MLB: The Defunct Saga - Bibliography Added

[teeray01]

Will you be doing a logo sheet for the black and red version?

[Joke Insurance]

@SFGiants58 Will you by chance be doing concepts on any of the following teams that could have been called something different?

 

Arizona Diamondbacks

Coyotes
Phoenix
Rattlers
Scorpions

Source: https://venomstrikes.com/2016/02/04/diamondbacks-expansion-team-names/

Kansas City Royals

Batmen
Bovines
Canaries
Caps
Capsules
Cowpokes
Mules
Plowboys
Pythons
Eagles
Kings
Stars

Source: https://www.southsidesox.com/platform/amp/2018/3/31/17183054/franchise-facts-kansas-city-royals-could-have-been-called-the-canaries

Florida (Miami) Marlins

Flamingos
Manatees

Source: http://news.sportslogos.net/2011/09/28/remembering-the-florida-marlins-identity-1993-2011/

New York Mets

Avengers
Bees
Burros
Continentals
Empires
Islanders
Jets
NYBS
Rebels
Skyliners
Skyscrapers

Source: http://mentalfloss.com/article/24358/whats-nickname-origins-all-30-mlb-team-names

Seattle Mariners

Centurions
Schooners
Seagulls
Seatacs
Sovereigns
Sultans
Totems
Utopians

Source: https://mynorthwest.com/1328147/naming-seattle-mariners-1976/

Toronto Blue Jays

Abners
Algonquins
Bears
Beavers
Blue Birds
Blue Shoes
Blue Sox
Blues
Canadians
Hogtowners
Iroquois
Orangemen
Towers
Trilliums
Wildcats

Source: https://www.blogto.com/city/2014/05/5_toronto_icons_that_could_have_had_different_names/

[teeray01]

Since this thread covers failed expansion will you cover any cities not mentioned previously that you haven't done concepts for?

- In the early 1960's, The Continental League, a rival league to the AL and NL was created and teams placed in New York, Toronto,

  Buffalo, Atlanta, Dallas, Houston, Minneapolis and Denver.  7 of these cities have gained teams in the MLB.  Only Buffalo has not.

  Indianapolis, Los Angeles, Louisville, Miami, Montreal, New Orleans, Portland, San Diego and Seattle were also considered for the CL.

- The Kansas City Royals, Montreal Expos, Seattle Pilots and San Diego Padres were granted expansion teams in 1969.

   Buffalo, Dallas, Milwaukee, New Orleans, Oakland and Toronto were considered.

- The Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays were given expansion teams in 1977.

   Atlanta, Buffalo, Dallas, Denver, Oakland and San Diego were considered.

- In 1993, the Colorado Rockies and Florida Marlins were given expansion teams.

  Buffalo, Charlotte, Nashville, Orlando, Phoenix, Sacramento, Tampa, FL and Washington, DC were considered.

- In 1998, the Arizona Diamondbacks and Tampa Bay Devil Rays were given expansion teams.

  Buffalo, Nashville, Northern Virginia, Orlando and Vancouver were considered.

  Charlotte and Washington, DC were mentioned but neither city officially applied for expansion.

- Currently, Portland, Charlotte, Las Vegas, Nashville. Montreal and Vancouver are being considered for future expansion.

Would love to see concepts for Louisville, New Orleans, Buffalo, Nashville, Orlando, Sacramento, Vancouver.  I believe all other

locations have been covered.  Portland is awesome!  Sacramento was covered by the Giants but would love to see a fresh concept.

Same with New Orleans.  They were covered by the Pirates.  I know one of the Orlando groups was the Orlando Sun Rays.

Anyway,  I hope you will give this some consideration.  If not this time, maybe later.

 

Louisville Colonels?

Orlando Sun Rays?

Sacramento Solons?

Vancouver Mounties?

 

 

 

[DCarp1231]

Would you consider doing a “What could be?” with the potential Tampa Bay/Montreal Rays?

