Six years after state lawmakers approved Gov. Mitch Daniels’ controversial plan to privatize the Indiana Toll Road through a long-term lease, both advocates and opponents can find evidence to support the views they expressed in 2006.It took some time for the Wizards’ name to grow on local fans, so the baseball team’s new name may well eventually hit home with Fort Wayne residents. The team, now the TinCaps, has a name with historical significance that is unique and distinctly connected to Fort Wayne.
“We didn’t toss the Wizards name aside lightly,” said Jason Freier, owner of the newly dubbed team. “Over 16 years that name has built up a lot of brand equity. So, we wanted something that really said ‘Fort Wayne.’ ”
On Thursday, team owners announced the new name that honors the legacy of John Chapman, better known as Johnny Appleseed, the early American pioneer who traveled through the region planting apple trees and is buried in Fort Wayne. The team’s new logo is a take on the tin pot Johnny Appleseed was thought to wear on his head. It is an apple wearing a backward tin pot similar to a baseball cap.
The team’s new colors are red, green and brown.
Fort Wayne residents are proud of the city’s connection to Johnny Appleseed. Each fall, residents celebrate the Johnny Appleseed Festival at Johnny Appleseed Park – the location of Johnny Appleseed’s grave marker. The TinCaps name taps into that pride and gives the team a name that is evocative of other hometown traditions.
The process for choosing the new name was extensive. The team owners sought plenty of public input by soliciting name suggestions and then allowing baseball fans to vote for their favorite team names on the Harrison Square Web site. Then team owners had to go through a lengthy approval process with Minor League Baseball officials.
Freier said the team’s owners received more than 2,500 suggested names. They were looking for a name that was unique and connected to the city.
“The Wizards is not a unique name,” Freier said. There are now numerous teams called the Wizards.
The team’s new name and logo will also fit nicely with the stadium’s primary naming rights partner.
“The name was established before the Parkview relationship was finalized, but with apples being a well known icon of good health, we think it plays well with who our naming-rights partner is,” Freier said.
Fans’ initial reaction Thursday was far from universal approval, but remember that it took some time for the Wizards to take hold as well. The TinCaps is a name inarguably unique and linked to Fort Wayne’s history, and local fans should give it a chance.
