Nationals Farm Authority

Hat tip to District of Baseball for pointing out The Other Paper from Columbus which digs deeper into the recent two-year agreement between Columbus and the Nationals

GM Ken Schnacke—who works for the local Clippers organization, not the departing Yankees—had let it be known he was looking for the closest thing he could get to a one-night stand. He plans to spend the next 24 months figuring out how to lure the Cincinnati Reds or Cleveland Indians

This has been frequently cited as the endgame in the Triple A musical chairs that has all but wrapped up this month. To summarize:

1. Ottawa of the International League (IL) will be no more after 2007, they are relocating to a yet to be named team in Allentown
2. The Phillies will displace the Orioles in Ottawa in 2007
3. The Yankees end their 28-year affiliation with IL Columbus and agree to a two-year deal with Scranton
4. The Nationals leave the Pacific Coast League (PCL) New Orleans Zephyrs and sign for two years with Columbus
5. The Mets end a near forty year arrangement in IL Norfolk with hopes of landing Scranton, but settle for a two-year deal in PCL New Orleans
6. The music stops and Norfolk and the Orioles are left to pair up in what is rumored to be a two-year arrangement as well

The AAA  agreement merry-go-round is going to take a two-year respite, but come the end of the 2008 season, there could be fireworks as no less than 10 agreements will be expiring in the IL and no less than 9 expiring PCL agreements (Tucson and Tacoma are still TBD) :

• Buffalo Bisons - Cleveland
• Columbus Clippers - Washington
• Durham Bulls - Tampa Bay
• Indianapolis Indians - Pittsburgh
• Louisville Bats - Cincinnati
• Norfolk Tides - rumored to be Baltimore
• Rochester Red Wings - Minnesota
• Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons- New York (AL) 
• Syracuse SkyChiefs - Toronto
• Toledo Mud Hens - Detroit
• Albuquerque Isotopes - Florida
• Colorado Springs Sky Sox - Colorado
• Fresno Grizzlies - San Francisco
• Las Vegas 51s - Los Angeles
• Memphis Redbirds - St. Louis
• New Orleans - New York (NL)
• Omaha Royals - Kansas City
• Portland Beavers - San Diego
• Round Rock Express - Houston

This is when Clippers GM Ken Schnacke hopes to switch Columbus to either of his fellow Ohio major league teams, Cincinnati or Cleveland. I’m not sure that either the Reds or Indians would seem willing to part ways in what thus far have been very good relationships with their AAA affiliates. Both Buffalo and Louisville are among the top draws in the IL. The fanbase in each city is considered top-flight. The Reds also have an enticement to remain in Louisville, Cincinnati draws well from Kentucky and there is a defined fanbase in the Louisville area. Former Red/current Nat Austin Kearns is a Kentucky native who has referred to the Reds as his ‘hometown team.’ The distance between Cincinnati and both Louisville or Columbus is roughly equidistant (about 100 miles) so it’s not really any closer. As for Buffalo, while Columbus is closer to Cleveland than Buffalo, the Bisons are well-known for having some of the better fans in Minor League Baseball, and often are on the short list when people consider locations for Major League relocation/expansion.

I’m not dismissing the possibility of Columbus luring the Indians or Reds, and I understand the Nationals/Clippers ‘getting to know you’ agreement for two years. However, if Stan Kasten’s plan for rebuilding the farm system continues on a healthy/successful path, come 2009, the Nationals could have an impressive contingent of top prospects knocking on the door to the majors … possibly a boon for whatever AAA team they find themselves aligned with.