My reaction to the Wizards foofaraw was probably the same as a lot of other people's: The TinCaps is a pretty silly name, but the logo is awesome. But Ben Smith says a lot of other names probably seemed silly at first:
Tell me, too, how it's any dopier than “Red Sox” or “White Sox” or any other nickname we've all come to regard as iconic over the years. I still get amused snickers when I try to explain Komets-with-a-K to people outside the Midwest. And you just know there were piles of folks in Toledo wondering what the heck kind of nickname “Mud Hens” was the first time they heard it.
And Angry White Boy says the logo was cribbed from a car company logo (sorry, can't link; it keeps locking up my browser when I go to www.fortwaynenews.com).
At least the name has some local history behind it, though it depends too much on the myth that John Chapman was just a poor itinerent appleseed-strewer. He was actally an astute businessman who traveled westward just ahead of the migrating hordes and figured out the exact places where his apple nurseries could flourish. But sports and myths go well together, so maybe the name will grow on us.
The main problem with it, as with Mad Ants, is that it is a name that means a lot locally but has to constantly be explained to people outside of Fort Wayne. That means that until the name sinks in and becomes familiar, we're going to get a lot of giggles.
