[This is my second attempt at this thread. Due to image-embedding-related fuckups and missing the edit window, I decided to ask a mod to close the first thread, and I’m starting this one.]
OK, you know how British/European soccer teams started out as clubs, and they began organizing professionally c. 1880? And how they’re oft named for the neighborhood in which they originated (Chelsea, Aston Villa) or for a nearby landmark (Arsenal)? And how they retain those names today (“Arsenal FC” for example)? And how they have shields in place of, say, the helmets that indicate NFL teams?
SO, I re-imagined all 30 MLB teams as if a) they’ve been around since c. 1800, and b) they use the British/Euro naming conventions, and I used AI to generate new shields for them, retaining the same colors as the current MLB team.
SOME DISCLAIMERS
Since I used AI, some of the results bear the hallmarks of AI, such as nonsensical elements, gibberish that vaguely looks like English text, etc. There’s little I can do about it.
Yes, I know that many MLB teams have moved cities/changed names in their history. This project ignores all of that and assumes that they’ve been in the same location with the same name since c. 1880.
As 1880 is our starting point, there will be no references to structures built afterwards, such as the St. Louis Arch or the Willis Tower.
Some of these cities that host MLB teams, like Arlington or Anaheim, were barely even settlements in 1880. This project ignores that.
I’m aware that some of these cities have actual soccer teams in MLS or a secondary league. This project ignores that.
I anticipate, nay welcome, constructive criticism, alternatives, etc. Make your own!!! Let’s have this be a collaborative project!
I will add some commentary after each shield about my thought process in creating it. The commentary is mine, not AI.
With all of that out of the way, here we go. Starting with AL East, then Central, then West, 1st to last place as of today’s standings, then the same with NL.
A Doper helped me with this (thanks @Spoons ). Saint George’s is/was one of the orignal four quadrants of Toronto, and the image of him slaying the dragon works perfectly with the theme of copying British soccer insignia.
Even Old New York was once New Amersterdam; why they changed it, I can’t say. People just like it better that way. Anyway, I rather like this one, as the pinstripes recall the uniform that the Yankees use, and the shield retains the minimalist black & white of the team. I also rather like the wordplay in “Old New Amsterdam.” I have no idea what that nonsense is behind the soccer ball. Remember: AI.
My grade: The AI-generated michegas behind the ball takes this from A-Tier to B-Tier.
Rather than focus on a neighborhood in Boston, I chose the city as a whole, but went with a nickname. Boston is just rich with potential historical references, such as the Boston Tea Party, but I figured “Beantown” and the resultant bowl of beans, had a comedic element.
Ybor City is a Cuban neighborhood in Tampa, and I hear that Cubans loves them some football, even though baseball is king there. I wanted to avoid easy Cuban stereotypes such as cigars or Panama hats, so I just went with the sun. The AI here did just ok; I didn’t ask for extra stars and I’m not sure what’s happening with the horizontal white lines. But it’s still aesthetically pleasing to look at.
That looks great, by the way. The blue and white match Toronto’s traditional colours (think Maple Leafs, Blue Jays, Argonauts, and the U of Toronto Varsity Blues), with a bit of red, for Canada.
St. George lives on in Toronto, by the way. It’s both the name of a street and a subway stop. And only a few steps away from the subway stop is a stadium, where they can play—you guessed it—soccer.
I designed this image in honor of Red Sox CEO Sam Kennedy’s infamous “Full Throttle” remark awhile back, on how the team was supposedly going to pursue high-end talent.
Inner Harbor is the part of Baltimore in which Oriole Park at Camden Yards sits. The raven, I think, needs no explanation. Yes, it’s the name of another professional sports team in the city, but they didn’t happen until 2000-something, so this fake team predates them by a hundred years. So there.
However, the raven is more obvious and blatant than I wanted it to be, so for this reason…
My grade: the raven knocks it down from A-Tier to B-Tier.
