By Lance Tominaga, ESPN Honolulu Web Editor.
So I was exploring the Twitterverse earlier today and stumbled upon a post by our very own Josh Pacheco. There is a minor league baseball team called Sugar Land, and they used to go by the rather unique nickname of “Skeeters.” Well, apparently it wasn’t unique enough because the team is now calling themselves the “Space Cowboys.”
Yes, baseball’s minor leagues are where you’ll find the weirdest, funniest, coolest and most outrageous team nicknames. I searched and found 20 of my very favorites (Major League affiliate in parentheses):
- Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp (Marlins)
- Lehigh Valley IronPigs (Phillies)
- Louisville Bats (Reds)
- Omaha Storm Chasers (Royals)
- El Paso Chihuahuas (Padres)
- Amarillo Sod Poodles (Diamondbacks)
- Wichita Wind Surge (Twins)
- Akron RubberDucks (Guardians)
- Binghamton Rumble Ponies (Mets)
- Hartford Yard Goats (Rockies)
- Portland Sea Dogs (Red Sox
- Montgomery Biscuits (Rays)
- Rocket City Trash Pandas (Angels)
- Beloit Sky Carp (Marlins)
- Lansing Lugnuts (Athletics)
- Everett AquaSox (Mariners)
- Kannapolis Cannon Ballers (White Sox)
- Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (Twins)
- Modesto Nuts (Mariners)
- Charleston RiverDogs (Rays)
As a bonus, here are 10 more clever nicknames of teams competing in MLB Partner Leagues (with no specific MLB team affiliation):
- Lincoln SaltDogs
- Gastonia Honey Hunters
- Florence Y’alls
- Missoula Paddleheads
- Austin Weirdos
- Bakersfield Train Robbers
- Tupper Lake River Pigs
- Santa Rose Scuba Divers
- Westside Woolly Mammoths
- Rocky Mountain Vibes