Omaha Storm Chasers sold

[nebugeater]

https://www.ketv.com/article/omaha-stor ... s/62347974

Omaha Storm Chasers are being sold to Diamond Baseball Holdings

Alliance Sports, co-founded by Larry Botel and Gary Green, who also owns Union Omaha, is selling the team to Diamond Baseball Holdings.


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"Larry and I are incredibly proud of the Storm Chasers' impact on the Omaha community over the past 12 years," Green said in a statement. "As we shift our focus full time to Union Omaha and look to grow Omaha's sports landscape, we are confident the Storm Chasers are in great hands with DBH. They have a strong reputation for honoring each club's unique identity while making a positive impact on the local community."

[Greg S]

Martie Cordaro and front office stay staying with the Chasers:

https://www.milb.com/omaha/news/omaha-s ... -new-owner

[skinzfan23]

Glad that Martie is staying.

[omaha79]

Long term, I wonder what this will mean?

Diamond holdings is a huge conglomerate and owns something like 20 other minor league teams. Omaha no longer will have an owner that has any real investment in the team or community. That could be an issue as we've historically been a pretty mediocre performing minor league community in terms of fan support. Whether it's South Omaha or Sarpy County, we've been lower middle of the pack in every league we've been in since the mid 90's (prior Bill Gorman was giving away tons of tickets).

As Werner ages and they reach the end of the lease, if attendance stays low, where it always is, is there saber rattling about needing a new downtown ballpark or they are moving? The main ace that Omaha has is that KC likes having the AAA affiliate closer, but if push came to shove, KC could slide in at the AAA level in Wichita and the deck just gets shuffled accordingly.

Bottom line, the area around Werner Park needs to be developed. Storm Chasers games need to become more enticing with more to do before and after the games. I'm interested to see if this sale is a net positive or negative, but I see the potential for both. And, Omaha needs to support this team if they want to keep them for another 50 years.

[Brad]

They now own 36 teams, 35 in the United States, and one in Canada.

[Greg S]

Long term, I wonder what this will mean?

Diamond holdings is a huge conglomerate and owns something like 20 other minor league teams. Omaha no longer will have an owner that has any real investment in the team or community. That could be an issue as we've historically been a pretty mediocre performing minor league community in terms of fan support. Whether it's South Omaha or Sarpy County, we've been lower middle of the pack in every league we've been in since the mid 90's (prior Bill Gorman was giving away tons of tickets).

As Werner ages and they reach the end of the lease, if attendance stays low, where it always is, is there saber rattling about needing a new downtown ballpark or they are moving? The main ace that Omaha has is that KC likes having the AAA affiliate closer, but if push came to shove, KC could slide in at the AAA level in Wichita and the deck just gets shuffled accordingly.

Bottom line, the area around Werner Park needs to be developed. Storm Chasers games need to become more enticing with more to do before and after the games. I'm interested to see if this sale is a net positive or negative, but I see the potential for both. And, Omaha needs to support this team if they want to keep them for another 50 years.

Not really worried long term. If anything, that ballpark is in a far better area now than when built. The slow economy when it was built slowed down development, but now 370 is booming. So many rooftops have arrived with many more on the way. One thing that's really hot now, is entertainment districts, and Werner Park is the perfect anchor.


Greg

[omaha79]

Long term, I wonder what this will mean?

Diamond holdings is a huge conglomerate and owns something like 20 other minor league teams. Omaha no longer will have an owner that has any real investment in the team or community. That could be an issue as we've historically been a pretty mediocre performing minor league community in terms of fan support. Whether it's South Omaha or Sarpy County, we've been lower middle of the pack in every league we've been in since the mid 90's (prior Bill Gorman was giving away tons of tickets).

As Werner ages and they reach the end of the lease, if attendance stays low, where it always is, is there saber rattling about needing a new downtown ballpark or they are moving? The main ace that Omaha has is that KC likes having the AAA affiliate closer, but if push came to shove, KC could slide in at the AAA level in Wichita and the deck just gets shuffled accordingly.

