Maui planning on second season

Here's a story from today's Maui News that details the current situation from the GBL's Na Koa Ikaika Maui franchise. The team is playoff bound in its inaugural season, and while there has been rumblings all season about how much money it takes to make the trip to Hawaii, Maui owner Michael Cummings says his team is on solid ground and staying put for 2011.

Cummings says team is staying
Na Koa Ikaika owner acknowledges financial losses in inaugural season
By ROBERT COLLIAS, Staff Writer
POSTED: August 21, 2010

WAILUKU - Despite having to delay paychecks this week by three days after falling short of money, crowds that continue to fall below hopes and a league that appears to be in trouble, Na Koa Ikaika Maui owner Michael Cummings said his team is going to be here next year.

''We will be back, we will be back,'' Cummings said Tuesday, one day after handing out paychecks to the team that were postdated until Thursday. ''It is long haul, regardless. We are here for the long haul. Whatever rumors fly around just because a situation comes up one day doesn't mean that we are done. By no means does that mean that we are done.''

Asked about the reason for the delay on the checks, Cummings said, ''It wasn't just necessary, it was just money being funneled over from another business that I have into the Maui bank account and it has just taken longer to get it over here, that's all.''

Na Koa players held a team meeting before their game with the Yuma Scorpions on Tuesday night - manager Cory Snyder and pitching coach Brendan Sagara were also there - at which the discussion included not taking the field for the finale of their 15-game homestand.

Among the concerns of the players was depositing their checks when they were on the road - they left Wednesday for a 12-day, 11-game road trip that began Thursday night in Chico, Calif.

''They are definitely disappointed as far as not being able to clear their checks, but I have already worked it out where if it comes in when they are not here, we will just give them cash, just do a wire to wherever they are at and give them cash,'' Cummings said.

Cummings admitted that the income has not been what he projected in this inaugural season. At a December news conference to announce the team's formation, Cummings said a break-even point would be an average of 1,200 fans per game. After the first homestand in June fell well short of that, he said that cost-cutting measures on travel had reduced the break-even number to 1,000 fans per game.

Even with a 45-21 overall record, best in the league, Na Koa's attendance is well short of that number.

''I think we are averaging about 600, 650 right now,'' Cummings said, adding that the season-ticket base is about 140. ''I am not going to say it is disappointing, but obviously none of us will ever be happy with our attendance - we always want it to be bigger. It is not what our expectations are, but we are coming to the end of the season and I know next season will bring more fans in here. As people get to know us, the bigger we will get.''

Cummings acknowledged that the team was a bit slow to start promoting itself.

''For one, we got late into the season for us getting out here,'' he said. ''We didn't really start hitting the streets until March. That didn't help us out with sponsorship and then the attendance is not as high as we would like it to be. You lose out on concessions and merchandise. We are getting low on merchandise, but we are getting towards the end of the season.''

Cummings said the team is losing money at this point.

''I am not going to say it has been more than I anticipated, but (losses) are definitely there,'' he said. ''We anticipated 'X' amount of dollars before we came into this. I bring money from other businesses and that is just how we funnel this. It is unfortunate because I have a business in North Carolina that is helping us fund this and it is taking us longer to get the funds over here for some reason. I don't know the reason, but we can't control what we can't control.''

Cummings said the North Carolina business is a ''financial company for technology businesses.'' He owns a consulting business in California as well.

He would not reveal how far Na Koa was in the red, or what the preseason projections had been.

''We knew we would lose money coming into this - that was in the business plan, it was in our cash flow and it was in our income statement - so the losses are anticipated,'' he said. ''I really don't want to get into actual figures.''

Snyder said after the final Yuma game, won by Maui 4-1, that the players did not let the paycheck situation affect them on the field.

''It is just one of those things that happens - why it happens nobody knows,'' he said. ''We just have to move forward. At the end of the day, we are in this thing for each other. They are on the field for each other. They have got to win for each other. Every pitcher that is on the mound is doing the best that he can. At the end of the day they are trying to win.''

