Episode 4. (Rumors)

A map of most of the ABA teams as of July 1968.

“Well if they’re moving, where the hell are they going?”

That’s the operative question. The family trust that controls the Milwaukee Zephyrs announced on June 30th that the team will be sold. Given there are no plans for expansion, this was news that set the baseball world alight.

Over 24 groups reported initial interest, that number has already been narrowed down to nine cities across the U.S. and Canada that are reportedly interested in their own sliver of big league baseball. Even if it’s a last-place team that’s about to sell off anyone good.

Location, Location, Location

Several cities are considered to be frontrunners for the team, though no stories are coming out of Zephyrs HQ or ABA HQ about where the team might be dispatched.

1. Flint, Michigan
   An ownership group wants to create a downtown stadium in this former industry town about an hour from Detroit. Detroit formerly hosted the Detroit Pontiacs before they moved to Kansas City following the 1939 season. Would give the leagues an upper midwest presence still in Eastern time, potentially covering Ohio which also does not have a team.
2. New Jersey/Long Island
   Several groups are considering combining for a metro NYC bid that would place a team on either Long Island in Nassau County or in Central New Jersey. The city is home to two teams — the New York Gothams who play in the Bronx & Brooklyn Originals — and upstate New York recently got the New York Titans who split time between Albany and Buffalo. Many in the league office think a third NYC area team is a bad idea, but others believe there is still a lot of untapped money here to be had.
3. San Antonio
   Texas has just one team in the league — Houston Cosmos — so a second team in that state is considered a priority. However, that is more likely to come through expansion. A San Antonio ownership group has tentative stadium plans that have not yet been solidified, but the financial capital is there, so they’re considered a dark horse candidate despite their stadium issues. It’s a market that the league is insistent on getting sooner than later, so don’t rule them out.
4. Jacksonville, Florida
   The southeast is underserved, so this would be a logical spot for a club. There is an ownership problem, so look for them down the road for a potential expansion.
5. Vancouver, Canada
   The Victoria Cougars moved to Salt Lake after the 1941 season, leaving the Pacific Northwest without a team of a its own. Vancouver and Portland are both vying for potential expansion teams down the road, but with those plans very murky, Vancouver has bid for a chance to have the Zephyrs moved west.
6. Columbus, Ohio
   Columbus isn’t likely to get a pickup in this go-round, but the fact that no Ohio team exists with Pittsburgh, West Virginia and Detroit missing from the league gives the league a lack of a Rust Belt presence that owners would like to fill. Columbus doesn’t fit the profile, but would be centrally located relative to the other clubs and could be a potential gold mine for a successful club to draw from Michigan, Western Pennsylvania and all of Ohio.