Bottom line, the area around Werner Park needs to be developed. Storm Chasers games need to become more enticing with more to do before and after the games. I'm interested to see if this sale is a net positive or negative, but I see the potential for both. And, Omaha needs to support this team if they want to keep them for another 50 years.

Not really worried long term. If anything, that ballpark is in a far better area now than when built. The slow economy when it was built slowed down development, but now 370 is booming. So many rooftops have arrived with many more on the way. One thing that's really hot now, is entertainment districts, and Werner Park is the perfect anchor.


Greg

It will remain to be seen if it's in a better place. The Storm Chasers were 58th in minor league baseball attendance across all classifications in 2023. 2024 numbers are harder to find, I'm struggling locating it, but I doubt they are much better. Pre-Covid, Omaha would typically fall in the 5,500 range in terms of average fans. They are averaging round 4,100 in 2022 and 2023.

https://ballparkdigest.com/2023/10/16/2 ... y-average/

Glancing at this list, by eyeball, I could only find 2 PCL/IL franchises that had lower average attendance than Omaha, and those are Gwinnett and Sugarland. In 2023, the IL average attendance for the league was over 6k and the PCL was around 5,700. So, Omaha is a severe outlier barely hitting 4k.

As a whole, minor league baseball has not recovered from the pandemic, but Omaha seems to be doing worse than many and are an outlier for their level, market size, and proximity to other professional sports clubs. At the same time, fringe events like the Supernovas are drawing way better. So, there is a market for live sports, just not the Storm Chasers these days.

The Iowa Cubs are over 6k average. St. Paul over 6,400. Indianapolis almost 8k. So, the argument of "bad climate" is somewhat neutered by other colder weather franchises doing much better.

If recent baseball news with relocations and past with minor league moves has taught me anything, the idea of Omaha saying it's "just fine" and the area is growing is dangerous. I don't think our market is a safe AAA franchise market by any means. The new owners need to be active and try to grow the brand in the city and the city ultimately has to buy in, or in about 15 years there will be talk of relocation.

[Brad]

The Iowa Cubs are over 6k average. St. Paul over 6,400. Indianapolis almost 8k. So, the argument of "bad climate" is somewhat neutered by other colder weather franchises doing much better.

The new owner, Diamond Baseball Holdings, owns 2 of those 3 teams.

[nebugeater]

Does anyone know how many of the teams that the new ownership has have moved since they took ownership? Full disclosure I have not looked to try and find this info yet

[Brad]

Does anyone know how many of the teams that the new ownership has have moved since they took ownership? Full disclosure I have not looked to try and find this info yet

The company has only been around since 2021, so it couldn't be that many...

[Padre]

Does anyone know how many of the teams that the new ownership has have moved since they took ownership? Full disclosure I have not looked to try and find this info yet

Two that I could find.

The Down East Wood Ducks in Kinston, North Carolina moved to Spartanburg, South Carolina, and became the Hubcity Spartanburgers.

The Mississippi Braves in Pearl, Mississippi moved to Columbus, Georgia, and became the Columbus Clingstones.

I also found this interesting article about Diamond Baseball Holdings.

https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories ... -baseball/

[Brad]

I also found this interesting article about Diamond Baseball Holdings.

https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories ... -baseball/

Seems like a positive move.

[Greg S]

Long term, I wonder what this will mean?

Diamond holdings is a huge conglomerate and owns something like 20 other minor league teams. Omaha no longer will have an owner that has any real investment in the team or community. That could be an issue as we've historically been a pretty mediocre performing minor league community in terms of fan support. Whether it's South Omaha or Sarpy County, we've been lower middle of the pack in every league we've been in since the mid 90's (prior Bill Gorman was giving away tons of tickets).