Mark Okano, a veteran of the GBL and the first player signed by the Maui franchise, said after Tuesday's game that the team shook off the paycheck delay.

''We had to just eliminate that,'' he said. ''Just like (Snyder) said, 'We've got to come out here and do it for us, and for the Maui people.' With that said, we had to do it. Just win and keep winning because no matter what the situation, especially in this game, you've got to come and do your best and I think we did that.''

Na Koa are in the GBL playoffs on the strength of their first-half title in the South Division. Their final homestand is a seven-game series Aug. 31- Sept. 6 against the Orange County Flyers, Maui's probable opponent in the first round of the playoffs. If the Flyers make the postseason, they might stay on Maui and play the entire best-of-five series at Maehara Stadium. The winner of that round would advance to the best-of-five league championship series, meaning the possibility of two or three more home games for Na Koa.

''One of the things that will happen is, when we are done winning the championship, we will be out on the streets talking to sponsors and bringing existing sponsors back, going after new sponsors,'' Cummings said. ''That gives us 10 months to be out on the streets, a whole difference from two months. I expect a much, much better season (in 2011). There's a lot of things that we learned that we didn't know coming in.''

The playoff gates are a bonus, but those games could create conflicts with Maui Interscholastic League football. Maehara Stadium and War Memorial Stadium share a parking lot, and the baseball teams have been using the football locker rooms all season. For last week's football game between Maui High School and Waiakea, the baseball teams used the locker rooms and the football teams met in the War Memorial stands at halftime. Cummings met with MIL executive director Joe Balangitao and Maui High athletic director Michael Ban less than an hour before the games began.

''We had a little situation with the locker rooms,'' Cummings said. ''I think it was a little more lack of communication. We were told that we needed to have one locker room set up so the MIL could come in. Then we were told not to. The last thing I heard is, 'We are good,' until game time. And everybody showed up and said, 'Hey, how come we can't get in?' We are getting that all resolved so we don't have that situation any longer.''

With two teams out of money (the Tijuana Cimarrones and St. George Roadrunners) and two more beginning the season being league-owned (Yuma and the Chico Outlaws), 40 percent of the GBL has serious financial issues besides Maui. Na Koa did not take a scheduled trip in July partially because Tijuana's Cerro Colorado Stadium field was declared unplayable by the league, but also due to lack of funds.

''I am not as much concerned about the league as just some of the teams,'' Cummings said. ''I think this next year there will be a lot of regrouping for the league and the teams together to look at it and say, 'Where did we make mistakes? And where did we do the right thing?' And to fix it up.''

Maui and Tijuana were added as expansion teams for the 2010 season. Cummings was part of the St. George ownership group for a six-week span ending in October 2009, when he decided to sell his share and concentrate on Maui.

''Sometimes leagues can grow too quick and maybe that is what is going on here,'' Cummings said. ''St. George got a new ownership group. All those things are tough to wrap your arms around when you have three new out of 10. Maybe next year the league will look at going a little bit slower.''

Cummings could sell some of the GBL rights to the state of Hawaii he purchased for $800,000 last year. Cummings added that an airline deal - hoped for since the beginning, but not done yet - ''is our number one priority for next year.''

''I would like to stay as the owner of the Maui team and then look at bringing new people in for other islands,'' he said. ''We do own the rights for those other islands and it is beneficial for us to bring in other teams here for next year. I'd like to focus on Maui, so if someone wanted to come in and do an acquisition on the Oahu rights or the Big Island, I would look at selling them.''

Cummings, the 100 percent owner of Na Koa, said his franchise is solid.

''What I tell everybody is, 'What is sitting here is the best team and franchise in this league, bar none,' '' he said. ''From the personnel to the team to the environment. A lot of people would really like to get their hands on this. ... I have had offers to buy the Maui franchise.''

* Robert Collias is at rcollias@mauinews.com.