Isotopes honour Albuquerque’s roots with “Duke City” alternate

The city of Albuquerque, New Mexico, was named for Viceroy Francisco Fernández de la Cueva, the 10th duke of the Spanish town of Alburquerque. More than 300 years after its founding, Albuquerque still proudly sports the nickname Duke City.

The Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes, an affiliate of the Colorado Rockies in the Pacific Coast League, will pay tribute to their hometown’s nickname with a “Duke City” alternate brand, part of the team’s City Roots Connection.

The brand features the text Duke City set in a blackletter typeface, which reflects typography commonly found in art and murals in Albuquerque.

A cap logo highlights the city’s area code, 505, which was one of the first area codes established in the United States in 1947, and once encompassed all of New Mexico. The counterform of the zero in 505 is replete with significance. It’s formed by the outline of the state of New Mexico and encompasses a Zia sun symbol, which per the team, “is a sacred symbol of the indigenous Zia Pueblo and is closely associated with the state of New Mexico due to its feature on the state flag.”

The Isotopes are not the first team to pay tribute to their city’s nickname—the team’s predecessors were two iterations of the Albuquerque Dukes, who played from 1946 to 1964 and again from 1972 to 2000. The Isotopes will wear the Duke City brand for five games in 2025, beginning with an April 19 matchup against the El Paso Chihuahuas.