[SFGiants58]

On 6/23/2019 at 5:03 PM, Frylock said:

Just a quick drive-by comment to tell

you the red/black/blue set is MONEY. It ties in to the “city” sports colors of red and black (Blazers, Winterhawks, prior eras of Beavers) but adds in a delightful and fitting twist with the light blue. NAILED IT, my friend.

 

Thank you for your kind words in your reply, and I share many of the same sentiments re: the likelihood of a stadium/team coming together.

On 6/23/2019 at 5:59 PM, coco1997 said:

That black/red/light blue set is super sharp!

 

Thanks! I figured that the red/black would an excellent color scheme for a Portland team, along with the green/blue/yellow (one for the Blazers/Winterhawks/Mavericks and some Beavers, and the other for the Timbers). 

 

On 6/23/2019 at 7:01 PM, the admiral said:

Yeah, something about the black and red Portland script with the light blue flourish really, really works.

 

The tan/Irish-rainbow deer is the best Bucks variant, yeah.

 

Thank you. I'm starting to come around on the tan and Irish Rainbow as well. It's better than the OTT logos they've had for the past few brandings.

 

On 6/23/2019 at 7:50 PM, Whittier S said:

Really digging the new colorway for the stag.

 

Thanks.

 

On 6/23/2019 at 9:41 PM, nielsoncp said:

I’m more a fan of the blue stag - I think the tan one reminds me too much of the Bucks logo in the old days. Either way though, the whole concept is pretty beautiful. 

 

And good luck with the move! I feel like it always throws me off for at least a month when I move. 

 

Thanks! There's definitely a Bucks vibe, but I rather like it. My move is just about finished, so normal scheduling should resume soon.

 

On 6/23/2019 at 11:11 PM, NicDB said:

Your red/black/blue variant seems to be quite popular, and I can definitely see why. I'd make the P white on the home unis, but apart from that, don't change a thing!

 

Thanks. The white P does look nice, but I like blue a bit more (original, with red NOB w/ black outline, is linked here).

 

 

On 6/24/2019 at 12:05 AM, BellaSpurs said:

I much prefer the red and black to the green tbh, but the light blue makes it seem too Chicago, maybe replace it with the green from the actual set? And what would the scripts look like with a connected tail or just removed tail. Because i don’t really like how it looks with it separated. 

Excited to see what you’ve got for your next team!

 

Thanks. The light blue is a bit Chicago-ish, but adding green wouldn't work nearly the same way. It'd have to be a lime shade, which is a little distracting. I did consider no tail or a connected tail, but it would mean either losing an injection of the third color or the flairs on the "s" and "d" letters. 

 

On 6/24/2019 at 3:11 PM, teeray01 said:

Great updates.  Eliminating the back antler gives it a cleaner look.  I have to say I like the black and red uniform option the most.  Great work again!

 

Thanks.

 

On 6/29/2019 at 3:16 PM, DNAsports said:

Would you consider doing a “What could be?” with the potential Tampa Bay/Montreal Rays?

 

Oh yes, they're on the list! I'm thinking of doing an "honest" and "silly" version of it.

 

On 6/25/2019 at 10:25 AM, teeray01 said:

Will you be doing a logo sheet for the black and red version?

 

I can do you one better. Here's the whole set!

 

 

Original Home & Road, with incorrect NOB

 

 

 

 

 

The next team should be up later today or tomorrow.

[neo_prankster]

You knocked this one...

 

..."OUTTA HERE!!!!" as Duane Kuiper would say.

[SFGiants58]

VIRGINIA FURY - Phase Three Horseplay

 

 

The name that was worse than Minnesota Wild, Rocky Mountain Xtreme, or any number of 1996 MLS names is back, baby!

