# Sports teams named for baby animals **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [January 3, 2017, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253 "2017-01-03T19:47:04Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![ElvisL1ves](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/5daacb/32.png) [@ElvisL1ves](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ElvisL1ves)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 12:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/21 "2017-01-04T00:54:07Z")
How about an entire league? Minor league baseball’s New York-Penn League was originally the Pennsylvania-Ontario-New York League - the PONY League. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Goob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c77e96/32.png) [@Mr.Goob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Goob)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/22 "2017-01-04T01:29:49Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > Well, a local area high school has “Wildkits” as a team name, but as for professional sports, I’m having a tough time thinking of any. I just scanned the minor league baseball team names, which can get quite off-beat with names like “The New Orleans Baby Cakes” and “The Binhamton Rumble Ponies,” but I can’t find any referencing animal offspring. Funny you say that. 2 weeks ago my brother and I were looking at the minor league baseball names and I got a huge kick out of the Albuquerque isotopes. He bought me a tee shirt of theirs for Christmas. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/23 "2017-01-04T01:45:07Z")
Moved to the Game Room. Colibri General Questions Moderator ---
**Author:** ![Dr\_Paprika](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dr_paprika/32/3042_2.png) [@Dr\_Paprika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr_Paprika)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 2:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/24 "2017-01-04T02:29:19Z")
They could be leading Ligue Un due to the element of surprise. Nobody expects the Spanish Obstetrician. I like the name Cygnets. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/25 "2017-01-04T02:33:36Z")
> [@Dr\_Paprika](#): > > Exactly. You aren’t scared to be playing the team from Nice. And you aren’t scared about their aerie-faerie name. In their inaugural season (1919), the team which would become the Green Bay Packers went 10-1. Their only loss, in their final game, was to the Beloit Fairies. > **[1919 Green Bay Packers season](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1919_Green_Bay_Packers_season#Season_results)** > > The 1919 Green Bay Packers season was their first season of competitive football. The team was formed by Curly Lambeau and George Whitney Calhoun with help from the Indian Packing Company. Lambeau served as team captain, the position closest related to the modern position of head coach, while Willard Ryan served as the official head coach. The club posted a 10–1 record against other teams in Wisconsin and Michigan. > According to traditional accounts, Curly Lambeau, a standout high school footba... ---
**Author:** ![LSLGuy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/lslguy/32/5813_2.png) [@LSLGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LSLGuy)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 2:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/26 "2017-01-04T02:54:34Z")
> [@Mr.Goob](#): > > Funny you say that. 2 weeks ago my brother and I were looking at the minor league baseball names and I got a huge kick out of the Albuquerque isotopes. He bought me a tee shirt of theirs for Christmas. Did you happen to notice the Las Vegas 51s? [Las Vegas Aviators - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Las_Vegas_51s) ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/27 "2017-01-04T19:24:42Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Are there any Caterpillars, or the like? Maggots, maybe? University of California at Santa Cruz Banana Slugs. There are also schools who have Boll Weevils as their mascot. ---
**Author:** ![Rick\_Kitchen](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rick_kitchen/32/522_2.png) [@Rick\_Kitchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rick_Kitchen)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/28 "2017-01-04T19:25:53Z")
> [@Mr.Goob](#): > > Funny you say that. 2 weeks ago my brother and I were looking at the minor league baseball names and I got a huge kick out of the Albuquerque isotopes. He bought me a tee shirt of theirs for Christmas. They took their name from an episode of The Simpsons. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 7:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/29 "2017-01-04T19:34:56Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > In their inaugural season (1919), the team which would become the Green Bay Packers went 10-1. Their only loss, in their final game, was to the Beloit Fairies. > > [1919 Green Bay Packers season - Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1919_Green_Bay_Packers_season#Season_results) Heh. Crazy looking scores there, and to lose in a 6-0 game for the final game of the season when averaging scores looking like 51-0 for the rest of the season. I had to look this up to see what the deal with that name was, and apparently it’s because the team was sponsored by Fairbanks Morse and Company, hence Fairies (from Fairbanks.) ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/30 "2017-01-04T20:10:56Z")
