The Abilene Flying Bison are a baseball team located in Abilene, Texas that plays in the newly created Mid-America League (MAL). The league was founded in 2024 with a focus on adding summer entertainment to under-served areas in the south-central parts of America, which is where the name of the league comes to play.
Who plays in a summer baseball league?
Joining the league’s starting lineup of teams in addition to Abilene; Sherman (TX), Fort Smith (AK), Texarkana (TX), Joplin (MO), and White Oak (TX). Although summer baseball leagues are often thought of as college baseball, not every player is in college. Players often come from the National Collegiate Athletic Association, National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics, as well as community and junior colleges.
John Stark, President and GM of the Abilene Flying Bison reinforces the importance of recruiting, saying: “As an organization, we scour all of collegiate level baseball to find the best and brightest prospects to bring to Abilene on a yearly basis. The 2025 roster will include players from Utah to NC with quite a few homegrown Texas products as well.”.
In some cases, players who are no longer eligible for college baseball but want to continue playing amateur ball also join the team. Summer leagues offer these players the opportunity to continue playing a sport they’re passionate about. The league also allows college players to keep playing at a competitive level so they can hone in on their skills during their school’s off season.
Players who compete in summer leagues are not paid by the team to play because that would impact their college eligibility; To help keep living costs low, players typically stay with host families that allow them to live with them during the summer. However, in order to help foster independence, Bison players live in apartments at McMurry University just around the corner from Walt Driggers Field, home to both the Flying Bison and McMurry’s Warhawks.
Name, Image, Likeness Program
Although players cannot receive compensation to play during the summer, there are ways for them to get paid. The Flying Bison’s Name Image and Likeness (NIL) program allows players to receive financial compensation for their – you guessed it – name, image, and likeness. This includes activationsactivities such as autograph signings, product endorsements, and social media posts. Overall, the NIL program allows these athletes to earn some money while strengthening their careers. To help the players even more this season, the Flying Bison created the Bison Booster Club, where all club dues go toward the NIL program which goes directly to the players.
Post-season in the MAL
Just like the majors, there’s a playoff round that will determine a post-season champion. During the 2024 season, the Flying Bison were anointed as the Regular Season Champions due to having the best record in the league, ending the season with 46 wins and 22 losses. The inaugural playoffs were hosted by the Flying Bison, with 3 additional teams making the trip to Abilene.
The 2025 MAL playoffs are once again being held at the one and only Walt Driggers Field, making Abilene the host for the second year in a row. This year the playoffs promise to be bigger and better than last year. While the first MAL playoffs were only two days with the top four seeds playing in the semi-finals and a single championship game determining the season champs, the 2025 season will be a potential five-day experience.
The Mid-America League’s second season begins Thursday, May 22 – but the first home game for the Flying Bison is May 27 against the Joplin Outlaws. Stay tuned with the Bison Bulletin and follow the team on social media for the latest information such as ticket information, theme days, and merchandise opportunities.