 

This wonderful idea for a team sobriquet came from an attempt by Virginia telecom executive William “Bill” Collins III, who came up with a plan to build a stadium in Northern Virginia (near Dulles Airport, “three in Fairfax County, two in Loudoun” - this is a Stadium Page link to a Loudoun County concept from the 2000s, during the discussion to bring the Expos over to the DC Metro Area) to act as a de-facto team for the District of Columbia. The team would start play at RFK before moving to their new digs, much like the current Nationals.¹

 

 

(William "Bill" Collins III, depicted at a 2005 Nationals game against the Astros - the team he tried to move in the mid-'90s - he's a real Harold Slovinski, by the looks of him)

 

While I initially stopped with the planned relocation of the Astros in my first design, that wasn't the end of the dreadful moniker. Collins' group (Virginia Baseball Club/Authority) continued their interest in an MLB club, seeing the perfect opportunity with the Expos. He had an agreement in principle to buy the Expos in 1999, but the deal fell through. Collins tried  in 2000 with an offer of $168 million, but he never heard back from MLB authorities. During these attempts, Collins was busy courting the state government of Virginia to help him finance a venue. While he got on well with Governor George Allen, netting a site near Arlington's Pentagon City, later politicians would prove problematic. Arlington County Board Chairman Paul Ferguson backed the city out of the deal, reversing his predecessor's support in mid-2003. Collins would shift his focus to a site outside Dulles Airport.²

 

Collins tried hard to impress MLB executives and potential investors with his 400-acre site near Dulles, which he called "Diamond Lake." Loudoun County (where the site was) negotiated extensively with the group, figuring out financing and zoning regulations. However, politicians in Virginia (during Spring-Summer 2004) were skeptical about how much a Northern Virginia team would benefit the rest of the state, especially once Norfolk tendered an offer for the Expos. Governor Mark Warner, no doubt aware of his potential conflicts of interest (he was a former business partner of Collins), withdrew his support for the Northern Virginia plan in September 2004. Collins' dream of owning a baseball team in Northern Virginia had died, allowing DC to gain ground in their pursuit of a team. While Commissioner Selig tried to garner support for a Virginia plan (out of support for Orioles owner Peter Angelos), no public funding would eliminate the Dulles site from consideration.³

 

Most of my information comes from this excellent article in Washingtonian by Harry Jaffe. It covers the fall of the Virginia bid and the rise of DC's bid (despite several big obstacles), highlighting my thesis of "The Expos were DC's team to lose and they could have easily lost them to Virginia/Norfolk."

 

Again, there are doubts if Collins was really serious about the name "Virginia Fury." I point to a quote from this article, in which he said (along with sort of supporting the Nationals sobriquet):

 

Quote

"That was never a real suggestion," he said. "Major League Baseball was pressing us for a name and a logo so they could start marketing immediately if we got the franchise, and we came up with Fury. The logo had a horse jumping through a big 'V' as I recall."⁴

 

While I disregarded these plans for my original concept (in which I equated "Fury" to flames), I adapted those colors to fit with the horse design. It was also a chance for me to test out @raysox's idea of the Four Phases of Expansion Team Design. I would call my first take a Phase Two creation, while this concept is a Phase Three. 

 

The horse (based on this image) runs through a modified version of the "V" from City Medium (which went well with the 2005-10 Nationals' beveled slab-serif font). This insignia appears within a roundel for the primary and alone as the tertiary. The secondary is a "V" without the horse.

 

 

Uniforms carry over some influences from the 2005-10 Nationals, such as the slab-serif numbers and the color flip between home and road sets. The wordmarks are at an angle, featuring bevels in gold. I opted for single-color striping, as a simpler design than the Nats' trim. Here is the original, after an error fix.

 

 

The alternates also demonstrate the color flip, with a red-heavy home alternate and a black set with more touches of red (front numbers and cap bills). This is a mid-2000s design, so a black jersey is a must. The error version (strokes on the inside of the cap insignia) is within the link.

 

 

The other alternates include the red-billed cap with the home set (along with black undershirts), alongside a 1968-71 Senators fauxback. This one features an era-appropriate version of the logo on the sleeve, as well as my attempt to turn the Nats' curly W into a V. 