As Werner ages and they reach the end of the lease, if attendance stays low, where it always is, is there saber rattling about needing a new downtown ballpark or they are moving? The main ace that Omaha has is that KC likes having the AAA affiliate closer, but if push came to shove, KC could slide in at the AAA level in Wichita and the deck just gets shuffled accordingly.

Bottom line, the area around Werner Park needs to be developed. Storm Chasers games need to become more enticing with more to do before and after the games. I'm interested to see if this sale is a net positive or negative, but I see the potential for both. And, Omaha needs to support this team if they want to keep them for another 50 years.

Not really worried long term. If anything, that ballpark is in a far better area now than when built. The slow economy when it was built slowed down development, but now 370 is booming. So many rooftops have arrived with many more on the way. One thing that's really hot now, is entertainment districts, and Werner Park is the perfect anchor.


Greg

It will remain to be seen if it's in a better place. The Storm Chasers were 58th in minor league baseball attendance across all classifications in 2023. 2024 numbers are harder to find, I'm struggling locating it, but I doubt they are much better. Pre-Covid, Omaha would typically fall in the 5,500 range in terms of average fans. They are averaging round 4,100 in 2022 and 2023.

https://ballparkdigest.com/2023/10/16/2 ... y-average/

Glancing at this list, by eyeball, I could only find 2 PCL/IL franchises that had lower average attendance than Omaha, and those are Gwinnett and Sugarland. In 2023, the IL average attendance for the league was over 6k and the PCL was around 5,700. So, Omaha is a severe outlier barely hitting 4k.

As a whole, minor league baseball has not recovered from the pandemic, but Omaha seems to be doing worse than many and are an outlier for their level, market size, and proximity to other professional sports clubs. At the same time, fringe events like the Supernovas are drawing way better. So, there is a market for live sports, just not the Storm Chasers these days.

The Iowa Cubs are over 6k average. St. Paul over 6,400. Indianapolis almost 8k. So, the argument of "bad climate" is somewhat neutered by other colder weather franchises doing much better.

If recent baseball news with relocations and past with minor league moves has taught me anything, the idea of Omaha saying it's "just fine" and the area is growing is dangerous. I don't think our market is a safe AAA franchise market by any means. The new owners need to be active and try to grow the brand in the city and the city ultimately has to buy in, or in about 15 years there will be talk of relocation.

So what what would make the current location worse now than when it was built?

[Louie]

I don't think it's the argument of worse now. It's the argument of bad then and merely below-average now.

[omaha79]

Long term, I wonder what this will mean?

Diamond holdings is a huge conglomerate and owns something like 20 other minor league teams. Omaha no longer will have an owner that has any real investment in the team or community. That could be an issue as we've historically been a pretty mediocre performing minor league community in terms of fan support. Whether it's South Omaha or Sarpy County, we've been lower middle of the pack in every league we've been in since the mid 90's (prior Bill Gorman was giving away tons of tickets).

As Werner ages and they reach the end of the lease, if attendance stays low, where it always is, is there saber rattling about needing a new downtown ballpark or they are moving? The main ace that Omaha has is that KC likes having the AAA affiliate closer, but if push came to shove, KC could slide in at the AAA level in Wichita and the deck just gets shuffled accordingly.

Bottom line, the area around Werner Park needs to be developed. Storm Chasers games need to become more enticing with more to do before and after the games. I'm interested to see if this sale is a net positive or negative, but I see the potential for both. And, Omaha needs to support this team if they want to keep them for another 50 years.

Not really worried long term. If anything, that ballpark is in a far better area now than when built. The slow economy when it was built slowed down development, but now 370 is booming. So many rooftops have arrived with many more on the way. One thing that's really hot now, is entertainment districts, and Werner Park is the perfect anchor.


