Hamilton EH’s - 2021-present
Ed Hebscher, GM
Franchise #1
History
Brief: This Franchise #1 team was
originally settled in Wilderness, playing before spirited crowds who called
the players Wraiths, partly due to their ghostly white uniforms. The team
stayed in the Wilderness until 1908, when the team was sold to Canadian
distiller Ed Hebscher, moving to London, Ontario. Following the 1919
season, the team disbanded. One year later, original Franchise #1 owner
Gary Sibley claimed “finders keepers,” snatching the franchise from a
garbage heap near Buffalo and racing back to the Wilderness. The team
stayed in the Wilderness until 1972, when they made a sudden, and still
unexplained, move to Ashburn. The Hot Rocks, despite a very talented
roster, did not draw well, and Sibley reluctantly released control of the
franchise to Dick Gorney in 1975. Gorney quickly became legend, winning the
league crown in the very next season, his first of seven post season
appearances with the Combers. However, in 1990, after a contentious TCBA
Rules battle, Gorney sold the franchise back to Sibley and retired from
active managing. Gary initially located the team in Birdsnest before moving
the franchise to Rapidan in 1997, where the team celebrated the move to
their new home with a league championship. At the conclusion of the 2020
season, Gary announced his retirement, releasing control of his Rapidan
Rapids. League-wide response was immediate, with well-wishes coming from
all quarters. Gary’s quiet, calm nature and sweet Sibley smile would surely
be missed.
One of the most valuable
franchises in all of TCBA, the team would not be orphaned for long.
Swooping down from the North Country to snatch the prize was Ed Hebscher, a
veteran of seven TCBA Today seasons as Franchise 14’s Newmarket EH’s, who
gathered up his Bit Coins and re-purchased Franchise #1 before a bidding
war could begin. Hebscher quickly moved the team to Hamilton, Ontario,
renewing the EH’s presence across the border in Canada.
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