 

 

My primary jacket highlights the color split and the state wordmark (the original is here), while the throwback uses a "Virginia" script. 

 

 

 

The name is dreadful (it reeks of Bill Collins trying to do a "This is what the kids like" bit), but the pitch and the design has a lot of room to make up for it. Still, I'm sure the team would have rebranded under new ownership, as "Virginia" would alienate any potential Maryland audience and a "Washington" team has a tad more cultural cache. Besides, placating Peter Angelos would have worn off with time. 

 

C+C is appreciated, as always!

 

Up next, we stick around in Virginia, albeit a little more south.

 

¹ Mark Maske, “PHOENIX, TAMPA-ST. PETE LOOK LIKE LOCKS,” Washington Post, January 2, 1995, https://www.washingtonpost.com/archive/sports/1995/01/22/phoenix-tampa-st-pete-look-like-locks/271474e9-ae7b-4384-8645-6a6ec50283d8/.

² Harry Jaffe, “How DC Got Baseball Back | Washingtonian (DC),” Washingtonian (blog), April 1, 2005, https://www.washingtonian.com/2005/04/01/how-dc-got-baseball-back/.

³ Ibid.

⁴ The Washington Times, “Forget about the Fury Here Come the Nats (Maybe)!,” The Washington Times, March 31, 2003, https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2003/mar/31/20030331-090316-3265r/.

 

[heavybass]

..... Assuming the Fury would be renamed the Nationals after this debacle if they existed.

[coco1997]

Great work! I love the heritage alt and dugout jacket. Definitely has a timeless look to it. 

[Whittier S]

You absolutely redeemed an awful name. The Fury branding is gorgeous. BTW who is Bill Collins?

[_DietDrPepper_]

Tbh I expected a Baltimore Colts style logo when I heard a horse jumping through a v, but I like this much better, the horse could use some adjustments, something is off with the legs maybe their a touch too small? But whatever it is doesn’t ruin the concept or anything, it’s gorgeous, and much better than the flames idea. I’m really liking the black jersey! Excited for what’s next

[Dalcowboyfan92]

This name is still try-hard, edgy, extreme 90s in a nutshell. Nauseatingly so.

[teeray01]

Great updates on both Portland and Virginia.  Portland is awesome in black/red/blue. I am from Fort Wayne and we had a basketball team named the Fury in the CBA.  I am actually ok with that name.  Do you design with Illustrator or Corel Draw?

[The_Admiral]

I appreciate the craftsmanship but I don't think there's anything saving "Virginia Fury." I'm glad we dodged having an explicitly Northern Virginia team; I don't think there's a more loathsome suburbia in America than an LSD spider web of McMansions whose residents develop new ways to set faraway people on fire.

[JerseyJimmy]

On 7/8/2019 at 11:42 AM, the admiral said:

I appreciate the craftsmanship but I don't think there's anything saving "Virginia Fury." I'm glad we dodged having an explicitly Northern Virginia team; I don't think there's a more loathsome suburbia in America than an LSD spider web of McMansions whose residents develop new ways to set faraway people on fire.

 

can't drive to save their goddamn lives, either.

[Joke Insurance]

3 hours ago, Jimmy Lethal said:

 

can't drive to save their goddamn lives, either.

 

Nah. We are better than Maryland drivers.

[SFGiants58]

On 7/6/2019 at 6:31 AM, heavybassX said:

..... Assuming the Fury would be renamed the Nationals after this debacle if they existed.

 

Yes. I assumed that once Bill Collins' group sold the team, they'd rebrand, especially if they want to court the DC market and potential Maryland fans. Of course, public funding from the state of Virginia might prove an issue.

 

On 7/6/2019 at 12:10 PM, coco1997 said:

Great work! I love the heritage alt and dugout jacket. Definitely has a timeless look to it. 

 

Thanks!

