Minor league baseball returning to Roswell

ROSWELL, N.M. (AP) – Minor league baseball is returning to Roswell after a 52-year absence. The Roswell Invaders will be an independent team in the Pecos League. The team is among five New Mexico-based franchises in the first-year league, along with the Carlsbad Bats, Clovis Pioneers, Las Cruces Vaqueros and White Sands Pupfish in Alamogordo. Three Texas franchises – the Alpine Cowboys, Del Rio Aviators and Odessa Dragons – complete the eight-team lineup. The Invaders are the first minor league team to play in Roswell since the San Angelo/Roswell Pirates played at Fair Park Stadium in 1959. The Roswell Rockets played from 1949-56, including the 1954 season when Joe Bauman hit a then-professional record 72 home runs. The Roswell Invaders open May 11 at Clovis. The first home game is May 13 against Clovis. — Information from: Roswell Daily Record, http://www.roswell-record.com