Greg

It will remain to be seen if it's in a better place. The Storm Chasers were 58th in minor league baseball attendance across all classifications in 2023. 2024 numbers are harder to find, I'm struggling locating it, but I doubt they are much better. Pre-Covid, Omaha would typically fall in the 5,500 range in terms of average fans. They are averaging round 4,100 in 2022 and 2023.

https://ballparkdigest.com/2023/10/16/2 ... y-average/

Glancing at this list, by eyeball, I could only find 2 PCL/IL franchises that had lower average attendance than Omaha, and those are Gwinnett and Sugarland. In 2023, the IL average attendance for the league was over 6k and the PCL was around 5,700. So, Omaha is a severe outlier barely hitting 4k.

As a whole, minor league baseball has not recovered from the pandemic, but Omaha seems to be doing worse than many and are an outlier for their level, market size, and proximity to other professional sports clubs. At the same time, fringe events like the Supernovas are drawing way better. So, there is a market for live sports, just not the Storm Chasers these days.

The Iowa Cubs are over 6k average. St. Paul over 6,400. Indianapolis almost 8k. So, the argument of "bad climate" is somewhat neutered by other colder weather franchises doing much better.

If recent baseball news with relocations and past with minor league moves has taught me anything, the idea of Omaha saying it's "just fine" and the area is growing is dangerous. I don't think our market is a safe AAA franchise market by any means. The new owners need to be active and try to grow the brand in the city and the city ultimately has to buy in, or in about 15 years there will be talk of relocation.

So what what would make the current location worse now than when it was built?

I think the area has not been deemed as a social destination. You are only getting the crowd that is either into baseball enough that they are seeking it out or families that are looking for an entertainment outing and see the value in baseball. You aren't getting the synergy of people looking for an overall night out where baseball is only a piece of that. There is nothing there to entice someone from downtown or NW to go there unless they want a baseball outing. I never thought we'd be sitting 13 years in and there wouldn't even be a sports bar or neighborhood pub next to the ballpark. You have no ability to make it a greater night out. I don't know how much of that will change when it is developed, but it can't hurt.

Let's just put it this way, the attendance is way down from 2011. There are many factors to that, economy, Covid, changing interest in sports and baseball in particular, but economy and Covid aren't hurting some of the other options like Supernovas, Creighton basketball, UNO hockey. But, all of those benefit from greater entertainment near the facility and draw the synergy of being downtown. Storm Chasers aren't and won't be downtown in the near future. So, they have to find another way.

4,100 fans a game is not a good sign. I posted online last night on some baseball facebook groups I'm on. The general consensus of those not in Omaha was, "wow, that's one of the smallest AAA crowds I've ever seen." And, I pointed out that MILB playoffs are typically not well attended, but they clapped back with, "yeah, but not this bad."

I would love to be wrong about all of this, but I just have the feeling that minor league baseball has just become a non factor in the local scene. That narrative has to change somehow.

[Louie]

Did the location play into the lack of crowds?

[HskrFanMike]

Did the location play into the lack of crowds?

Absolutely. If you think back 15 years when this whole boondoggle was being debated, "Pennant Place" was going to explode and drive growth and attendance after the "new ballpark smell" wore off. It never happened, and frankly, never will at this point.

We're probably five-seven years out, but we will see a push to move this franchise downtown to a more accessible spot. From my home in west Omaha, it's actually faster to get to Schwab Field than highway 370. It's just so far south from most of the metro area.

In 2023, they were third from the bottom in attendance. Gary Green knows a huge mistake was made when deciding to build a ballpark way out there, and that's why they are building their new soccer stadium downtown.

[skinzfan23]

I wouldn't say that it was a huge mistake. They basically wanted to have more control and not be lost in a big downtown stadium. They also wanted to appeal to the younger family demographic and moving to the suburbs does that. I don't think it was a terrible move, and stuff is finally building up around the stadium (mostly just housing, apts and the school at this time)

I am not sure what they will do next. Downtown wouldn't be bad, but some other costs downtown may be higher.

