Have the Rattlers played their last game in Rochester?
By CRAIG POTTER
The Rochester Rattlers gained the final Major League Lacrosse (MLL) playoff berth with a 14-13 victory over the Ohio Machine last Saturday at Capelli Sport Stadium.
Was it the Rattlers last-ever game in Rochester?
For the last 3 or 4 years that question has been asked after each Rattlers final home game. This year we may have a true insight as to its answer.
The No. 4 Rattlers will play No. 1 seed Denver Outlaws in the semifinals on Saturday in Colorado. No. 2 Ohio will face No. 3 Florida Launch in the other semis.
The league will hold the 2017 MLL Championship Game on Saturday, Aug. 19 at the Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, TX. It will mark the first-ever MLL Championship Game in the state of Texas.
The Ford Center is a 12,000-seat indoor facility on the campus of The Star, which plays host to the Dallas Cowboys World Headquarters and serves as the team’s practice venue. It opened in August 2016 with a slate of local high school football games. The facility serves as a focal point to the sports and entertainment district that offers fans the ultimate experience with over 15 restaurants, the Dallas Cowboys ring of honor, an Omni Hotel and the Tostitos Championship Plaza.
On Monday on The Sports Bar with Mike Danger and Gene Battaglia on ESPN Radio (950 AM), they quoted a tweet by Rattlers’ team employee, Jill Rizzo, which read, “Hope it’s not the last time at hashtag Roc. Would be a damn shame to move the team after how many years?”
Franchise history
The Rattlers were a charter member of the MLL.
In 2001 and 2002 the team played home games at Frontier Field. They played at Bishop Kearney High School Field from 2003 to 2005, and moved into the new PAETEC Park in 2006. In April 2015, negotiations between the Rattlers and Sahlen’s Stadium in Rochester fell through, resulting in the team moving its home field to Eunice Kennedy Shriver Stadium on the campus of SUNY Brockport. The team returned to the city of Rochester for the 2016 season, using Wegmans Stadium at the Aquinas Institute as its home field. In 2017, they announced a return to the city’s professional soccer stadium, now under new ownership and known as Capelli Sport Stadium.
The Rattlers made the playoffs in 2001 and 2005 as a wildcard. They were the National Division champions in 2004. On June 16, 2007, the Rochester Rattlers won a 27–26 (overtime) game over the Denver Outlaws in the highest scoring game in MLL history at INVESCO Field at Mile High.
In 2008, the Rattlers won their first and only MLL championship by defeating the Philadelphia Barrage, 16–15, in overtime in the semifinals, and the Denver Outlaws, 16–6, in the championship game.
After the 2008 season, the team was dissolved. The Rattlers’ staff and roster were transferred to the new Toronto Nationals franchise; however, the history, colors, and name of the Rattlers franchise remained in Rochester so that they could be used for a future MLL team. On Nov. 23, 2010, the Chicago Machine officially announced they would move to Rochester and resume play in 2011 under the Rochester Rattlers name.
The Rattlers made the MLL Championship game in 2014 and 2015, but lost to the Denver Outlaws and New York Lizards, respectively.
Rumor has it that the league, which runs the Rattlers but not only the Rattlers, will relocate the Rattlers to Dallas for next season. Though, it is possible the league could move a different team, which also is not drawing well, to Dallas next season and leave the Rattlers here. One would want to take advantage of that 12,000-seat, indoor stadium ASAP, for sure.
When you look at the facility outside Dallas and that the Rattlers probably average under 1,000 fans per game, the move seems quite logical.
One rumor had the team going this season but it did not workout so the league kept the team here this year.
Will history repeat itself?
If the rumor is true that the Rattlers have played their last game in Rochester and will relocate to Dallas next season, it could be the loss of a second championship team in two years.
The Rattlers beat Denver in both games during the season, and swept the Ohio Machine as well. Denver beat Ohio for the 2016 championship in Atlanta a year ago. Notice, the Atlanta Blaze entered the league this season after playing host to the MLL championship game in 2015 and 2016.
If Florida beats Ohio in the other semifinal, they would face Rochester, assuming a win over Denver, in the title game in Dallas; and the Launch won both games from the Rattlers this season.
If the Rattlers end up winning the MLL Championship, how ironic a situation that in two consecutive years the community could see the loss of two championship teams. The Western New York Flash won the NWSL Championship in 2016, then be moved to North Carolina to become the Courage for 2017.
This year the Rattlers have an opportunity to win their second MLL championship, then likely be relocated to Dallas for the 2018 season.
It is surprising for such a hotbed of lacrosse that this area is, that the Rattlers do not draw much larger crowds. The Rochester Knighthawks of the National Lacrosse League (NLL) usually get between 6,000 and 9,000 fans per game. Of course, that is indoors at the Blue Cross Arena in the Winter, while the Rattlers are outdoors in the Summer.
Hopefully, if the Rattlers do come back, a local owner can be found who will promote the team to draw the larger crowds.
Only time will tell.