December 12, 20205 yr Feel free to offer your suggestions for a better team name than the Wichita Wind Surge. The Twins new AA franchise in Wichita was supposed to begin play in 2020 as a AAA team of the Marlins in the Pacific Coast League. They had relocated from New Orleans and just built a new ballpark. Folks in Wichita were excited - until they revealed their new branding - the Wind Surge! What does Wind Surge mean? This wasn't chosen via a fan contest. It was just put out there from the team. Take it or leave it. From what I can tell, it is a coastal weather phenomenon that causes increases in ocean waves. How does that apply to Wichita? Well, it doesn't. They inserted a winged horse in their logo which made Wichitans scratch their heads even more. I'm thinking maybe the same people who decorated the Denver airport had something to do with this. In looking back in Wichita minor league baseball history, their last representation in AA was by a team called the Wranglers - not a super great name, but still much much better than the Wind Surge. Any chance the Twins can buy up any existing Wind Surge products and then rebrand them again?
December 13, 20205 yr Wikipedia leads me to believe that aircraft manufacture (Cessna etc) is a major part of the local economy, and while maybe the city gets tired of that motif, I would throw Wichita Aviators out there for consideration. / edit - belatedly, that rang a bell... the Wichita Aeros were their AAA team from 1970-84. Maybe memories are bittersweet in that regard, after that team moved to Buffalo.
December 13, 20205 yr I'll make this an ode to Chief post: Wichita is the birthplace of White Castle fast-food chains...leading me to suggest The Wichita Sliders for two obvious reasons (as anyone who's ever made a midnight run to White Castle, followed by a 4:00am run of a different sort) A.A. Hyde discovered Mentholatum in 1894 in the current The Spice Merchant & Company building in Wichita...The Wichita Vapors (also foreshadowing the level of the current team...now) Other local Semi-Pro/Pro teams...Wichita Force (Champions Indoor Football League as if you didn't know already) and Wichita Thunder (Hockey - ECHL, an AA level professional league)...lead me to the obvious Wichita Lightning or Stealing the Wichita State Shockers monicker but instead will offer up The Wichita Energizers (as in AA) "I don't care Wichita as long as its a ta" - didn't want to bury the lead
December 13, 20205 yr The Wichita Linemen. No more calls ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner, Google the Glen Campell song if you'r e not familiar with Wichita Lineman (I'm sure they could change it to the plural version Linemen.) If we are able to baseball road trip this summer, we are so going to hit Cedar Rapids on our way down to Wichita. Maybe catch Omaha and Des Moines on the way back.
December 13, 20205 yr I have enjoyed reading this thread so far, but it points up how difficult it is to come up with a suitable team name and/or mascot these days. The people in the marketing department want a cool, appropriate name that has never been used by any other team ever in history so that official merchandise will sell well and so that the team doesn't infringe on an existing trademark. The fans want a cool, appropriate name that has never been used by any other team ever in history so they can feel a special connection to the team.I would guess that Wind Surge is a name that has never been used by any other team ever in history, probably for good reasons. And it may be appropriate. But as for me I'm at a loss to come up with a name that is unique, cool, and appropriate.
December 13, 20205 yr I'm not from Wichita, but I bet a goodly percentage of the residents there are soooooo sick and tired of that Glen Campbell song.
December 13, 20205 yr The Wichita Linemen. This would probably involve royalty payments to Jimmy Webb.
December 13, 20205 yr The Wichita Witches Perhaps the Wichita Warlocks would be more appropriate and also alliterate. But Kansas is full of Bible-thumpers, so I'm sure this wouldn't be politically acceptable.
December 13, 20205 yr Author Wichita is the birthplace of White Castle fast-food chains...leading me to suggest The Wichita Sliders for two obvious reasons (as anyone who's ever made a midnight run to White Castle, followed by a 4:00am run of a different sort) I liked this idea but unfortunately White Castle abandoned Wichita and the state of Kansas.
December 13, 20205 yr What about the Wichita Flathead Catfish or the Wichita Gizzard Shard. Both species are available to be caught in the Little Arkansas River flowing through lovely downtown Wichita.
December 14, 20205 yr I'm not from Wichita, but I bet a goodly percentage of the residents there are soooooo sick and tired of that Glen Campbell song. I personally could never get tired of that song. One of the greatest ever. Jimmy Webb and Glen Campbell were an incredible duo.
December 14, 20205 yr Wichita Attitude? I wanted to offer a palindromic mascot name, but it just doesn't quite work. This is as close as i could come. (Well, unless a sneaze is acceptible... which would pair well with homer hankies... that could double as a backup face mask.) And if you want to appeal to thumpers of a bible, you can say that in olden days, AAA was just A, so AA was actually B. Not sure this adequate, but i will settle for creative for now, and keep thinking...
December 14, 20205 yr Fun fact out of Witchita: Before he became known as Billy the Kid, Henry McCarty lived in Wichita with his mother and brother for about a year in 1870. On July 21, 1870, 124 people signed a petition to incorporate Wichita. There was only one female on that list: Henry’s mother, Catherine McCarty.
December 14, 20205 yr Well, Seattle went with the Kraken, so that leaves the Emeralds available (Kansas, Emerald City/Oz, etc.).
December 14, 20205 yr Well, Seattle went with the Kraken, so that leaves the Emeralds available (Kansas, Emerald City/Oz, etc.).Which brings to mind The ScareCrows.
December 14, 20205 yr From the team's MiLB web site: By Benjamin HillNovember 13, 2019Wichita's current affair is a current of air. The Wind Surge have blown into town.In 2020, after a 12-season absence, Minor League Baseball is returning to Kansas' largest city. As of Wednesday evening, that team has a name: the Wichita Wind Surge -- Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins -- relocated from New Orleans, where they had been known as the Baby Cakes. ... [prior] teams including the Aeros of the Triple-A American Association (1970-84) and, most recently, the Wranglers. ... • Feel the Wind Surge »The Wind Surge name was announced after a long period of speculation. Over the past three months, the team adopted temporary social media identities ranging from River Riders to the 29ers to, inevitably, the Linemen (a nod to Glen Campbell's iconic "Wichita Lineman"). Ultimately, the Pacific Coast League club went with a name and aesthetic far removed from anything that had been hinted.Wind Surge assistant general manager Bob Moullette said Wichita is at a unique point in its history and that the new ballpark is a core aspect of a period of rapid growth and reinvention. The team name, in short, is an indication of the city "exponentially surging forward.""Wichita is the air capital of the world, and we're paying homage to the wind. It's a mighty force," Moullette said. "It's powerful to us, and timeless."Moullette went on to quote from the team's brand statement, which reads, in part, that "Our visual identity embraces Pegasus, an eternal symbol of aspiration, free spirit and a daring, determined attitude -- harnessing the wind and surging forward." I'm not quite sure how "the air capital of the world" is determined. Maybe measuring the wind? But that would make it the wind capital of the world ... At any rate, I like the name better than Hardware City Rock Cats.
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