Lehigh Valley IronPigs to salute Philly by playing as Hoagies

The Triple-A Lehigh Valley IronPigs polled vans about what they call the area’s iconic sandwich, and Hoagie beat Sub soundly (of course). With that, the team will take on the nickname “Hoagies” on its annual “Salute to Philly” night, which in previous years has seen the team play as “Jimmies,” “Wooder Ice,” “Steaks,” “Whiz Kids,” “Jawn,” and the “Philly Special.”

“A longstanding debate across Pennsylvania and the mid-Atlantic region is that of Hoagie vs. Sub,” the team said in a statement. “Hoagie prevailed in the contest, besting Subs and putting the debate to rest and proving that Hoagie is truly the sandwich of choice for Pennsylvanians and Philadelphians.”

The alternate brand will include delicious logo that looks like it was freshly prepared at the local Wawa. The logo features an assortment of lunchmeats, lettuce, and tomato on a traditional hoagie roll.

The most popular understanding of the term “hoagie” is that it comes from a World War I shipyard on the Delaware River in Philadelphia called Hog Island. The “Hog Island Sandwich” enjoyed by workers there was shortened to “Hoggies” and eventually Hoagie.