 

On 7/6/2019 at 5:45 PM, Whittier S said:

You absolutely redeemed an awful name. The Fury branding is gorgeous. BTW who is Bill Collins?

 

Thank you. Bill Collins III was the potential owner of the Northern Virginia team, the guy spearheading the plan. I explained his role in the write-up.

 

On 7/6/2019 at 8:11 PM, BellaSpurs said:

Tbh I expected a Baltimore Colts style logo when I heard a horse jumping through a v, but I like this much better, the horse could use some adjustments, something is off with the legs maybe their a touch too small? But whatever it is doesn’t ruin the concept or anything, it’s gorgeous, and much better than the flames idea. I’m really liking the black jersey! Excited for what’s next

 

Thanks! I'm glad you like it. The short legs is a bit of an issue, but I didn't want the legs messing with the "V" shape. I do like it a bit more than the flames. 

 

On 7/7/2019 at 8:57 PM, Dalcowboyfan92 said:

This name is still try-hard, edgy, extreme 90s in a nutshell. Nauseatingly so.

 

Oh f--k is that true. This name is one of the single-worst I've run into in the project.   

 

On 7/8/2019 at 10:19 AM, teeray01 said:

Great updates on both Portland and Virginia.  Portland is awesome in black/red/blue. I am from Fort Wayne and we had a basketball team named the Fury in the CBA.  I am actually ok with that name.  Do you design with Illustrator or Corel Draw?

 

Thanks. I figured at least one CBA team would have used the "Fury" moniker. I use a combination of Inkscape and Illustrator, along with a bit of Vector Magic and Photoshop.

 

On 7/8/2019 at 10:42 AM, the admiral said:

I appreciate the craftsmanship but I don't think there's anything saving "Virginia Fury."

 

Thanks! I figured that the team might go in a horse direction with a renaming, since "Fury" doesn't necessarily connote horses. 

 

On 7/8/2019 at 10:42 AM, the admiral said:

I'm glad we dodged having an explicitly Northern Virginia team; I don't think there's a more loathsome suburbia in America than an LSD spider web of McMansions whose residents develop new ways to set faraway people on fire.

 

I agree entirely.

 

On 7/12/2019 at 10:04 PM, Jimmy Lethal said:

can't drive to save their goddamn lives, either.

On 7/13/2019 at 1:08 AM, Joke Insurance said:

Nah. We are better than Maryland drivers.

 

That reminds me of a favorite Regular Car Reviews video of mine.

 

 

You basically need a decommissioned cop car to survive the roads in the area.

 

The Norfolk team will be up soon.

[SFGiants58]

NORFOLK DESTROYERS - The Grey Men

 

Here we have the last of the Virginia proposals, an idea that would have finally put Norfolk on the "Big League" map. While we may be familiar with the Norfolk/Hampton Roads area's attempts to secure an NHL team and their efforts to gain the Hornets, their baseball pursuit does deserve mentioning. A latecomer to the Expos pursuit (starting work in mid-2003), the Norfolk Baseball Co. was led by William Somerindyke Jr. (now CEO of Regulus Global, a military contractor agency that has had its fair share of controversy and problems) and Jason Osborne (who now heads a holster-making company). They were billed as "twenty-something former stock analysts/investment bankers" and "navy brats" who wanted to get in on the baseball pursuit, citing Norfolk as the perfect new home of the Expos. They pointed out population numbers (1.6 million in the Hampton Roads area, compared to 1.7 in Northern Virginia) and the size of the market (18th at the time).¹ 

 

  

(Jason Osborne and William Somerindyke Jr., from both 2004 and now - later photos are from their respective LinkedIn profiles) ²

 

Their website (which only exists now as a Wayback Machine piece, with difficult navigation from the broken image links) tried to make a strong case for the region, pointing out the various companies that put down deposits for skyboxes, the region's demographics, and their political support. Over 10,000 people committed for season tickets, a promising start for their pursuit. They were even able to get local mayors on their side, as indicated by these TV commercials I found via web.archive.org (the ones that survived on Wayback Machine).³

 

Spoiler

A better version of the first clip (Sony Vegas doesn't like .WMV files, obviously).

