Monday, March 24

Sorry, snowmen, you've got to go. Spring is almost here. One way to dispose of a snowman is to light it on fire (as you know, today is National Snowman Burning Day). Another method is to smash it with a baseball bat. Scooter Gennett did just this while with the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers in 2010, achieving bobblehead immortality. Welcome to The Baseball Traveler newsletter. Let's talk about Minor League Baseball.

Copa de la Diversión -- literally, the Fun Cup -- is back for its eighth season, with Minor League teams nationwide assuming alternate identities on select dates. The goal, as always, is for teams to engage with and celebrate their region’s Latino fan base.

92 teams are participating in Copa de la Diversión in 2025, representing over three quarters of the Minor League Baseball landscape. This copious roster includes eight new looks, most of them from teams who had previously participated in Copa under a different identity. Let's take a look at what’s new.

Aberdeen IronBirds (High-A BAL)
Cencerros Increibles de Aberdeen
Cowbells have long been part of the IronBirds' fan experience, but please note that they are called "Cal bells" in honor of original team owner (and Aberdeen native) Cal Ripken. Cencerros Increibles -- Incredible Cowbells -- adds the “rich history of Latin American culture and music” into the mix, paying homage to genres such as "salsa, merengue, bachata, cumbia [and] reggaetón." The vibrant logo features a yellow baseball bat striking a blue and orange cowbell; clearly, these hitters have found their rhythm. 

Kannapolis Cannon Ballers (Single-A CWS)
Ajolotes de Kannapolis
The Kannapolis Cannon Ballers serve exemplary grilled corn on the cob at the ballpark, but don’t get this identity confused with Elotes. Kannapolis, participating in Copa for the first time since 2019, has unveiled the Ajolotes. An axolotl salamander, in other words, looking pretty in pink. The team explains that Ajolotes "are the only amphibian species that can retain their aquatic traits throughout their evolution, enabling them to thrive on both land and in water." This is, you guessed it, a metaphor: Ajolotes "embodies the inclusive Kannapolis culture, which allows our Hispanic community to embrace American traditions while preserving their rich Hispanic heritage."

Norfolk Tides (Triple-A BAL)
Caballitos del Mar de Norfolk
The Tides are no stranger to Copa, having previously taken the field as the Pajaritos (as in Baby Birds, a nod to the team’s Orioles affiliation). They’ve rebranded for the 2025 campaign and will now suit up as the Caballitos del Mar, Spanish for seahorse. The Tides' primary logo already features a seahorse, but the Caballitos del Mar logo is rendered with a sugar skull-style design. The team created this identity in partnership with their local Chamber for Hispanic Progress, noting that the seahorse is native to the region and "also important to Hispanic culture both environmentally and economically."

Rome Braves (High-A ATL)
Los Pingüinos 
In 2024, following 20 seasons as the Braves, Rome, Ga.'s South Atlantic League team changed its name. Thus began the reign of the Rome Emperors, whose primary logo features an emperor penguin. Los Pingüinos is an extension of this new look, with the penguin depicted in full body side profile. The logo was "inspired by Mexican folk art and Dia de Los Muertos symbolism," serving as "an icon of communal bonding."  Pingüinos replaces Rome's previous Copa identity, the peach-themed Duraznos de Roma.

Stockton Ports (Single-A ATH)
Stockton Cheladas
Beverages are already well represented in the Copa ecosystem, with examples including (but not limited to) El Paso Margaritas, Lehigh Valley Mamajuana and Limonadas de Hill City. Grab a clean glass, squeeze a lime and salt the rim, because the Stockton Cheladas have now arrived. Cheladas, a shortened form of michelada, have "many diverse flavors just like the diversity we celebrate here in the city of Stockton." Cheladas is the Ports' second Copa identity, replacing the Caballos (Horses).

Sugar Land Space Cowboys (Triple-A HOU)
Payasos del Rodeo de Sugar Land
A serious clown sounds like a contradiction in terms, but that’s just what the Space Cowboys convey with Payasos del Rodeo de Sugar Land. It's a tribute to the Houston area’s rodeo scene, whose "unsung protectors" are the rodeo clowns. Sure, the clowns entertain the crowd between events, but "the real core of their existence is to protect the bull riders and help corral the angry toros after they’ve bucked their riders." Payasos del Rodeo pays homage to the "contributions of the Hispanic community to the birth, growth and continued success of rodeo in southeast Texas and around the country." The Space Cowboys had previously participated in Copa with their more sweet-natured Dulces de Sugar Land identity. 

Winston-Salem Dash (High-A CWS)
Humo de Winston-Salem
After stints as the Rayados (Striped Ones) and Salsa, the ever-changing Dash are adopting yet another Copa identity. El Humo translates to The Smoke, referencing the city’s famous R.J. Reynolds smokestacks. Winston-Salem has evolved since the days when tobacco was king, and El Humo “highlights the thriving Hispanic and Latin-owned businesses that fuel the community’s entrepreneurial spirit.” The smoke, as if cognizant of its power to create a logo, drifts out of the top of one smokestack and then loops around the other to form an H.

Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (High-A MIL)
Granjeros de Wisconsin
The Appleton-based Timber Rattlers, located in the heart of dairy country, have employed an Udder Tuggers alternate identity since 2019. This ridiculous name and look now has a moo-mentous new counterpart: Granjeros de Wisconsin (Farmers of Wisconsin). The logo is a variation on the Udder Tuggers, with the cow depicted as part of a psychedelic sugar skull design. On May 4, the first of three Granjeros games, the first 1000 fans receive a sugar skull cow bobblehead. Get in line now.

This is Josh Jackson, telling Ben to quiet down and let me have the horn for just a moment. You know me as the host of Ghosts of the Minors, the segment on The Show Before The Show podcast that challenges you to find the actual historical Minor League Baseball team or player hidden among two fakes.

Last week, we rose up with Bob Risenhoover. This week, I ask which of these teams tried to harvest a real gem in the Minors of yesteryear?

1. The Durango QuartzDippers
2. The Golden Diamond Grabbers
3. The Newport Pearl Diggers

For the answer, tune into the next Ghosts of the Minors!

Do you listen to The Show Before the Show podcast, featuring Sam Dykstra, Tyler Maun and a man I sometimes refer to as yours truly? If not, the most recent episode is always a great place to start. Come for the interview with new Tacoma Rainiers broadcaster Rylee Pay (the first female lead broadcaster at the Triple-A level), stay for the latest shocking revelation that Tyler and I have discovered about Sam.

And if that somehow doesn’t suit your fancy, there’ll be a new episode tomorrow! There’s a new episode every Friday! Check out all the episodes here.

LISTEN TO RYLEE PAY ON THE SHOW BEFORE THE SHOW PODCAST HERE

Thanks, as always, for reading. Stay tuned next week for the moment you (may) have been waiting for: I’ll reveal my 2025 road trip itineraries! 

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