Out of the ashes of the move came a new type of baseball to the city in the form of the Waterloo Diamonds. This baseball organization paralleled its predecessor in many ways and inevitably met the same fate as did the Royals. Although very popular in the Waterloo area, the Diamonds were plagued by many problems that did not relate to their play on the field.  Having played its games in the same stadium that was the home of most of the city's defunct teams, the Diamonds' primary financial struggle was the need to improve the facilities at Waterloo Municipal.

    Directing the business of the Waterloo Diamonds was a group of people with official sounding titles, but who remained at their core a crew of friends who genuinely were fans of the game.  David Simpson, Brian Pfaltzgraff, and Jeff Nelson headed up the organization officially known as Waterloo Baseball, Inc.  These three men directed the day-to-day juggling act of scheduling meetings, hiring coaches and players, acting as a liaison to the city, and soliciting sponsors.  But aside from their formal duties, this trio was down to earth and helped maintain the ballpark.  Often, they were seen painting, fixing damaged seats and walls, replacing light bulbs, and mowing grass.  Despite their efforts, however, the stadium's condition and funding to maintain it were crucial reasons for the team's departure following the 1994 season.

    As a former stockbroker, Simpson's experience in business contributed to his ability to perform the functions of general manager of the club until 1994 when Jeff Nelson was promoted to the position of GM.  Operation of this nonprofit organization proved difficult for Nelson, despite his experience as Assistant General Manager under Simpson.  With duties such as sales and marketing, Nelson had a keen insight into the public relations affairs of the club, but most of the major decisions involving the future of the club were left in the hands of the team's board of directors.  President of the Board at the time was Bill Boesen, who along with team president Dan Yates, became a wedge between factions wishing either to sell the team or try to maintain its fledgling existence in Waterloo.  As president of the board of directors, Boesen was responsible for fielding offers from speculators who wished to purchase the club.  By 1993 the club's market value was set at two million dollars but Boesen stated in the Courier, “We don't want to get out.  If someone came up with the money ($500,000) we need, we would not sell the team. We want to keep it here.” 

    But Boesen and Yates had other obstacles to overcome.  Al Manning, who was elected mayor in the fall of 1991, offered the Diamonds no concessions from city hall. Manning's prime objectives as mayor were economic stability in the city and reducing unemployment.These policies left little room for the maintenance of Municipal Stadium by the city's park board, prompting Boesen and Yates to declare the $500,000 ultimatum to keep the team in the Cedar Valley.

    Despite the financial difficulties that the front office faced, the Diamonds' players and coaches consistently provided the community with an exciting style of baseball.  And playing games was not the only activity that the Diamonds participated in.  As manager in 1992, Keith Champion counseled the area's youth at career fairs by preaching the importance of staying in school and getting a diploma.  Other Diamonds members spent time on food drives and other charitable causes as well.

    On the field, Waterloo's players were competitive and up to any challenge.  Though never producing any standout individual stars, the Diamonds based their success around a cohesive team strategy.  Having never sent a player to the Hall of Fame, the nearest to an exceptional talent that the team would ever encounter was Jason Hardtke.  Hardtke's greatest accomplishment as a Diamond came in 1992 when he became the team's sole representative on the Single-A All-Star team.²⁹  In light of this modest contribution from Hardtke, the team did manage to provide solid defense and a good offense for the spectators at Waterloo Municipal.

    Among the highlights of the Diamonds' existence in Waterloo may have come on July 6, 1989.  In a league game against Midwest Division foe Clinton, the Diamonds and the opposition set a league record for innings played in a single game.  Breaking the previous record of 22 innings, the Diamonds and Bees battled to a 3-3 tie after 19 innings until the game was suspended due to a league rule setting a curfew after the teams had battled for five hours and forty-six minutes.  Unable to let the tied game stand, the teams resumed the game over a month later in Clinton and each held the other scoreless for another six innings.  The decisive run came off of the bat of Mike King who hit a solo home run in the top of the 25th to end the marathon 4-3.  The scorebook read: 

Clinton              010 200 000 000 000 000 000 000 0- 3

Waterloo          100 000 002 000 000 000 000 000 1- 4 30

Either the pitchers were red-hot or the hitters on both teams decided to quit.  Nonetheless the game will never be soon forgotten by those who toughed out the hot summer night until 12:50 a.m.