 

 

 

Norfolk and the Hampton Roads region really got all-in on the campaign. Aside from the season tickets, mayoral support, and skybox deposits, their "We Believe! Get in the Game" campaign manifested itself in painting manhole covers like baseballs, putting up "We Believe" signs, and creating a stadium plan. Said plan was to first expand Harbor Park, then build a 100% publicly-financed venue adjacent to the Norfolk Tides' Harbor Park, which would cost $292/$300 million (depending on the source) and seat 38,000/40,000.

 

(Rendering courtesy of StadiumPage.com, manhole cover from NorfolkMLB.com) ⁴

 

The rendering here doesn't reflect the total military fetishism (seeing as how Norfolk is home to one of the largest naval bases in the world) that Somerindyke and Osborne wanted. Their plan included battleship grey walls, two gun turrets on the roof that would shoot fireworks, a fighter jet on display, along with anchors on display and sail-like roofs. The pair also revealed how they wanted to have the local naval base influence the new name of the team. Think San Diego Padres, but taken to its logical conclusion.⁵ 

 

Despite being a latecomer, MLB took the bid seriously. Peter Angelos, one of the biggest obstacle towards having a team in DC or Northern Virginia, announced his support for a Norfolk plan.⁶ Even after MLB made it clear that Washington and Northern Virginia were the real front-runners, Norfolk remained a solid back-up, as it was a Virginia location that could maybe service the northern parts of the state and bits of North Carolina. Their attempts seemed to be strong, with a near-guarantee of consideration, especially when DC's funding situation was in flux.⁷

 

However, further digging revealed that Somerindyke and Osborne had problems which could discredit their bid. Their resumes were inflated. While both had spent some time working at Merrill Lynch as stock brokers, their individual companies (Summit Broadcasting and Efirms.com, respectively) were misrepresented on their site. Summit Broadcasting, a North Carolina-based company, was unknown to The North Carolina Association of Broadcasters (despite Somerindyke's claim of a merger). Efirms.com was inactive, due to "lack of capital, patent litigation and damage to some of its equipment." While there is no evidence to say that this investigation discredited the bid in the eyes of MLB (specifically Selig and Bob DuPuy), it was not a good look. Also, Somerindyke and Osborne's unwillingness to disclose their primary investor (although one came forward) further hindered their efforts.⁸

 

While there was a brief spot for Norfolk to claim the team during the December 2004 funding debates for the Nationals' new stadium, they ultimately faded away. While Somerindyke did receive some attention from David Sampson and the Marlins in 2006, Norfolk's dream of an MLB team faded away.⁹ I would never want to rule out the possibility of Norfolk/the Hampton Roads area playing host to a Big Four team (or even an MLS bid), but trying to usurp DC was not the way to go about it, especially with Somerindyke and Osborne leading the charge and a publicly-funded stadium. I'd like to give a shout-out to the writers of The Virginian-Pilot, especially Harry Minium. Their work was essential to assembling this narrative.

 

However, what if Norfolk landed the Expos?

 

The duo mentioned their desire to have the Navy play a role in the naming and the design of the new identity. While this article indicated that "Norfolk Steamers" was the leading idea, I felt that this would fail the "Would a 12 year-old laugh at it?" test. I figured that with a navy-influenced design and with the stadium's design, they might go for something a bit more military-themed. I decided to use the name "Norfolk Destroyers," which evokes both the navy base and intimidation (thanks, @hockey week, for the idea). The colors follow a pattern of "Battleship Grey" and Navy, with both in balance.¹⁰

 

The primary features a home plate design, with a destroyer illustration. It's based around the USS Kidd, a Fletcher-Class Destroyer from WWII. The font is USAAF Stencil, a font that invokes the block lettering of the USAAF aircraft of WWII and WWII-period ship lettering. I took some cues from the San Diego Fleet's logo, which was a strong representation of this design (far stronger than the league it played in). Drop shadow appears on all of the lettering, as a "modern" twist to the design. The secondary is the cap logo, while a roundel forms the tertiary.

