Omaha Storm Chasers

From BR Bullpen

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Team History[edit]

The Omaha Storm Chasers, formerly of the Pacific Coast League, briefly in Triple-A East, and now in the International League, are half of the longest current farm/parent partnership among tandems that are separately owned. The Kansas City Royals farmhands play their home games at Werner Park in Papillion, NE - just outside of Omaha.

The Chasers' partnership with the Royals, which began when both clubs were founded in 1969, became the longest in the history of professional baseball with the 2022 season. The Bluefield Orioles-Baltimore Orioles affiliation of 1958-2010 fell to second - although, with Omaha having always been in full-season and Bluefield in short-season, the Omaha franchise was already far ahead in both calendar time and games played.

The original Omaha nickname was, like its parent, Royals. Their 1998 nickname change to Golden Spikes flopped, but moving into Werner brought another rebranding opportunity. This time with fan input, they settled on Storm Chasers, and the name has proven popular.

Sarpy County's decision to build a ballpark in the Omaha suburb saved baseball for the market. The O-Royals had always shared Rosenblatt Stadium with the NCAA College World Series, and the original plan was to continue to do so in Omaha's new downtown stadium - but the pro club and the city couldn't agree on terms.

Year-by-Year Record[edit]

Year Record Finish Manager Playoffs Hitting coach Pitching coach Coach
2011 79-63 3rd Mike Jirschele League Champs Tommy Gregg Doug Henry
2012 83-61 2nd Mike Jirschele Lost League Finals Tommy Gregg Doug Henry
2013 70-74 10th Mike Jirschele League Champs Tommy Gregg Larry Carter
2014 76-67 6th Brian Poldberg League Champs Tommy Gregg Larry Carter
2015 80-64 3rd (t) Brian Poldberg Tommy Gregg Al Nipper
2016 58-82 16th Brian Poldberg Tommy Gregg Andy Hawkins
2017 69-72 9th Brian Poldberg Tommy Gregg Andy Hawkins
2018 66-74 12th Brian Poldberg Brian Buchanan Andy Hawkins Andy LaRoche
2019 59-80 16th Brian Poldberg Brian Buchanan Andy Hawkins
2020 Season cancelled
2021 66-54 8th Brian Poldberg 7-2 Brian Buchanan Dane Johnson
2022 71-78 14th Scott Thorman Brian Buchanan Dane Johnson Tommy Shields, Ryan Powers
2023 68-77 16th Mike Jirschele Bijan Rademacher Dane Johnson David Noworyta

Related Sites[edit]

Omaha Storm Chasers