It was announced some time ago that the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees — the Bombers’ Triple-A team — would be getting a new name. This to coincide with their renovated ballpark and stuff. As has become the custom over the years, the team let fans come up with names. And … here they are:
– Blast: A tip of the cap to the area’s rich mining history, and the sound of future New York Yankees hitting home runs at the newly renovated PNC Field.
This one will help local newspaper writers come up with punny headlines for years, so it’s got that going for it.
– Black Diamond Bears: Another look back to the mining days, combined with the ferociousness of the black bear.
Actually, black bears are now more widely thought of as being on the timid-end of the bear scale, so maybe not.
– Fireflies: The state insect of Pennsylvania, and a sure sign of summertime in Northeast Pennsylvania.
My favorite. My suggestion for the mascot.
– Porcupines: A “renegade native” of Northeast Pennsylvania that displays the fighting spirit of area residents.
OK, but seems more like an A-ball or independent league kind of mascot. Maybe it would work if the hats were cool.
– RailRiders: A reference to the area’s history on the rails.
Always good when you can invoke the idea of hobos.
– Trolley Frogs: A trolley frog is the mechanical part of a trolley, and Scranton is, after all, the home of the nation’s first electric trolley car.
The “after all” is what kills me. Because of course everyone knows this. That aside, I have this feeling, given the dumb times in which we lived, if I called someone a “trolley frog” there would be some sort of debate of whether I was being racist, so that could be cool.
Oh well. Vote here between now and August 24th. Not sure if you can write in “Yankees,” but it seems like that is still the best name.
