METAIRIE, La. (WGNO) – Voting for the New Orleans Zephyrs’ “Name the Team” contest has been extended to July 15.
The team received more than 2,000 submissions from fans during a campaign to rename the franchise for the 2017 season.
The submissions have been narrowed down to seven finalists. And no, you can’t write in another suggestion, Zephyrs General Manager Cookie Rojas says.
Here are the seven choices:
New Orleans Baby Cakes: A tribute to the Mardi Gras king cakes where small plastic babies are sought after, the Baby Cakes celebrates a unique Louisiana tradition.
New Orleans Cajun Crawfish: Pays tribute to those lovable and tasty critters we hold festivals for, and who call New Orleans home.
New Orleans King Cakes: The King Cake tradition bring families and community members together to celebrate the joyous season of Mardi Gras, just like Minor League Baseball draws families together.
New Orleans Night Owls: Both a play on words and an alliteration, Night Owls celebrates the New Orleans nightlife and a night out at the ballpark.
New Orleans Po’boys: A tribute to the culinary capital of the Gulf Cost, this fun name falls in line with other wacky names Minor League Baseball is known for.
New Orleans Red Eyes: New Orleans Red Eyes honors Louisiana’s crawfish festivals, and the bright red crawfish New Orleans loves.
New Orleans Tailgators: Alligators are synonymous with Louisiana, and tailgating is synonymous with baseball.
So, if it were up to Cookie Rojas, which name would he choose?
“My favorite is ‘Baby Cakes,’” he says. “It’s one of those things here in New Orleans, like nowhere else. You walk into a diner and the waitress will say to you, ‘Hey baby cakes, what you having?’ Nowhere else in the country do they talk about king cakes. And you take a baby – anywhere else a piece of plastic would be a choking hazard, except for New Orleans. And that’s why it’s unique, it’s different, and bold.”
You can cast your vote for the new team name here.