The stadium in which the Detroit Tigers originally played was on Trumbull Avenue. I couldn’t really think of any pre-1880 landmarks in Detroit, so I just went with the generic soccer ball. Overall, I think the whole thing is kind of generic, but it works.
Again, I went with the whole city (or two, as it were) rather than a neighborhood. As with Detroit (and indeed many of these cities), I could think of no pre-1880 landmarks. However, I think the twins kicking at the ball from different angles works.
I chose to reference Lake Erie because for the better part of a century the Cleveland now-the-Guardians played within a stone’s throw of Lake Erie (though not in 1880, I don’t think, but let’s not quibble). Of all of these shield creations, this is the one that most directly references the MLB team, as the guy with the sword and shield is a, well, he’s a guardian.
OK, so this one references the MLB team, but in an oblique way. Stick with me. The MLB Royals reference both the Kansas City Monarchs, a Negro League team from back in the day, as well as the American Royal Livestock Show, which is, I guess, a yuge deal in livestock husbandry. The Monarchs’ name also referenced the livestock show. So when you think about it, Regal Kansas City references all three! I chose not to go with Real Kansas City because, though “real” means “royal,” as in “Real Madrid/Royal Madrid,” in English it just means “geniunie, not fake, etc.” So instead I chose Regal. The crown is a bit too close to the MLB Royals’ crown for my liking. Otherwise I think this is a pretty solid effort. I’m upping the grade a bit because I’m pleased with myself for the meta name.
My grade: B-Tier for the meta name, else it would have been C-Tier.
I’m rather proud of this one. Armour Park is the Chicago South Side neighborhood in which the original Comiskey Park, where the White Sox played for a hundred years, sat. And also you should probably be wearing armour in that part of town. The minimalist black & white is in keeping with that of the MLB team. This is the only one of my creations that utilizes the year of the team’s founding; I rather regret that.
Knowing absolutely nothing about Houston, I just chose to reference the name of the city’s founder, figuring, why not. I chose a single star - a lone star if you will - for reasons that I think should be obvious. Though the colors and proportions work, the rest of the shield is just wrong, particularly with the odd placement of the name over the star. It’s just a mess.
One of many teams in this project named for a geographic landmark rather than a structural one, I thought “Puget Sound AFC” just had a nice ring to it. Beats Seattle’s insistence on referencing the speed of sound in two of their other teams (Sounders, Supersonics). We get it, Seattle, an aircraft that beats the speed of sound was/is manufactured there. Woopity doo. This shield references both mountains and an old timey sailing vessel, both of which are pure Seattle.
Arlington, Texas, home of the MLB Texas Rangers, had but a couple hundred people in 1880. However, once the town started growing, there was a respectable restaurant called Top O’ The Hill Terrace. However, the restaurant was a front: in the basement, and behind false walls and whatnot, were speakeasies, casinos, the whole bit. I like that. But the whole name of the restaurant is a lot for a football team, so I just went with Hill Terrace. The dice (which, by the way, are impossible (thanks AI), as the four and the two would be opposite each other on non-AI dice) reference the casino. Also, I didn’t ask for a period at the end of “SC”. The impossible and weirdly-shaped dice, and unnecessary punctuation, severely hurt this team’s grade.
Nitpick, I think: The neighborhood is called Armour Square. It contains Armour Square Park. I don’t think I’ve ever heard anyone refer to the neighborhood as Armour Park.
Anaheim is in the Santa Ana River valley, hence the name. Obviously, the prominent angel references the MLB team’s name. Or does it? “Los Angeles,” as you are well aware, means “The Angels,” so in my mind I’m referencing the mythical angels for whom the city (which, by the way, isn’t Anaheim, but never mind that) is named, rather than the team named The Angels. Or something. Regardless, this one is just striking, and I’m supremely proud of it.
This one’s kind of a dud. Or to put it more politely, there’s room for improvement. I think going for the geographical landmark was OK, and of course the oak tree references Oakland, but this whole thing is just boring. I need a better name, better logo, and better shield.
My grade: D-Tier
—And that’s enough for now. National League will follow later, probably in about 18 hours.------
