Each summer, many of the nation's best players from such perennial collegiate powers as Arizona State and California come to play baseball. Since the league's start in 1960, Alaskan teams have won eight championships in the 1,400-member National baseball Congress. Dave Winfield, now with the New York Yankees and one of the highest-salaried players in the major leagues, worked in a Fairbanks furniture store during his 1971 and 1972 seasons with the Goldpanners. When to see a game From the first weekend in June to the end of the season, each team plays about 70 league games, plus a few games against teams visiting from the Lower 48 or other countries, such as Japan, Korea, and Taiwan. It's followed by the state's tournament that decides who goes to the national competition held each year in Wichita, Kansas.
Local newspapers print the schedules.
Last year, some 3,500 fans crowded the city's Growden Stadium to cheer on their team. The last pitch of this quintessential Alaskan baseball game came as 2 A.M. approached and the sun began to climb from the horizon. All Visuals 2000 Alaska Goldpanners Inc.