Oh, sure, everyone knows about the Banana Slugs, but they aren’t specifically juvenile. Neither are weevils. But maggots are. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/31 "2017-01-04T20:40:19Z")
The Junior Australia Football Team is called the “Joeys” ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 9:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/32 "2017-01-04T21:10:09Z")
> [@ZipperJJ](#): > > There was the Memphis Chicks, Bo Jackson’s minor league team…but that was short for Chickasaws and their logo was a native american. Lancaster, PA, also had Chicks for a couple of seasons. Not generally a region known for Chickasaws. > [@thelurkinghorror](#): > > Cedar Rapids Kernels, Modesto Nuts - baby plants? The same season the Lancaster Chicks started, Little Rock had Rose Buds. ---
**Author:** ![thelurkinghorror](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/7c8e57/32.png) [@thelurkinghorror](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelurkinghorror)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/33 "2017-01-04T21:14:57Z")
Sure joeys are cute, but they’re older. Considering what most **baby** marsupials and monotremes look like, I was hoping there would be a team called the “Woolloomooloo [Oh Dear God](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4f/Joey_in_pouch.jpg), [What the Hell is That](http://i.imgur.com/MBY03SS.jpg)!?” (Echidna babies are apparently unofficially called “puggles.”) ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2017, 11:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/34 "2017-01-04T23:18:40Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > When I was a freshman in high school, I attended Gonzaga Prep HS in Spokane. The mascot was the [Bullpups](http://www.gprep.com/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=257805&type=d&pREC_ID=587043). Why? Because Gonzaga U are the Bulldogs. Likewise, my high school was the Bulldogs. The swim team was known as the Bullfrogs, the cheerleaders were known as the Bulldolls, and the junior high school on the same campus was the Bullpups. ---
**Author:** ![Hoopy\_Frood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hoopy_frood/32/8452_2.png) [@Hoopy\_Frood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hoopy_Frood)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2017, 5:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/35 "2017-01-05T05:34:08Z")
The reason the aforementioned Wildkits have that as their mascot name is because they are located in Evanston, Illinois which is home of the Northwestern University Wildcats. ---
**Author:** ![Teuton](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/teuton/32/3864_2.png) [@Teuton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Teuton)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2017, 8:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/36 "2017-01-05T08:17:20Z")
> [@ElvisL1ves](#): > > How about an entire league? Minor league baseball’s New York-Penn League was originally the Pennsylvania-Ontario-New York League - the PONY League. As noted above, Ponies are not baby horses, they are different breeds (usually under 15 hands, but measures vary). ---
**Author:** ![Obeseus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/bbce88/32.png) [@Obeseus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Obeseus)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2017, 9:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/37 "2017-01-05T09:37:12Z")
The All-American Girls Professional Baseball League had a team called Chicks. They started out in Milwaukee in 1944 then moved to Grand Rapids for the 1945-54 seasons. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2017, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/38 "2017-01-05T13:27:25Z")
> [@dtilque](#): > > When I was a freshman in high school, I attended Gonzaga Prep HS in Spokane. The mascot was the [Bullpups](http://www.gprep.com/apps/pages/index.jsp?uREC_ID=257805&type=d&pREC_ID=587043). Why? Because Gonzaga U are the Bulldogs. Wonder if it’s a Jesuit thing. I went to Rockhurst High School, where the mascot is the Hawklets - Rockhurst University is the Hawks. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2017, 3:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/39 "2017-01-05T15:25:23Z")
> [@Munch](#): > > Wonder if it’s a Jesuit thing. I went to Rockhurst High School, where the mascot is the Hawklets - Rockhurst University is the Hawks. I went to a Catholic high school, run by the Norbertine Order, which was next door to St. Norbert College (also run by the order). The college teams were the Green Knights; our teams were the Squires (not baby animals, so much as junior knights). ---
**Author:** ![USCDiver](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/uscdiver/32/354_2.png) [@USCDiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/USCDiver)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2017, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253/40 "2017-01-05T15:51:20Z")
This is sort of pre-baby, but there was a minor league team in Macon, GA called the Macon Whoopie [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sports-teams-named-for-baby-animals/776253.md?page=3)