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Newark Bears owners Douglas Spiel, right, and Danielle Dronet, left, say they want to field a team in 2014 despite leaving the CanAm league.

(Aristide Economopoulos/The Star-Ledger)

NEWARK — After years of confusion and loss, the Newark Bears are now a team without a league, according to an announcement from the Canadian American League this week, but co-owner Danielle Dronet said Friday the struggling franchise will take the field for the 2014 season.

“We have a couple of opportunities that we are evaluating and exploring,” said Dronet, who co-owns the baseball team with her partner, Douglas Spiel. Asked to confirm if the team would play she said, “I’m pretty positive that yes, in some capacity, yes.”

What capacity that is, is an open question.

On Wednesday, the Can-Am league announced the Bears would not be returning next season. The league, which had just five teams before the Bears’ departure “will play as one of four divisions in the American Association,” according to a league statement. As an independent league, none of the teams is affiliated with a Major League organization.

Despite Dronet’s assurances, league Commissioner Miles Wolff told The Star-Ledger the Bears’ owners informed him they would not be field a team next year.

“They just said last week that they weren’t going to operate in 2014,” Wolff said Friday.

Wolff said the league wanted a commitment from the team in October that it would play the 2014 season. The owners asked for more time, Wolff said, and got an extension to Nov. 22.

“They couldn’t commit at that point,” Wolff said.

Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo said he was also told the team wanted to sit out the 2014 season, a decision he was not happy about.The county’s improvement authority holds the lease for Bears & Eagles Riverfront Stadium in Newark, where the team plays, and DiVincenzo has been active in trying to ensure the stadium’s success.

“I would love to have baseball continue next year,” DiVincenzo said Friday. “They’re coming back to us with a plan.”

Dronet said capital improvements to the stadium and repairs after Hurricane Sandy had sapped precious resources the team wanted to spend on personnel.

The Bears have struggled for years to produce wins on the field and get fans into seats. Last year, the team finished 37-63 and averaged less than 500 fans per game, according to the league’s website.

“We didn’t have the funds to invest in staff and marketing,” Dronet said.

Dronet and Spiel battled former owner Tommy Cetnar for control of the team in 2011, and inherited a financial mess when they finally took over that year.

The Star-Ledger published a detailed report of the team's legal and financial troubles, including $800,000 in back rent owed to the county and a laundry list of creditors banging down the door.

Various public relations schemes since have not helped the team’s image. In August 2011, the Bears announced a beer-pong tournament to raise money for Mothers Against Drunk Driving. The event was canceled when MADD said they would refuse to accept any money.

In October 2012 the team announced that pop-icon Justin Bieber would perform at the Newark stadium. Bieber’s publicist said the announcement was “pure fiction.”

In the meantime ticket sales have continued to stagnate.

The team was exploring other minor leagues in which to play last year but Dronet said none of them would be ready until 2015.

Now, Dronet said they are courting key investors, but reiterated that there would be baseball in Newark next year.

DiVincenzo, who has expressed frustration in the past with Bears’ ownership, said it did not matter what league the team plays in, provided there is something for fans to come see.

“I don’t care as long as we’re playing baseball,” DiVincenzo said. “I don’t want the stadium to go black.”

Star-Ledger staff writer Mike Vorkunov contributed to this report.

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