More rebranding ahead

In the previous weeks and months you could read about upcoming rebrandings of minor league teams. The New Orleans Zephyrs, the Binghamton Mets and the Lynchburg HillCats will all have new names next year.

Add one more team to that list: The Staten Island Yankees are the fourth team to adopt a different name in the upcoming season. The front office announced the intention and reached out to the fans to think about a new name for a name-the-team-contest.

This new name will be part of a great season for the Yankees. Next to their stadium, Richmond County Bank Ballpark, two new attractions will rise. The NY Wheel and the Empire Outlets.

With the new attractions surrounding their ballpark, the team is looking for a new name that is more Staten Island. Since the New York Yankees are the owner of the club, it is not strange that the club had a similar look until now: pinstripe unis and a logo with the Yankees top hat.

Team President/Operating Partner Will Smith stated: “This ballpark is a jewel located in a passionate community in the best setting in sports. The Staten Island community is proud to have our team here, and we believe rebranding the team to something more specific will make this local brand become more popular here, and ultimately internationally. We are very proud to be Yankees, but equally proud to be part of this community. What moniker best represents this city, borough, and team? You tell us! We want to encompass the passion, cultures, tradition and pride of Staten Island, New York.”

The SI Yankees are part of the Yankees organization since 1999 when the Yankees and the Mets both decided to skip the territorial rights rule and place a A Short Season team in the New York area.

Personally, I think it is a shame that the team will get rid of the current moniker. I always liked the logo and the unis. Since Staten Island is a neighbourhood of  New York, I thought that the name was rather fitting.

More information about the name-the-team-contest can be found here.