Arizona Fall League
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The Arizona Fall League is a minor league baseball league which operates during the Fall in Arizona. Each August, Major League Baseball clubs hold a position draft to determine the players who will go to Arizona. Most are AA and AAA Minor League players. Each club can opt to send one player considered a Class A player. Only one foreign player is allowed, but only if that player does not come from a region that participates in winter ball.
The league is divided into an American Division and a National Division.
Unlike most minor league leagues, the Arizona Fall League teams are not exclusive affiliates of any one team; instead, each MLB team provides six players who team up to fill the 30-man roster of each team.
The league has had some historical impact: In 1992, a player named Ernest Jeter, later to change his name to Derek Jeter, was the league's player of the year. In 1994, the league got worldwide attention as Michael Jordan's first professional baseball league, when he played for the Scottsdale Scorpions there. In addition to those, a number of major league players and prospects, such as Jay Johnstone and Tony Tarasco, to name a few, have honed their abilities while playing at the league that is also known as AFL.
Current member teams:
- Grand Canyon Rafters - National Division with prospects from: ATL, DET, MIN, NYY, and SF
- Mesa Solar Sox - American Division with prospects from: COL, CWS, CHC, STL, and TB
- Peoria Javelinas - National Division with prospects from: BAL, CLE, WAS, SEA, and SD
- Peoria Saguaros - American Division with prospects from: BOS, PIT, NYM, TEX, and TOR
- Phoenix Desert Dogs - National Division with prospects from: FLA, KC, LAA, OAK, and PHI
- Scottsdale Scorpions - American Division with prospects from: ARI, CIN, HOU, LAD, and MIL