 

EDIT: I fixed the misspelling on the tertiary logo - thanks @coco1997! (Originals are here)

 

 

The uniforms feature the same trim as the early Nationals, while also carrying over the drop shadow to the numbers. The road uniforms use a darker gray than the shades I've used before (e.g., #a2aaad, #b2b4b2, #c7c7c7, and #9ea2a2), to tie in with the "battleship theme." White text with navy outlines and shadows really sets it apart from the Yankees' road uniforms. Said uniform also uses the tertiary logo to avoid a grey overload. NOB's are straight, for a bit of a change-up.

 

 

The alternates include a navy jersey with a grey-crowned cap (to be worn with both home and road designs, since it is a team color) and the insignia. I also added a desert MARPAT (sourced from here) camo alternate, much like the 2011-present Padres. If the team wanted to play up the military theme, going full fetishist with the camo would be perfect (especially considering that Somerindyke would later be the CEO of a military contractor company).

 

 

The jackets include both a navy and camo set.

 

 

 

While it'd be nice for Norfolk to have a Big Four team, I doubt baseball would be the best option. This military fetishist plan for a baseball team would have been an exceptionally tacky identity and park for the team. Still, I think I worked well within the mindset that ran this bid. C+C is appreciated, as always!

 

Up next, we finally get to DC, albeit with a different kind of historical name.

 

¹ Murray Chass, “On Baseball; Virginia’s Pursuit of Expos Develops Into Battle Between North and South,” The New York Times, February 29, 2004, sec. Sports, https://www.nytimes.com/2004/02/29/sports/baseball-virginia-s-pursuit-expos-develops-into-battle-between-north-south.html; David Lamb, “Stealing the Montreal Expos Home,” Los Angeles Times, July 3, 2004, https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2004-jul-03-na-norfolk3-story.html; Harry Minium, “26 Years. 5 Failures. What Now?,” The Virginian-Pilot, January 10, 2013, sec. Front; Norfolk MLB, “Why Is Hampton Roads Ready?,” June 14, 2004, http://web.archive.org/web/20040614233012/http://www.norfolkmlb.com/ready.html; Norfolk MLB, “Norfolk Baseball Company,” September 1, 2004, http://web.archive.org/web/20040901212523/http://norfolkmlb.com/; Nathan Warters, “Making a Pitch for Norfolk,” Fredericksburg.com, July 27, 2004, https://www.fredericksburg.com/sportspro_baseball/making-a-pitch-for-norfolk/article_293edfc7-91af-5222-8dc8-60d527abd84b.html; Michael Zitz, “Norfolk Making Its Baseball Pitch,” Fredericksburg.com, June 17, 2004, https://www.fredericksburg.com/local/norfolk-making-its-baseball-pitch/article_9160419e-2ef8-5c1b-9fdc-010f2d9ad23d.html.

 

² LinkedIn, “Will Somerindyke | LinkedIn,” accessed July 18, 2019, https://www.linkedin.com/in/will-somerindyke-9a34b23b/; LinkedIn, “Jason Osborne | LinkedIn,” accessed July 18, 2019, https://www.linkedin.com/in/hardtofindholsters/; Lon Wagner, “Optimists Push Baseball in Norfolk (HamptonRoads.Com/Pilot Online),” News, PilotOnline.com/HamptonRoads.com, June 22, 2004, http://web.archive.org/web/20040712014920/http://home.hamptonroads.com/stories/story.cfm?story=72017&ran=10744.