[omaha79]

What I don't get, is how people can have the sentiment that attendance for the team is "fine" and nothing is wrong in the least. Greg has been beating that drum in this thread.

The question is: Do you want to be 2nd or 3rd from the bottom in any league in terms of attendance? In most pro sports, those are always the franchises that are looking to relocate. Yes, KC may want to have the franchise in Omaha because of proximity and wanting Omaha to be a "Royals market", but I'd argue they haven't done a good job making Omaha a Royals market unless KC is winning at a high level. And, they ultimately don't have the ability to keep a team in Omaha if it's a money loser.

There is nothing about the Storm Chasers, at this stage in the game, that the community is rallying behind. They have been an afterthought in South O and they are an afterthought in Papillion. I honestly don't know why that is. Other cities have civic pride towards their minor league baseball team. Tonight, Omaha is in game 3 of their league championship series. I'm sure the local news will have a 30 second blurb on it, but has anyone really seen a high influx of people wearing chasers gear and getting hyped over a possible championship? When the Supernovas were about to win theirs, you were hearing it all over. You'd think this weeks games were random weekday games in May.

Omaha is a bad sports town for anything that's not an event, perceived as "major league", or college athletics. That's been pretty much proven over decades of failed franchises and underwhelming attendance. Nothing moves the needle unless it's top level, CWS, Bluejays or Huskers. Not sure what will ever change that.

[omaha79]

If anything, what it almost appears Storm Chasers have done is split the existing OSC Sarpy fanbase between Storm Chasers and Union Omaha, while adding some additional soccer fans from across the metro. If you look at it, Storm Chasers have lost about 1,500 or so fans a game from the time Union started. Not all of this is just Union as Union started around the time Covid hit and Covid has been hard on minor league baseball in general, but it doesn't seem to be a coincidence to me that while union started to gain some traction, and bring in more fans, they seemingly cannibalized the existing OSC fans to their games.

It stands to reason. We talk about more houses out that way. Yes, more expensive aspirational upper middle class houses for people that are heavily mortgaged in those houses. I firmly believe the discretionary spending in areas like Gretna and Papillion is lower than most people think, especially now with post covid lockdown inflation. Many of those people stretched to get into those houses, valuations have shot way up, increasing taxes on them. And, most are younger families with children who are into more expensive sports and activities on top of it. I think choices are being made between the entertainment options that are available out there and it hasn't benefited Storm Chasers at all. Again, a variety of factors between economy and entertainment options, but it's not good.

Just my .02.

[skinzfan23]

Nothing moves the needle unless it's top level, CWS, Bluejays or Huskers. Not sure what will ever change that.

Well you just nailed it...Those 3 are the big events in town. But I might also add, that none of them play 75 games or so each year. It is much easier to get a big event crowd when there are less than 20 events each year.

[Louie]

Nothing moves the needle unless it's top level, CWS, Bluejays or Huskers. Not sure what will ever change that.

Well you just nailed it...Those 3 are the big events in town. But I might also add, that none of them play 75 games or so each year. It is much easier to get a big event crowd when there are less than 20 events each year.

While true, those other three are actually BIG events in town. A minor league baseball team is never going to attract the crowd or enthusiasm that major college sports teams do.

[omaha79]

Nothing moves the needle unless it's top level, CWS, Bluejays or Huskers. Not sure what will ever change that.

Well you just nailed it...Those 3 are the big events in town. But I might also add, that none of them play 75 games or so each year. It is much easier to get a big event crowd when there are less than 20 events each year.

No one is asking them to attract CWS crowds for 75 games a year or sell out the place every game.

What is expected is that they perform close to their peers in their league in terms of attendance. If cities like Des Moines and Indianapolis can draw 7,500 a game, Omaha should be in the neighborhood, not drawing basically half of their attendance at 4,100. Like I said, being bottom 3 in a 30 team system is a really bad look and Omaha is not a small town or outlier to the rest of the league. Yes, some of the other cities have the ability to draw better in April and May. But, Omaha is still lagging way behind both in interest and attendance.

