Baseball By Design: Stories of Minor League Logos and Nicknames

The Negro Leagues Baseball Museum in Kansas City, Missouri, tells the incredibly important story of the baseball teams and players who endured unspeakable hardships to succeed, against all odds, in the face of a segregated America. Similarly, the museum itself has overcome obstacles—most notably a global pandemic that shut their doors for the better part of a year—to succeed when the odds were sta...

The collegiate summer level Dub Sea Fish Sticks were the darlings of the offseason with their hotly contested online vote to determine a new name. The team's general manager comes on the show to break down the Fish Sticks/Seal Slingers electoral map, to track live polls on whether fish sticks are junk food, and react in real time to rival minor league social media accounts still bitter about how t...

The Double-A Richmond Flying Squirrels were one of the original wacky minor league brands, but now in their 13th season, they're one of the game's classic brands. On this episode, Flying Squirrels CEO "Parney" Parnell talks about the origin of the nickname and logo, Creative Services & Production Director Nick Elder talks about his work creating the team's Copa brand, the Ardillas Voladoras, a...

In many ways, the Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas are the poster team for the era of wacky logos in minor league baseball. Lifelong El Paso resident and Chihuahuas Senior Director of Marketing & Communications Angela Olivas joins the podcast to talk about what the team's identity means to the community, and Brandiose's Jason Klein stops by again to share the thinking behind the development of the...

The reason for the Tri-City Dust Devils' identity becomes apparent when you learn that they have had just one single rainout in more than two decades of playing baseball in Pasco, Washington. But their brand is about so much more than their logo—it's about their place in the community. This week, Erik "The Peanut Guy" Mertens, who has been the face of the team for its entire existence, and who was...

The Lehigh Valley IronPigs are, by design, a Triple-A team with a Single-A approach, which has led to one of the most fun brands in the minors—and lots of bacon! The team's general manager Kurt Landes stops by to talk about the logo, as well as the team's Salute to Philly alternate brands, and we settle once and for all which team started the food-based logo trend. Plus, for the first time, Jason...

Reno Aces general manager Emily Jaenson talks about the unique challenges of branding the Triple-A team that plays in the Biggest Little City in the World. The Reno Aces, who have been an affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks since their inception have a fun but grownup identity that has undergone subtle shifts over the years—with more coming soon! At the time of her hiring, Emily Jaenson was the...

Dan Simon is one of the most prolific and influential graphic designers in sports, and especially in minor league baseball at all levels. In two and a half decades, he has created hundreds of brands, including Super Bowl logos, identities for major league teams in multiple sports, and nearly 100 minor league baseball team logos. On this episode, we discuss the impact Dan's work has had on minor le...

The collegiate summer-level Portland Pickles take minor league fun to the next level with a wacky logo and nickname and a hilarious social media presence. I talk with the team's very funny co-owner Alan Miller about how serious the team is about having fun. Also, I speak with Ed Rivera of the Dad Hat Chronicles podcast to get his take on Pickles caps, and Emma Segerman, who has been ranking minor...

The Daytona Tortugas, Low-A affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds, were forced into rebranding when they changed parent clubs before the 2015 season, and the result is one of the most popular brands in the minors. Paul speaks with the team's general manager Jim Jaworski and the logo's designer Dan Simon about the identity and the role the team plays in the community, plus there's a surprise post-credit...

The Double-A Portland Sea Dogs logo was created in 1994 by Guy Gilchrist, whose career includes creating characters for the Muppets, Fraggle Rock, The Pink Panther, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Looney Tunes, Tom & Jerry, and more. Paul talks with Guy and the team's award-winning broadcaster Emma Tiedemann about the brand, plus a surprise post-credit sequence from Ann-Marie Lisi of the Maritim...

The iconic TV show M*A*S*H introduced millions of viewers to minor league baseball's Toledo Mud Hens through the quirky character Corporal Max Klinger, played by Toledo native and lifelong Mud Hens fan Jamie Farr. Mr. Farr, now 87 years old, joined me to talk about the team he grew up watching, the impact his fandom had on the TV show, and his current relationship with the team.  I also speak for...

The real-life Albuquerque Isotopes, currently Triple-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies, debuted in 2003, shortly after an episode of The Simpsons portrayed Homer thwarting plans that the Duff Beer Company had to move the fictional Springfield Isotopes to New Mexico. Paul is joined by longtime Isotopes General Manager John Straub, we hear Paul's 2018 appearance on the Isotopes pre-game show with...

Todd Radom has created logos for Super Bowl XXXVIII, the 2009 NBA All-Star Game, the 2014, 2016, and 2018 MLB All-Star Games, and Major League and minor league baseball teams, including the Brooklyn Cyclones and Wichita Wind Surge. On this episode, Todd and Paul discuss Todd's ride on the rickety old Cyclone roller coaster on Coney Island, the 1979 Phillies all-maroon uniforms, some nitty gritty n...

Chris Creamer founded the website SportsLogos.net 25 years ago, and since then it's become an invaluable resource for fans of sports logos, uniforms, and branding news. Baseball By Design host Paul Caputo has been covering minor league baseball logos for Chris's site since 2014, and so it's only fitting that Chris is the guest on the debut episode of the podcast. Follow Chris on Twitter at @sports...

Baseball By Design will explore the stories behind the nicknames and logos of minor league baseball teams at all levels. Join SportsLogos.net minor league baseball Paul Caputo correspondent for conversations with front office personnel, designers, players, and fans!