MITCHELL, S.D. — Mitchell could soon be home to a collegiate summer baseball team.
Bob Habiger of the Independence League Baseball Association told the Mitchell City Council on Monday that the league is exploring relocating the Gem City Bison from Laramie, Wyoming, to Mitchell for the 2027 season.
As part of that effort, the Bison will play an exhibition game against the Oahe Zap at 6:05 p.m. Saturday, July 11 at Cadwell Park. Habiger said the game is intended to gauge local interest in bringing a team to Mitchell on a full-time basis.
Early response has been encouraging, with Habiger telling council members that between 350 and 400 tickets have already been sold for the exhibition.
The Independence League is a collegiate summer baseball league featuring players from colleges and universities across the country. The league began play in 2022 with 10 teams and currently includes clubs in Nebraska, South Dakota and Wyoming, along with several traveling teams.
The 2026 season features member clubs the Casper Spuds, Oahe Zap and Spearfish Sasquatch, as well as the Bison Baseball, Capital City Aviators and Fort Collins Foxes traveling teams.
The Oahe Zap, based in Pierre, joined the league in 2023 and is South Dakota’s longest-running Independence League franchise.
League officials said they continue recruiting additional teams, venues and operators as they work to expand the league in future seasons.
If the relocation is completed, Mitchell would become the league’s newest permanent home beginning with the 2027 summer season.