 

³ Norfolk MLB, “Norfolk: Get in the Game!,” Norfolk MLB, October 10, 2004, http://web.archive.org/web/20041010082743/http://www.diainc.com/getinthegame.html; Norfolk MLB, “Norfolk Baseball Company;" Phillip Thompson, “Bottom of the 9th for Norfolk - Chicago Tribune,” Chicago Tribune, June 10, 2004, sec. RedEye, https://webcache.googleusercontent.com/search?q=cache:ccpU_51Xue4J:https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-2004-06-10-0406100344-story.html+&cd=1&hl=en&ct=clnk&gl=us.

 

⁴ Associated Press, “Mayors Look for Public Support for Norfolk Bid for Expos,” ESPN.com, May 26, 2004, https://www.espn.com/espn/wire?section=mlb&id=1810132; Lamb, “Stealing the Montreal Expos Home;” Minium, “26 Years. 5 Failures. What Now?;” Norfolk MLB, “Norfolk Baseball Company;" Eric Okurowski, “StadiumPage.Com - 2004 Norfolk, VA Concept,” Stadium Page, 2012, http://www.stadiumpage.com/concepts/Norfolk04_R.html; Lon Wagner, “Optimists Push Baseball in Norfolk (HamptonRoads.Com/Pilot Online),” News, PilotOnline.com/HamptonRoads.com, June 22, 2004, http://web.archive.org/web/20040712014920/http://home.hamptonroads.com/stories/story.cfm?story=72017&ran=10744; Warters, “Making a Pitch for Norfolk;” Zitz, “Norfolk Making Its Baseball Pitch.” 

 

⁵ Harry Minium, “Group Pitches Navy Themes for Baseball Stadium,” The Virginian-Pilot, June 8, 2004, sec. Local; Thompson, “Bottom of the 9th for Norfolk;" Zitz, “Norfolk Making Its Baseball Pitch."

 

⁶ Chass, “On Baseball; Virginia’s Pursuit of Expos Develops Into Battle Between North and South;" Zitz, “Norfolk Making Its Baseball Pitch."

 

⁷ Tony Germanotta, “Whatever Happened to... William Somerindyke Jr.?,” The Virginian-Pilot, August 1, 2005, sec. Local. Harry Minium, “Expos Talks Could Resume between MLB and Norfolk,” The Virginian-Pilot, December 21, 2004, sec. Front.

 

⁸ Neil DeMause and Joanna Cagan, Field of Schemes: How the Great Stadium Swindle Turns Public Money Into Private Profit (Lincoln, NE: U of Nebraska Press, 2008); Harry Minium, “Engineer, Sports Lover Goes to Bat for Baseball - Sole Local Investor Identifies Himself,” The Virginian-Pilot, August 5, 2004, sec. Front; Tom Shean, “Pair Embellished Accomplishments - Biographies on Web Site Suggest Impressive Business Experience,” The Virginian-Pilot, July 29, 2004, sec. Front; The Virginian-Pilot, “A Credibility Foul for Norfolk Baseball,” The Virginian-Pilot, July 30, 2004, sec. Local.

 

⁹ Roger Chesley, “Looking for Big League Love in All the Wrong Places,” The Virginian-Pilot, January 21, 2006, sec. Local; Germanotta, “Whatever Happened to... William Somerindyke Jr.?;” Minium, “Expos Talks Could Resume between MLB and Norfolk;” Harry Minium, “Team President: Marlins Have the Go-Ahead to Eye Norfolk,” The Virginian-Pilot, February 10, 2006, sec. Local; Minium, “26 Years. 5 Failures. What Now?.”

 

¹⁰ Zitz, “Norfolk Making Its Baseball Pitch."

 

[Dalcowboyfan92]

Not a bad concept, however I feel this set needs an additional color to help it out. I know it doesn't really fit the whole "battleship" theme, but an additional bright color (like yellow) could work.

[coco1997]

I’m really liking this! I understand what @Dalcowboyfan92 is getting at about the colors but I love the austerity of the design. Almost like the NL’s answer to the White Sox.

 

I’m guessing the Pandas are next?

 

P.S. “Destroyers” is misspelled on the tertiary logo.