Columbus Clippers

[scooter1369]

I'll be much more inclined to go to Clippers games now.

I hate the Yankees.

[MolGenBuckeye]

Originally Posted by scooter1369

I'll be much more inclined to go to Clippers games now.

I hate the Yankees.

Same here! I always had a hard time cheering for the Clippers because of their affiliation. I'd love to see the Tribe there, but even if they could get the Reds, I'd probably attend more games.

[JCOSU86]

I agree. I'd rather go to see incompentence (Reds/Indians) than evil (Yankees).

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

CLIPPERS
Mets seem the best bet to replace Yankees here

Saturday, September 16, 2006

Craig Merz
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH




As word passed through the Yankees clubhouse Thursday afternoon that New York and Columbus were parting after 28 seasons, a look of shock enveloped many former Clippers.
"No way. Wow," pitcher Scott Proctor said. Relievers T.J. Beam and Jeff Karstens were equally stunned but quickly regained their senses to start the guessing game as to where the Yankees? triple-A affiliate will go and which team will fill the void in Columbus for the 2007 International League season.
Bringing them, and everyone else, up to speed: Columbus, New Orleans, Norfolk and Scranton are guaranteed teams. An official with the New York Mets who did not want to be identified said last night that the club is interested in Columbus.
The Yankees have left Columbus and are believed to be interested in Scranton, Pa. That location became available when the Philadelphia Phillies left for Ottawa, Ontario, but with plans to relocate the franchise to Allentown, Pa., in 2008. Ottawa was available because the Baltimore Orioles pulled out for parts unknown. Also, the New York Mets are pulling out of Norfolk, Va., and the Washington Nationals want out of New Orleans.
The process of officially courting a new affiliate begins today and runs through Sept. 30.
President and general manager Ken Schnacke said the Clippers would sign only a two-year agreement ? coinciding when agreements between the Reds and Indians and their triple-A cities expire in 2008 ? and if that limits their options, so be it.
"It could be a hindrance as to particular choices one, two, or three," he said. "We want to see how the partnership goes and not be tied down too far in the future. A two-year deal is more important than who we might get."
Longtime fan Don Martin said he is willing to live with what he called the "rent-ateam" approach as long as the Clippers are competitive.
"I became a Yankees fan because of the Clippers, but I?m a baseball fan first," he said.
The Yankees? decision has created the biggest buzz in the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Pa., area. Although team officials knew before the season that the Phillies would pull out, the thought of the Yankees, who play some 120 miles to the east, as a replacement left many fans giddy. The Times-Leader of Scranton reported a deal is all but done.
"I?m very disappointed the Yankees are leaving, but I?ll still go to the (Clippers) games," said season ticket-holder Austin "Gene" Taylor, who has been attending games in Columbus since 1948. "I?ve seen them all ? the Red Birds, the Jets, the Clippers," he said of earlier affiliations with St. Louis and Pittsburgh.
Pete Stevens said he never imagined the Yankees leaving Columbus.
"It?s been so long. You get so used to Yankees-Clippers that you thought it would go on ad infinitum," he said. "I am excited, though, about the possibility of the Reds or Indians (farm team) here. I?d love to see the Tribe."
The Yankees likely desire a triple-A team closer to New York, but Ballpark Digest reported that the Yankees also like that Scranton might sign Mandalay Sports Entertainment to operate the team. Mandalay is already running the Yankees? club in Staten Island, N.Y.
The facilities can?t be discounted. Cooper Stadium is considered the worst in the International League, although a ballpark in the Arena District is planned to open in 2008 or ?09. The Red Barons? Lackawanna County Stadium is 17 years old, but a $3 million renovation was done to the home clubhouse this year and the team is willing to replace the artificial turf with grass if requested.
Taylor, who sits by the Clippers? dugout along first base, blames Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, a former Columbus resident who still has ties to the community.
"Steinbrenner pulled the rug out on us," he said.
cmerz@dispatch.com

[JCOSU86]

