| Lowell Spinners
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Posted 2012 May 28
Lowell Spinners is one of those names that works so well in baseball and
not at all in any sport. The name comes from the city's history:
specifically, the fact that it was founded for the specific purpose of
being a textile center. The name is not intimidating or inspiring, but
it has a profound sense of place. It's the sort of name that you read
for the first time, and your first thought is, "That team has probably
had that name since about 1920, so even if it's not the greatest name in
the world, it's above criticism."
There's just one thing: the name only dates to 1996.
I could, if I was so inclined, use that as an excuse to slag on the
name. But I won't. This is partly because it's considerably better
than some of the other names that debuted that year (it gave us such
wonders as the JetHawks, LugNuts, and Sand Gnats), but also because it's
much better than the names that actually were used by baseball teams in
Lowell in the early days of baseball. From 1901 to 1911 they were the
Lowell Tigers, which is fine, and I'm also not inclined to criticize
Lowell Grays (1911-1916). But some other names they used were weird if
not downright silly. Lowell Honeys (1934). Lowell Orphans (1899 and
again — they thought this was a name worth repeating? — in
1947). Lowell Magicians (1887). Lowell Chippies (1888). And a name
that must be considered as a serious competitor in the competition for
lamest name ever, 1877's Lowell Ladies Men.
As for the logo, it's mostly a straight-forward, no-nonsense affair. We
have the name of the team — written in a serif font instead of
baseball script, but still nothing too fancy. The "i" is replaced with
a baseball bat being used as a bobbin. The thread on the bobbin then
comes around the name and serves as the underlining you so often find on
baseball script logos. Like the name, it's nothing great but it's
clever in its own way.
It's also better than just about anything I can imagine someone coming
up with for a team called the Honeys, Chippies, or Ladies Men. Like I
said, Lowell Spinners may not actually be a traditional name, but it's a
lot better than any of the actual traditional names the city ever had.
Final Score: 31 points.
Penalties: Equipment, 13 pts; Letters, 24 pts.
Bonuses: Local, -6 pts.
This page Copyright ©2012 Scott D. Rhodes.
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