Requiem for minor league team names

Let’s have a chat about minor league baseball, starting with the New York Yankees’ Triple-A Affiliate in Scranton, Pennsylvania.

It was announced Saturday that after 14 years as the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, the team would have a new name in 2027. Now, they are the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Highlanders. Complete with color change and a bear mascot too! Out with the navy, gold, white, and “cranberry,” in with navy pinstripes and some forest green.

The name, while not overly creative, fits the team. The Yankees were originally named the New York Highlanders, largely because their home stadium Hilltop Park (aka “The Rock Pile”) stood far uptown in Washington Heights. It’s also an indirect…