Minor League Spins on MLB Identities

[NicDB 2,977]

I came across this today, and it made me think about how much more common it was for MiLB teams to create their identity by putting a localized spin on the parent club's.



Even if they didn't adopt the parent club's name, they would frequently pattern their uniforms after their big league affiliate.


I know this practice is not completely unheard of nowadays. But I figure this thread could serve as a sort of database for when it has.

[NashConcepts 386]

Adv. Rookie: Pulaski Yankees- Appalacian League

 

 

A (Short Season): Staten Island Yankees- NY- Penn League

A

 

A: Charleston Riverdogs- South Atlantic League

 

A (Advanced) : Tampa Tarpons- Florida State League

 

AA : Trenton Thunder- Eastern League

 

AAA : Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders- International League

 

 

Before that...

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Krz 2,027]

[NicDB 2,977]

Holyoke Millers (Brewers)

 

[TBGKon 2,654]

The former Brevard County Manatees did this alt jersey after I stopped working for the team, to emulate the Brewers.

 

[Ferdinand Cesarano 4,563]

I strongly believe that emulating the look of the parent club is the correct way to do minor league uniforms.  

 

When the Buffalo Bisons were affilliated with the White Sox, their uniforms looked like the White Sox.  When they were affilliated with the Indians, their uniforms looked like the Indians.

 

 

        

 

 

 

Now that they are affilliated with the Blue Jays, they have done specialty days in which they wore Jays-themed uniforms, a style which should be their regular look.

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

Another great Blue Jays-style uniform was worn by the Syracuse Chiefs.

 

 

      

 

 

That cap logo deserves a special look.

 

 

 

 

This is so beautifully done in the style of the Blue Jays.  It is the graphical equivalent of a Rutles song. This remains an outstanding logo notwithstanding the inappropriateness of Native depictions.

 

 

Also looking great while reflecting the parent club's aesthetic were the Tidewater Tides.

 

 

    

 

 

You should always be able to tell at a glance which organisation each minor league team belongs to.  

 

 

[sportsfan7 432]

 

IIRC they played this way for a year after the Expos moved to DC bc they couldn't come up with a name

[MBurmy 1,138]

45 minutes ago, sportsfan7 said:

 

IIRC they played this way for a year after the Expos moved to DC bc they couldn't come up with a name

They did...apparently they didn't even want to be the "Vermont Nationals" for one season.

[eastfirst107 163]

[RedSox44 234]

Obvious answer here is the Paw Sox before they adopted their current identity. It’s literally just a Red Sox jersey!

 

The Portland Sea Dogs also had pinstripes when they were the Marlins’ affiliate from 1994-2002

 

[eastfirst107 163]

On 5/1/2020 at 8:09 AM, YankeeBaseball0934f said:

Adv. Rookie: Pulaski Yankees- Appalacian League

 

Yankees' affiliates have tended to stay in lockstep with the big club over the years:

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Fitzy0220 204]

On 5/1/2020 at 6:59 PM, Ferdinand Cesarano said:

I strongly believe that emulating the look of the parent club is the correct way to do minor league uniforms.  

 

When the Buffalo Bisons were affilliated with the White Sox, their uniforms looked like the White Sox.  When they were affilliated with the Indians, their uniforms looked like the Indians.

 

 

        

 

 

 

Now that they are affilliated with the Blue Jays, they have done specialty days in which they wore Jays-themed uniforms, a style which should be their regular look.

 

 

 

   

 

 

 

 

Another great Blue Jays-style uniform was worn by the Syracuse Chiefs.

 

 

      

 

 

That cap logo deserves a special look.

 

 

 

 

This is so beautifully done in the style of the Blue Jays.  It is the graphical equivalent of a Rutles song. This remains an outstanding logo notwithstanding the inappropriateness of Native depictions.

 

 

Also looking great while reflecting the parent club's aesthetic were the Tidewater Tides.

 

 

    

 

 

You should always be able to tell at a glance which organisation each minor league team belongs to.  

