Beginning in 2022, the collegiate summer West Coast League will expand to 16 teams, including, with the announcement of the Springfield Drifters, four in Oregon. The Drifter logo, set in the soothing colors of the Pacific Northwest, highlights the natural features of the Willamette Valley, including the Willamette River and the mountains of the Cascade Range, Oregon Coast Range, and Calapooya Mountains.
“When you look at a map, adding another team in the Willamette Valley is an easy call for us,” said WCL Commissioner Rob Neyer, quoted on the WCL’s website. “We were simply waiting for the perfect situation, and with the Springfield Baseball Project, that’s now exactly what we’ve got.”
We have not seen a Drifters mascot, but since Springfield, Oregon, is the Springfield in The Simpsons, I’m recommending that they adopt the unnamed singing railroad hobo from the show.
The West Coast League will introduce three other teams in 2022, including the Edmonton Riverhawks, Kamloops NorthPaws, and Nanaimo NightOwls. In addition, the Victoria HarbourCats and Kelowna Falcons after skipping 2021 due to COVID-19.
