expectations for the probationary period; and what would be the ramifications if the Goldpanners failed to meet those expectations.
“Were we going to jump through hoops for three years only to be told in 2025 that we didn’t fulfill their terms and we were right back where we started after pouring tens of thousands of dollars into their league?” Lohrke asked rhetorically.
The Goldpanners were members of the ABL from 1980 until 2016. The league is currently comprised of five collegiate summer baseball teams — the Anchorage Bucs, Anchorage Glacier Pilots, Chugiak Chinooks, Mat Su Miners and Peninsula Oilers.
The league is currently operating without a full-time commissioner, with the presidents of the teams rotating as league commissioners on a one-year basis. Maltby is in that role this year.
Lohrke said the situation became murkier after receiving the email from Maltby stating the Goldpanners had declined the league’s terms for readmission.
“After they sent us the email saying we had declined their terms, I called and he (Maltby) began raising points that hadn’t been raised before,” Lohrke said. “Things like they weren’t going to bankrupt a league team just to travel to Fairbanks and other reasons why they were opposed to the move.”
Summarizing the situation, Lohrke noted “They’re in a position of not having to be able to work it out with us, so they won’t.”
Nevertheless, he remains undeterred that the Goldpanners will find their way back into the league.
“The benefits of being back in the league are huge so we (the board) talked about it and still want to do it,” he said. “Hopefully with a commissioner or with the next ABL president, we’ll be able to get a fair resolution.”
Contact sports editor Jeff Olsen at 907-459-7530 or jolsen@newsminer.com.
