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| (Casey posses with fans.) |
Club officials say the “Omaha” portion of the team name will continue. They are seeking fan feedback regarding the second portion of the team name. Fans can submit "Royals” if they want the team name to remain the same.
On September 13, the Royals will release the top 24 names submitted and from September 13 through September 27 the public will be able to vote on their three favorite names. On October 4, the team will release a list of the top nine team names remaining under consideration and fans will get to vote for the one name they prefer.
Then in November, the team will announce their team name, mascot, logos and uniforms at an event that will be open to the public.
“We encourage everybody in the metro area to take part in this process and help decide the name of Omaha’s Triple-A baseball team, as we enter the exciting new era of moving into a state-of-the art Minor League ballpark,” said Royals Vice President/General Manager Martie Cordaro. “Our owners, management and staff all value our fans’ opinions and feelings and are excited to include them in the process of selecting a team name.”
Now that you know all the details, allow me to make a case for keeping the team name the same:
1. The Omaha Royals’ team name is rich in tradition. My mom took me to Omaha Royals games when I was a young boy. I bet your parents did too. Now we are taking our children to Omaha Royals games. Let’s give our kids a chance to do the same thing.
2. Omaha has one of the longest running affiliations in baseball with its parent club. Keeping the team name as the Omaha Royals is the perfect way to honor that affiliation. If the affiliation with Kansas City ever does end, then a new team name can be considered.
3. Regardless of where you stood on the issue of moving to a new stadium, keeping the Omaha Royals’ team name is the perfect way to hang on to tradition. How cool would it be to sit in the new ballpark in Sarpy County while watching the Omaha Royals play and still be able to talk about names such as George Brett, Willie Wilson, Frank White, Mark Gubicza, Paul Splittorff, Jerry Cram, Fran Healy and so many others who wore the Omaha Royals’ uniform?
4. The Omaha Royals’ team name is an established brand. I run into people on a weekly basis who still have no idea the team will be playing in a new stadium next season. They are nominal baseball fans who recognize the current team name. They would probably not recognize a new team name and therefore may have no connection with the team in 2011.
5. We’ve tried to change the team name in the past and it was a complete failure. Remember the Omaha Golden Spikes fiasco (1999-2001)?
