Dodgers move triple-A to Oklahoma City, double-A to Tulsa

Teams do this a lot with their minor league teams, changing affiliations from one city to another. There are plenty of reasons, mostly economic, but whatever the main motivation, the news Wednesday that the Dodgers had their teams on the move again was mostly good.

The Dodgers are moving their triple-A franchise from Albuquerque to Oklahoma City, which is approximately 3,700 feet closer to sea level and statistics that can actually be trusted.

The Dodgers also announced their double-A affiliation was moving from Chattanooga, Tenn., to Tulsa, Okla., which means their two top teams will now be only approximately 100 miles apart.

The Oklahoma City Redhawks, owned by Mandalay Baseball, is actually being purchased by the Dodgers owners. This makes for an odd sliding over for Peter Guber, a partner in Mandalay, who is buying half the Redhawks while the rest of the Dodgers’ owners – including Guber – purchase the other half.

The Dodgers are scheduled to start playing in Oklahoma City next season at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark, built in 1997 and remodeled last season. The Rockies will reportedly take up the Dodgers’ spot in Albuquerque.

The Daily Oklahoman reported a sales price between $23- and $25 million. It’s apparently undetermined whether the triple-A team will continue to be known as the Redhawks, but red and the Dodgers would not appear to have a future together.

The Tulsa Drillers are owned by Dale and Jeff Hubbard. The Dodgers signed a two-year agreement with the Drillers, who play in the Texas League.

Since baseball reorganized its minor-league system in 1962, the Dodgers’ triple-A affiliation has gone from Spokane (nine years), to Albuquerque (29), to Las Vegas (eight), back to Albuquerque (six) and now to Oklahoma City.