Wednesday SRFC Links: Partain heads to San Antonio FC

Sacramento Republic FC will enter MLS in a couple years. In the meantime, how much do you follow MLS?

Teams making the move up to MLS seem to follow a pattern in recent years. They try to boss their current league before moving up. Sometimes, it works well enough, as FC Cincinnati got the Shield in their final season (although they failed in the playoffs). Sometimes, worrying about what’s next is too much pressure for one club to deal with in the moment.

Can Sacramento Republic find the balance between building for the future and competing today? Is this a worry or something that people like me think is a real thing but isn’t really? Food for thought.

Here are some of the notable news for Wednesday:

• Partain joins San Antonio FC: Hayden Partain is moving on, the midfielder signing for San Antonio FC after three seasons with Republic FC. It’s a homecoming of sorts, the 25-year-old a Texas native, but after 50 appearances for Sacramento, he’ll be facing off on the other side in 2020.

• Sac State product joins Reno 1868: Another non-Republic signing, but with Sacramento ties, Sacramento State forward Benji Kikanovic signed with Reno 1868 this week. The club said they signed him after seeing him at the San Jose Earthquakes combine.

• Former USL Golden Boot winner back to old haunt? A new report dropped on Tuesday that Cameron Lancaster won’t be heading to MLS with Nashville SC after all. BGN’s Phill Grooms reported Lancaster will be returning to Louisville City for the 2020 season. Lancaster won the Golden Boot with Louisville in 2018, but his first year in Nashville didn’t go well, as he battled injuries in Nashville’s final season in the USL Championship.

Today’s question: As mentioned at the top, can Sacramento Republic find that balance between competing in USL Championship and gearing up for MLS in a couple years? Can they get another title to help bookend their USL stint? What do you think? leave a comment below!