Real estate signs advertising the headquarters for sale quickly appeared this morning, much to the dismay of many. Fans have been seen destroying such signs, enough so that the franchise has constructed a temporary fence around the headquarters and put up new "no trespassing signs". Protests from moving the team were also visible near the corporate headquarters as word quickly spread.
Owner John Weber, 81, doesn't appear to be selling the team as there has been no mention of the team being for sale at this time. This as Rocky Mountain experienced their first losing season in a decade. With this, fan attendance has dropped over the past 2 seasons from the 3,600,000 range down to the 3,000,000 mark which certainly could explain the reason for the move as that is roughly 7,000 less per game in attendance which in dollar figures is close to $11,000,000.
Omaha GM Justin Niles briefly met with the press this morning regarding the move:
What happens to the teams record book?"Yes, it's true. I have been working closely with the Weber family over the past few weeks, and we are indeed planning to move the team. What has transpired over the last 24 hours or so has been remarkable. The Weber family brought me in with full intentions of moving the franchise. They seen our success when we moved the franchise from Indy to Omaha in my second season at the helm, and were keep on the same development. We looked at a number of different cities. I am going to be honest and let you know that as of 36 hours ago, we had narrowed the list down to one town. Fargo, North Dakota. We were going to be the Fargo Freeze and play in a stadium named "The Tundra". That quickly changed however as I mentioned in the last 36 hours after getting a phone call from another GM. One thing lead to another, and I am pleased to announce our move to Omaha, Nebraska. Once again, this was not planned, but different circumstances quickly made it a discussion. We informed players and other team personnel this morning of the decision and are working quickly with the league office to ensure that things go as planned."
What's the new team logo? Name?"That's up to the BBA. We're in discussions with them. While we don't feel it's right to wipe an entire franchise's record book, it's also bringing old records to a city that had nothing to do with those who achieved those."
Do you have a stadium in mind?"I can't get into specifics right now on any of that as we are still working through this. Obviously Omaha, Nebraska isn't very Rocky and there certainly aren't any Oysters. More to come for sure."
What about the other Omaha franchise?"Please understand, this all happened every quickly and unexpectedly. We are currently working through a few different ideas as far as stadiums go. Nothing has been decided as of yet that I can comment on"
The news, a shock to fans, was just as much a shock to players it appears. "I'm glad I didn't end up buying a house" said 3B prospect Alan Hedges who was acquired at the trade deadline last year."I can't comment on that right now. Who knows, maybe we will become cross-town rivals? Maybe we both end up in the Monty Brewster and the Brewster can be held exclusively in Omaha? The possibilities are endless. Right now, what I am worried about is making sure that our team is in the best geographical location to have the best support from a fanbase and that we put the best team on the field to help that fan base support said team."
"I have mixed emotions. I appreciate the loyalty and passion that Oyster fans have shown us during my time here, but as you know, I started in Omaha. I know those fans are unlike any other". Said 1B Malik Bin Mazin.
This move is eerily like the one Niles made when he first moved the Omaha Hawks (now Cyclones) to Omaha back in 2032. At that time, the "Barnstormers" had announced they were leaving Omaha, when in the same off-season, Niles announced the teams plans to move from Indianapolis (Grasshoppers) to Omaha.
The other Omaha team has not made public their plans at this time and were not available for comment.
