A Brave New Name

The latest rumors are that the Braves don't plan on changing their name, though we may have heard the stadium organ playing the Tomahawk Chop for the last time. But with the Redskins set to announce a new team name in the next two weeks, and the Indians exploring a possible name change, there have been several suggestions for new names for both teams. I've only heard few suggestions of what the Braves should change their name to. Until now.

 

Should the Braves change their name, they might as well come up with something completely different. With apologies to Paul Lukas and Uni Watch, what fan would really be happy having their favorite team rename themselves the BRAVE or BRAVEST? Not crazy about DREAM or PHOENIX, two names associated with the city. Dream is already taken and the Atlanta Phoenix just doesn't sound right. Better to look back for a historical name, either from Atlanta's rich baseball history, or one of the old names the franchise went by before changing to the Braves.

 

Like the Braves, before settling on the name Atlanta, the city was known by several different names before settling on the name Atlanta: Marthasville and Terminus to name two. As an important railway hub, perhaps the Braves could come up with a railroad name. Atlanta also used to be known as Gate City, and the first organized base ball team was known as the Gate City Nine. A fine name. Could we cheer for the Atlanta Nine?

 

In 1892 the local team was called the Atlanta Firecrackers. I like it. Unfortunately, the Firecrackers name would quickly be shortened. Same thing happened back in the day. The minor league Atlanta Crackers were so successful they were known as the Yankees of the South. Unfortunately Crackers comes with a series of negative connotations, many of them racial.

Interestingly, not all racial references of the name Crackers are negative. From Wikipedia: “During the period of Reconstruction following the American Civil War, there was also a political party of the same name (Crackers). Organized in Augusta, Georgia, this party's platform was one of "opposition to Catholics and segregation of blacks."

 

The Braves boast they are the longest continuously operated franchise in baseball history. Back then it was quite common for a team to change their name, similar to the way minor league teams rebrand themselves these days. Before becoming the Braves in 1912, the team went by several different names:

1871 Red Stockings: too Boston or Cincy

1876 Red Caps: nice, but too Trump-like

1883 Beaneaters: too Boston

1907 Doves

1911 Rustlers: a fun choice, but negative connotations? 

1912 Braves

1936 Bees 

1942 Braves

 

In 1907 George and John Dovey acquired the club, and the team became known as the Doves. When purchased by William Hepburn Russell in 1911, reporters dubbed the club the Rustlers. Neither name helped the team win games. The team adopted an official name for the first time in 1912. Another new owner was a member of New York City's political machine (Tammany Hall) which used an Indian chief as their symbol.

 

In 1936 new owner Bob Quinn tried to change the club's fortunes, renaming the team the Boston Bees. When ownership changed hands five years later, construction magnate Lou Perini changed the name back to the Braves.

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Boston_Braves 

 

The Bees would be a fun team name, with many creative possibilities for a new logo, colors, and mascot. 

 

But an earlier name would be the perfect choice for a team in this day and age. With the country mired in division and unrest, with ongoing protests and riots, what better name for a team in 2020 than the Doves - the symbol of peace. A natural for a place that used to be called "the city too busy to hate."

 

And with a city filled with fowl named sports teams - Falcons, Hawks, the NBA G League College Park Skyhawks, the Kennesaw State Owls, the Shorter University hawks, and North Georgia Nighthawks, Gainesville State Fighting Geese, and the Oglethorpe University Stormy Petrels to name a few - the Atlanta Doves would fit right in.  

  

Whatever happens - new name, no chop, or even no changes - there will be a huge negative response on social media. People love to complain, like when a team signs (or doesn't sign) a free agent, or changes their uniforms - no matter how good or bad a job the team does. They'll get over it.

 

https://mlbcollectors.com/BBRcaps.php

 

https://mlbcollectors.com/BBRjerseys.php