The Lehigh Valley IronPigs have gone full double entendre in their latest promotion. They’ll change their name to the Lehigh Valley Whiz Kids on June 29, when they commemorate “A Salute to Philadelphia.” The uniforms will pay homage to the 1950 NL Champion Philadelphia Phillies, nicknamed the Whiz Kids, as
Category: Minor League Baseball
Minor League Baseball announces top 25 teams in merchandise sales
Minor League Baseball’s list of the top 25 teams in terms of merchandise sales in 2016 is out, and it features a mixed bag of traditional powerhouses and trendy newcomers. There are 160 affiliated teams in the minors, including 30 each at Triple-A and Double-A, with the remaining 100 playing
Fresno Grizzlies unveil Fourth of July Tacos jerseys
We’ve entered an Inception-style meta world in which minor league baseball teams are creating promotional jerseys based on their own alternate identities for special events. The Fresno Grizzlies will go several layers deep into the shared dream world of minor league promotions on the Fourth of July, which just happens to
Toledo Mud Hens to honor Dream Team with Awesome Uniforms
The Toledo Mud Hens, Triple-A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers, will wear one of the best promotional jerseys minor league baseball has seen in a long time later this summer. June 30 through July 3, the Mud Hens will commemorate the 25th anniversary of the 1992 US Olympic basketball team featuring
Explosive Brand: The Story Behind the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes
The year 1997 saw the movies Titanic and Men in Black take Hollywood by storm. The TV shows Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Teletubbies, and South Park premiered. Hanson was singing MMM Bop, the Back Street Boys were making their United States debut, and the first Harry Potter book was published. And
Tortugas to honor Craig Sager with Sager Strong jerseys
The Daytona Tortugas, High-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds, will honor the late Craig Sager and help fight cancer with “Sager Strong” jerseys July 21. Sager, a respected and much-liked sports journalist who began his career in Florida, died last December of leukemia. Sager was well known not only for
In Training: The Story Behind the Hartford Yard Goats
The Hartford Yard Goats, Double-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies, are named for the most unglamorous, squat, workhorses of railroad locomotives. In the rail industry, yard goats, or switchers, hardly ever leave the rail yard. Instead, they toil in obscurity, spending their days moving trains around to get them ready
Hartford Yard Goats unveil Whalers-themed jerseys
The minor league baseball team in Hartford, Connecticut, will pay homage to the city’s beloved, defunct hockey team, the Hartford Whalers, with special uniforms later this summer. The Double-A Hartford Yard Goats, who after an entire season on the road in 2016 are playing their first season with actual home
Gwinnett Braves want your suggestions for a new nickname
The Atlanta Braves’ farm system is easily the most boring in all of minor league baseball. Six of the Braves’ seven affiliates use their parent club’s nickname (GCL Braves, DSL Braves, Danville Braves, Rome Braves, Mississippi Braves, and Gwinnett Braves), with the Florida Fire Frogs of the High-A Florida State League as the lone
Sweet New Logo: The Story Behind the New Orleans Baby Cakes
It’s possible that the New Orleans Baby Cakes are the first team in sports whose logo is a cartoon representation of a plastic toy that many people think represents baby Jesus. Let me explain. Until this season, the Baby Cakes franchise, Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins, had been known as
Bucking Trends: The Story Behind the Memphis Redbirds
In a minor league baseball landscape of increasingly outrageous logos and team names, the St. Louis Cardinals farm system is unusual. Three of the Cardinals’ six affiliates are named directly for their parent club, including Double-A Springfield, High-A Palm Beach, and Rookie League Johnson City. Two of the three Cardinal affiliates with unique names are the
From April Fools joke to the field: Meet the Hub City Hippos
Everyone knows that there is nothing worse than being on any social media site on April Fools Day. So when the Jackson Generals tweeted out on April 1 last year that they would be changing their name to the Hub City Hippos for the 2017 season, everyone took it with