As rumors of the Pawtucket Red Sox' potential move to Worcester have swirled through the city's business community, both city and team officials have maintained a monk-like silence about the deal.

But a recent filing with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office suggests that Minor League Baseball is preparing for the possibility of Worcester becoming the new home for the Boston Red Sox AAA affiliate.

On July 26, attorney Robert Fountain, the Deputy General Counsel for Minor League baseball, registered three trademarks for the term "WooSox" through a Delaware LLC created one day earlier.

Fountain has been the attorney of record in hundreds of trademarks for the names, mascots and logos of many minor league teams -- including the Hartford Yard Goats.

In an email, Fountain cautioned against reading too much into the filing.

"Minor League Baseball filed this trademark application because other cities are under consideration," he wrote. "This filing is a legal safety measure and should not be construed as suggesting that any decision has been made."

The WooSox trademarks cover "entertainment services in the nature of baseball games and exhibitions," as well as a lengthy list of apparel and merchandise like uniforms, caps, trading cards, jackets and posters.

The Pawtucket Red Sox did not immediately return a request for comment.

Since last July, when the PawSox announced they would entertain offers from other cities, Worcester's city leadership, business community and baseball fans have positioned the city as the only known competition to Pawtucket for the team.

Team executives have repeatedly been spotted meeting with city officials, though details from those meetings have remained a closely guarded secret. The Canal District Alliance organized a campaign to send thousands of postcards to the team, touting Worcester as the PawSox' ideal next home. And enthusiasm has spread to social media, with a booster for the deal creating an unofficial WooSox Twitter account.

And rumors are circulating among business owners in the Canal District of strong interest from outside developers for property near the city's vacant Wyman-Gordon lot, which is believed to be the proposed site for a new AAA stadium.

As Worcester has wooed the team, Pawtucket officials have aggressively sought to keep the PawSox in their city. Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo signed a bill in June allowing the state to move forward with an $83 million deal to build a new riverfront stadium in Pawtucket. The bill, which offers up $38 million in public financing, does not represent a finalized deal, and talks have continued between the team and both competing cities.

Worcester has invested both time and money into its proposal. As of the end of June, consultants had spent more than 330 hours working on the project at a cost of $178,060.