 

 

My 4 years ('91 - '95) in the Navy (CH46 Helicopter Mechanic, N.A.S Norfolk), I went to a lot of Hampton Roads Admirals (John Brophy years, '91 and '92 Kelly Cup champs) games, however, I never went to a Tidewater Tides game

[eastfirst107 163]

For being a rather crummy, undesirable big-league partner in their early days, a surprising number of their affiliates riffed off of the Mariners' template (or just slapped their city name on some hand-me-downs):

 

[QCS 2,603]

Three years ago the Knights celebrated their 25th year with the White Sox and used this awesome jersey:

[TrueYankee26 1,134]

Albany-Colonie Yankees

[nash61 1,803]

Dunedin:

 

Bluefield:

 

Pulaski:

[BBTV 20,151]

On 5/1/2020 at 6:59 PM, Ferdinand Cesarano said:

I strongly believe that emulating the look of the parent club is the correct way to do minor league uniforms.  

 

and as usual, I strongly disagree with you.

 

Affiliations change, so the same team could be completely changing it's look every so often.  If I'm in a minor league town, I'd rather think of the team as "our" team, with an identity that I can get behind, rather than just put it in my face that it's nothing but a puppet state for some other entity.

 

I don't know any, but I wonder how Red Barons fans felt when they woke up one day and their team was called the Yankees and had all new colors.  While I'm not fond of the name Iron Pigs, I'm glad the Phillies didn't go with "Lehigh Valley Phillies" or "Allentown Phillies" or something like that, and that the 'Pigs have a unique look.

[Ferdinand Cesarano 4,563]

3 hours ago, BringBackTheVet said:

Affiliations change, so the same team could be completely changing it's look every so often. 

 

Yes, it could, as the Bisons did in the 1980s, looking sharp each time.

 

3 hours ago, BringBackTheVet said:

If I'm in a minor league town, I'd rather think of the team as "our" team, with an identity that I can get behind, rather than just put it in my face that it's nothing but a puppet state for some other entity.

 

Except that's the nature of the affiliated minors, and has been for many decades.  All the players and coaches are employed by the parent club.  If that bothers you, then your beef is with Branch Rickey for having created the farm system, which pushed the independent minors out of business. 

What's more, there is nothing shameful about wearing the uniform of the parent club, or a uniform derived from it.  I would much prefer the players whom I root for on my local minor league team to wear a uniform related to the team that they are striving to reach, than to have them play fantasy dress-up as a separate entity — probably wearing undiginfied uniforms and sporting an embarrassing name and logo, to boot.
 

[CaliforniaGlowin 2,154]

Except for an occasional throwback, I hate this.  It's forcing a unique team's name into another team's brand instead of developing their own. 

 

I still want S.I. to be the Pizza Rats permanently! 

[QCS 2,603]

6 hours ago, Ferdinand Cesarano said:

 

Yes, it could, as the Bisons did in the 1980s, looking sharp each time.

 

 

Except that's the nature of the affiliated minors, and has been for many decades.  All the players and coaches are employed by the parent club.  If that bothers you, then your beef is with Branch Rickey for having created the farm system, which pushed the independent minors out of business. 

What's more, there is nothing shameful about wearing the uniform of the parent club, or a uniform derived from it.  I would much prefer the players whom I root for on my local minor league team to wear a uniform related to the team that they are striving to reach, than to have them play fantasy dress-up as a separate entity — probably wearing undiginfied uniforms and sporting an embarrassing name and logo, to boot.
 

I'd like it if minor league team's alts resembled the parent team. For example, the Knights have their own identity and branding, using black, gold, and white and entirely unique logos and wordmarks but had that SOX fauxback that I kinda wish became permanent, if only for that cap. Of course, the Knights also wear pinstripes so that's another connection to the ChiSox but I think relying on the parent team's brand results in a weaker brand overall, one that doesn't connect to the minor league city and also reduces the parent club's brand because it can potential cause confusion (not that it's all that likely, but when the Red Sox and PawSox's jerseys are basically identical I draw the line). Additionally, if the Major League-style jersey is an alt, it helps reduce the amount of stupid food-based alts we see. It's win-win!