The Traverse City Pit Spitters have played in the collegiate summer level Northwoods League since 2019, with an identity that commemorates both their home state’s association with tart cherries and baseball players’ propensity for spitting. This week, the team unveiled its first alternate identity, making the temporary switch from cherries to grapes to play as the Up North Cork Dorks.
The nickname is a loving tribute to the area’s local wine lovers. Per the team, Cork Dorks is “an affectionate term for a wine enthusiast, the Cork Dorks pay homage to the 40+ wineries along Michigan’s Wine Coast.”
The identity features an anthropomorphized wine cork with all the telltale signs of elevated dorkiness: a bow tie, braces, thick glasses, and a beanie propellor cap. The suite of marks also includes the iconic mitten shape of the state of Michigan with a cork screw twisted through it.
The Cork Dorks will take the field Friday, August 5.
