Spoken with tongue in cheek (I think)

BYLINE: Rick Telander

Last thoughts from Omaha, home of the U.S. Olympic swimming trials:

† DANG, OMAHA, that’s a big, gorgeous baseball stadium you got there across from the CenturyLink Center swimming venue — TD Ameritrade Park — just sitting around empty most of the year, waiting for the NCAA Men’s College World Series.

Hmm. TD Ameritrade?

Isn’t that Ricketts family territory? Didn’t pop Joe Ricketts make his gazillions by starting the online financial services company? Isn’t that the company that has been a defendant in 13 cases in Maryland district courts since 2002? The company that agreed to pay $456 million to settle a lawsuit involving the scamming of thousands of customers?

A-yep. That’s the one.

Hee-haw!

† IT MAKES ME wonder how hard the taxpayers of Omaha got whacked for the fancy baseball structure. A weensy bit? A lot?

Might Tom Ricketts hold his breath here in Chicago, turn blue and, if he doesn’t get Mayor Rahm Emanuel and various aldermen to genuflect and offer money, exhale and take his beloved Cubs to hometown Omaha?

Heck, yeah!

TD Ameritrade Park seats 24,000 (with lots of room to expand), goes 408 feet to center field, has four elevators and no falling cement. Those cow farmers and cornjerkers out there might enjoy the worst team in the majors.

Wake up, Chicago! Help these poor Rickettses!

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favrefan said:"Chris Coghlan isn't gonna pay your rent, Jimmy."

lol are you kidding? bud/whoever would pimpslap him so hard.... there's no way in hell they're moving the cubs out of suburban/chicago. hell they're prolly stuck in wrigley too. that's a baseball thing.... as a shit team this year they're still drawing 20-30k cuz out of towners are !!!!!! and taking advantage of a chance to come out here, so i think that's going to be paramount.

beautiful thought tho, nad hey if they fuck with the creepy ricketts clan, welp, at least we know where their sarasota is.

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Jerry had his leverage built from the ground up and Omaha has a population of like 500K? Not happening.

Of course Tampa St Pete has like 4 Mill in the are and like 4,000 go to games

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"That's what the internet is for. Slandering others anonymously." Banky
“Been that way since one monkey looked at the sun and told the other monkey ‘He said for you to give me your fuckin’ share.’”

With one of the highest attendance totals over the past several years, even with losing seasons....there is no way in hell Bud Selig would approve of such a move. Such a threat would carry no weight.

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Go Cubs!!!!

I agree Bud would fight it, but I can promise you Jerry R would still make a case why it would be a good thing.

I would even admit that moving the Cubs to Las Vegas makes good sense. National fan base, tourist destination.

We all know how angry the Sox people got at even the notion of the rumor existing, but the Cubs should grab on to it and run.

Of course the Cubs people might not even be aware of the workings of that deal.

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"That's what the internet is for. Slandering others anonymously." Banky
“Been that way since one monkey looked at the sun and told the other monkey ‘He said for you to give me your fuckin’ share.’”