[Louie]

What is expected is that they perform close to their peers in their league in terms of attendance. If cities like Des Moines and Indianapolis can draw 7,500 a game, Omaha should be in the neighborhood, not drawing basically half of their attendance at 4,100. Like I said, being bottom 3 in a 30 team system is a really bad look and Omaha is not a small town or outlier to the rest of the league. Yes, some of the other cities have the ability to draw better in April and May. But, Omaha is still lagging way behind both in interest and attendance.

Those downtown baseball stadiums are really helping there.

[omaha79]

What is expected is that they perform close to their peers in their league in terms of attendance. If cities like Des Moines and Indianapolis can draw 7,500 a game, Omaha should be in the neighborhood, not drawing basically half of their attendance at 4,100. Like I said, being bottom 3 in a 30 team system is a really bad look and Omaha is not a small town or outlier to the rest of the league. Yes, some of the other cities have the ability to draw better in April and May. But, Omaha is still lagging way behind both in interest and attendance.

Those downtown baseball stadiums are really helping there.

And, ultimately, that's the rub here. They are not going to be playing downtown in the foreseeable future. Even after the Werner lease is over, they are not going to likely get a 2nd ballpark built downtown, and I can't see them being a tenant of MECA even with new ownership. So, you're back to square one. If no new ballpark gets built downtown, and they won't be a tenant of MECA in an oversized ballpark, they are stuck with the suburbs if they want to stay in Omaha.

That means you have to get more creative. Ideally, the area around the ballpark would get developed, but I'm losing any faith that will be anything meaningful at this point. If anything, I see it looking like the other developments on 370. some businesses, a gas station, maybe a sports themed restaurant and another neighborhood bar type establishment. That's about it. It likely won't be anything that moves the needle as a destination now.

So, what can you do? You have to maximize with what you have. Baseball isn't growing in popularity. So, you have to entice people with things that are not baseball related. This group is supposedly good at concerts. Ok, do 7-8 post game concerts a year that will max out attendance at 8-9k a game. Skew that average. The piddly friday fireworks will no longer cut it. That dog and pony show has been beaten to death over the years.

You may also need to explore revamping the playground areas. Make it really worthwhile. They haven't had a meaningful change to those areas since the ballpark opened. I'm sorry, the carousel isn't enticing ticket sales and neither are the bounce houses, basketball court, or wiffle ball field. Come up with something unique.

And, most of all, maximizing profit cannot be based on maximizing ticket prices and concessions cost. It has to be kept affordable. $15-$20 ticket prices just aren't going to cut it either. Might have to go back to the more affordable days on tickets. You can make it up on concessions a bit. Better giveaways would also help.

[omaha79]

The stadium needs an overall mid lifecycle facelift too. New scoreboard is a must at this point. It's beyond its functional life. Bathrooms need to be fixed up. Maybe some new concession options again that are more interesting.

[skinzfan23]

Hasn’t the scoreboard been updated once already? I do think it is time for a new one though.

[Brad]

Hasn’t the scoreboard been updated once already? I do think it is time for a new one though.

It was replaced in 2015. Seems like most stadiums and arenas around here replace them every decade or so.

[omaha79]

Hasn’t the scoreboard been updated once already? I do think it is time for a new one though.

It was replaced in 2015. Seems like most stadiums and arenas around here replace them every decade or so.

That is correct. I know for a fact, that the 2003 scoreboard at CHI was replaced in 2013. They are talking about a new one again.

The Werner scoreboard put in at the 2011 inception was really bad. That's why they replaced it already in 2015. If I remember correctly, they were running out of funds and went with a scoreboard that was outdated to the point they could no longer source replacement parts. I also seem to remember it being part of the rationale as being it was part of the agreement for holding the AAA all star game that year? Or, that might have been coincidence.

