Minor League Baseball Starts 2015 with New-Look Teams

It was a busy offseason for Minor League Baseball, with lots of teams switching parent clubs, locations, and logos. With Spring Training in full swing, it’s time to recap all of the new looks that were introduced since the season ended last fall.

New Teams in New Locations

Biloxi Shuckers
The former Huntsville Stars, double-A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers in the Southern League, relocated to Biloxi, Mississippi, and became the Shuckers—an homage to the local seafood industry. We wrote about them here.

West Virginia Black Bears
The Jamestown Jammers, short season single-A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates, relocated to become the New York-Penn League’s first team in West Virginia. The logo celebrates the state’s natural heritage. Read more on MiLB.com.

New Names for Existing Teams

Oklahoma City Dodgers
Early in the offseason, we profiled the triple-A Oklahoma City Redhawks, who had just been purchased by the Los Angeles Dodgers, in our Story Behind the Nickname series. Then just days later, the team announced that it was adopting a new name and identity based on its new parent club. We wrote about it here.

South Bend Cubs
The South Bend Silver Hawks in the single-A Midwest League had been a Diamondbacks farm team since 1997, but when they switched their affiliation to the Cubs, they adopted an identity based heavily on their new parent club. One twist: The typeface on their primary logo is the same used by Studebaker, the automative giant founded in South Bend, Indiana. We wrote about them here.

Daytona Tortugas
The high-A Daytona Cubs of the Florida State League had been around since 1993, but a new affiliation with the Cincinnati Reds called for a rebrand. Enter the Daytona Tortugas, my favorite new look of the offseason. Tortugas is Spanish for turtles, who are both awesome and common in the area. We wrote about them here.

Pulaski Yankees
The Advanced Rookie League Pulaski Mariners rebranded after switching parent clubs to the Yankees. Read about them on MiLB.com. (Though there’s really no need. I pretty much just said everything there is to say.)

Updates to Existing Brands

Tennessee Smokies
The Smokies, a double-A team in the Southern League, announced a four-year extension of their affiliation with the Chicago Cubs, then they doubled down on the Cubs influence in their visual identity. We wrote about them here.

San Antonio Missions
The Missions, double-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres in the Texas League since 2007, updated their look, which now incorporates the Alamo, a Davy Crockett cap, a red pepper, the Texas flag, and a green pepper swinging a baseball bat. We wrote about it here.

Pawtucket Red Sox
The PawSox, triple-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, reworked their logos to include a bear with wild mood swings and a severed bear foot. We wrote about it here. (Looks like the team will be moving down the road to Providence, Rhode Island, in the near future. We wonder when we’ll get to see the new ProvSox logos.)

Nashville Sounds
After a false start in which they unveiled a poorly received orange logo in the fall, the Sounds heard the negative fan reaction and went red instead. The logo, unveiled in red in January, highlights Nashville’s music scene. Read about it on MiLB.com.

Frisco RoughRiders
Before he was president, Teddy Roosevelt led the 1st U.S. Volunteer Cavalry Regiment—nicknamed the RoughRiders—during the Spanish–American War. This offseason, the double-A Frisco RoughRiders, Texas League affiliate of the Texas Rangers since 2003, rebranded with a logo that carries a big stick, paying homage to Mr. Roosevelt. We wrote about it here.

What do you think? What are your hits and misses in the collection above?