I've always hated the Clippers because they are the damned Yankees. But now I may have to re-assess. The Mets suck too, but at least they aren't Satan...er the Yankees

[OSUBasketballJunkie]

Dispatch

Contingent from Nationals tours Cooper Stadium
Tuesday, September 19, 2006
Craig Merz
THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH



The Columbus Clippers? courting of a new affiliate moved into high gear yesterday when a contingent from the Washington Nationals toured Cooper Stadium.
Nationals vice president-general manager Jim Bowden met with Clippers president Ken Schnacke and other members of the organization. Nationals president Stan Kasten and former Nationals president Tony Tavares were also reportedly present.
The Clippers are looking for a new partner following the severing of ties with the New York Yankees last week after 28 seasons. Scranton, Pa.; Norfolk, Va., and Columbus of the International League and New Orleans in the Pacific Coast League are the four eastern cities without affiliations but guaranteed teams next season.
The Times-Tribune in Scranton reported that New York Mets officials would visit Lackawanna County Stadium in Moosic, Pa., today. The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons are the front-runners to align with the Yankees, but apparently no club is conceding anything in the competitive affiliation shuffle. A Mets official said Friday his club is also interested in Columbus.
The Nationals have been in a fierce battle with Baltimore to get into the Norfolk market since the minor-league franchises were allowed to woo the major-league clubs starting at 12:01 a.m. Saturday.
"Within moments I was on the phone with one ? and then the other called," Norfolk Tides president Ken Young told The Virginian-Pilot.
Washington is interested in the Clippers in case the Orioles sign with Norfolk. If that happens, Columbus becomes even more attractive to the Nationals and Mets. Washington doesn?t want to return to New Orleans after just ending a two-year player-development contract there, and having an affiliate in the Pacific Coast League would be a hardship for any East Coast major-league team.
The Clippers appear to be in a good position to work a strong deal even though Schnacke has made it clear the club would only sign a two-year deal, knowing the affiliation agreements with the Cincinnati Reds and Cleveland Indians expire after the 2008 season.
cmerz@dispatch.com

[ScriptOhio]

Clippers to become affiliate of Nationals
By Craig Merz
The Columbus Dispatch
Wednesday, September 20, 2006 1:23 PM

The board of directors of the Columbus Clippers will meet this afternoon in the Captain's Club of Cooper Stadium to approve a working agreement with the Washington Nationals baseball team.
Sources said the player development contract, as it is known, is for the next two seasons, per the wishes of the Clippers. The deal includes the Nationals playing a major-league preseason game in Columbus next year.
Clippers general manager Ken Schnacke has said the team wants to have options when the Cleveland Indians and Cincinnati Reds affiliation agreements with teams in Buffalo, N.Y., and Louisville, Ky., respectively, expire after the 2008 season.
Nationals president Stan Kasten and general manager Jim Bowden toured Cooper Stadium on Monday and met staff and officials from Franklin County, which owns the International League team and stadium.
The Clippers were looking for a new partner after a 28-year relationship with the New York Yankees ended last week. The Yankees and New York Mets are vying to move their top prospects to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, Pa. A decision could come today.
The Nationals did not renew their agreement with New Orleans of the Pacific Coast League and were considering Norfolk, Va., after the Mets and the Norfolk Tides ended a 39-year partnership this month. It appears the Baltimore Orioles, who left Ottawa, will have their affiliate in Norfolk and the loser in the Scranton sweepstakes will get New Orleans.
A source close to the Clippers situation said partnering Ohio's capital to the nation's capital offsets losing the high-profile Yankees. There are several other interesting connections. Bowden is a former Reds GM and understands the pressures that face the Clippers organization to align with one of the Ohio teams. There are a couple of ex-Clippers with the Nationals.
"If I had a pick, I'd take Washington because Alfonso Soriano and Nick Johnson played here," Clippers fan Don Martin said last week.
The Nationals will become the Clippers' third affiliate since baseball returned to Columbus in 1977. The Pittsburgh Pirates had their farm team here for two sub-.500 seasons. The Yankees signed on to start