Earlier this week, the Springfield Cardinals (Double-A, Texas League, North Division) shed the red-feathered nickname of its mother club and rebranded as the equally red-feathered (but now regionally tongued-twisted) Ozarks Springbirds.
Less a mohawk-to-toes rebrand than a merch-makeover refocus, the Springbirds as a label has been in unofficial use for the past 20ish years, popularized by the team’s long-time broadcaster, so the change, while rooted in the local infield grass, presents as the end product of a corporate directive.
Reaffirm franchise’s connection to its ancestral roost in St. Louis? Check.
Let the birds of SW Missouri spread their wings, at least superficially? Check.
Refresh team store with new swag and, God willing, reverse slumping sales? Check.
Avoid an opportunity to stamp the team with a unique identity, one true to Springfield, the Ozarks, and its people, rather than a sock-inspired team name coined during the presidency of William McKinley? Check.
Ruffle as few red feathers as possible in the process? Check.
A corporate success, through-and-through, but to the C-suite rejects here at Man Mulligan, the new moniker may score twice as nice on our decidedly unscientific scale as the original Cardinal sin (4 Bible Belt Buckles to 2 Mother Roads), but it’s still only half as bright as it could be.
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