So, in many ways, I consider the 2015 scoreboard the original. It's coming up on 10 years old, which is within 1-2 years of the total lifespan. It would be nice though if they went bigger with it.

[Brad]

Hasn’t the scoreboard been updated once already? I do think it is time for a new one though.

It was replaced in 2015. Seems like most stadiums and arenas around here replace them every decade or so.

That is correct. I know for a fact, that the 2003 scoreboard at CHI was replaced in 2013. They are talking about a new one again.

The Werner scoreboard put in at the 2011 inception was really bad. That's why they replaced it already in 2015. If I remember correctly, they were running out of funds and went with a scoreboard that was outdated to the point they could no longer source replacement parts. I also seem to remember it being part of the rationale as being it was part of the agreement for holding the AAA all star game that year? Or, that might have been coincidence.

So, in many ways, I consider the 2015 scoreboard the original. It's coming up on 10 years old, which is within 1-2 years of the total lifespan. It would be nice though if they went bigger with it.

I thought the company that built the original scoreboard went out of business, which is why they couldn't get parts.

[Stargazer]

Maybe already mentioned.. but perhaps even more important than the small number of AAA clubs with lower attendance.. there were -26- A and AA markets with higher attendance. That's a lot of possible move destinations.

Anyone see the irony of their going to Las Vegas for the AAA championship (RIP Oakland A's).

Many around here would probably like a rivalry with Lincoln over one with Des Moines anyway.

[Greg S]

Hasn’t the scoreboard been updated once already? I do think it is time for a new one though.

It was replaced in 2015. Seems like most stadiums and arenas around here replace them every decade or so.

That is correct. I know for a fact, that the 2003 scoreboard at CHI was replaced in 2013. They are talking about a new one again.

The Werner scoreboard put in at the 2011 inception was really bad. That's why they replaced it already in 2015. If I remember correctly, they were running out of funds and went with a scoreboard that was outdated to the point they could no longer source replacement parts. I also seem to remember it being part of the rationale as being it was part of the agreement for holding the AAA all star game that year? Or, that might have been coincidence.

So, in many ways, I consider the 2015 scoreboard the original. It's coming up on 10 years old, which is within 1-2 years of the total lifespan. It would be nice though if they went bigger with it.

I thought the company that built the original scoreboard went out of business, which is why they couldn't get parts.

Brad you are absolutely correct.

[CBJason]

Maybe already mentioned.. but perhaps even more important than the small number of AAA clubs with lower attendance.. there were -26- A and AA markets with higher attendance. That's a lot of possible move destinations.

Anyone see the irony of their going to Las Vegas for the AAA championship (RIP Oakland A's).

Many around here would probably like a rivalry with Lincoln over one with Des Moines anyway.

Not really, AAA teams don’t move to smaller size cities unless the smaller city is in the MLB team’s metro, again rare.
I’m not sure what you’re even getting at with your other two comments

[Greg S]

Maybe already mentioned.. but perhaps even more important than the small number of AAA clubs with lower attendance.. there were -26- A and AA markets with higher attendance. That's a lot of possible move destinations.

Anyone see the irony of their going to Las Vegas for the AAA championship (RIP Oakland A's).

Many around here would probably like a rivalry with Lincoln over one with Des Moines anyway.

Not really, AAA teams don’t move to smaller size cities unless the smaller city is in the MLB team’s metro, again rare.
I’m not sure what you’re even getting at with your other two comments

Yeah and don't disregard the Royals in all this. Omaha is far and away the largest market in KC 's tv rights area. The Royals not only love the proximity for moving players back and forth, along with scouting, but also for TV.

I have dealt with their group sales a lot over the years, and the rep I use told me that outside of the KC Metro, Omaha is their biggest market for ticket sales from any other market. Also that Nebraska is their biggest state for sales trailing only Kansas and Missouri.

There's a reason that Omaha has the longest affiliation of any AAA club with it's parent.

Greg