Hello and Happy Laundry Day!
I know this is a New York Mets newsletter, but we’re going to start this one in Connecticut. My first taste of minor league baseball was watching the Bridgeport Bluefish (R.I.P) at Harbor Yard (also, R.I.P). We’d take the short ride up i-95 for birthday parties, day camp field trips, and the occasional family outing. Even the high school county baseball championship was held there for a few years (shout out to the FCIAC).
In 2016, the New Britain Rock Cats moved to Hartford. No shade to the Bluefish, but I remember my group of baseball-loving friends being excited to have an affiliated minor league team so close to home. The announcement that the new stadium, located in the state capital, would be named Dunkin’ Park, made complete sense (we love our Double Ds in New England). The announcement that the new team would be named the Hartford Yard Goats, made much less sense.
Nutmeggers have been begging for years (ironically or not) to resurrect our NHL team, the Hartford Whalers. The Whalers relocated to North Carolina in 1997 and changed their name to the Carolina Hurricanes. The Double-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies had an obvious opportunity to endear themselves to local sports fans by taking on the Whalers moniker. But as silly as most minor league team names are, they are almost always incredibly subtle in their connection to the cities in which they inhabit, and the Whalers may have been too obvious a choice.
Anyone who has been to a Dave Matthews Band concert at The Meadows (now Xfinity Theater) is probably intimately familiar with the parking lots. Some tailgaters are even familiar with the rail yards adjacent to the parking lots, which may have been a fine place to enjoy a funny cigarette. Few fans understood then that they were probably in close proximity to the future namesake of the Hartford Yard Goats. The Yard Goat is a nickname given to an important piece of equipment. Think of the Yard Goat as the tugboat of the rail yard. The Yard Goats team pays subtle homage to the long history of railroads in Hartford, while keeping in the tradition of goofy minor league team names.
I swear there is a connection between Hartford and Binghamton. Stick with me!
Last week, the Binghamton Rumble Ponies (NYM Double-AA), announced that they would be playing a few games during the 2025 season as the Binghamton Bathtub Donkeys. Chef’s kiss. This is exactly the type of shenanigans like to see from our minor league clubs. According to the info dump, the name comes from an American Blue Law that prohibits donkeys from sleeping in bathtubs.
It's widely rumored that the law is based on a bizarre case in which a donkey fell asleep in a bathtub, and then the bathtub washed away during a flood down a river. Locals had to haul the donkey back home and decided to sign a law to prevent the sort of thing from ever happening again. (Fox 40)
According to the Binghamton press release, the Rumble Ponies alter-ego was inspired by their Eastern League opponents. In 2023, the Hartford Yard Goats played as the Hartford Bouncing Pickles, which referred to another American Blue Law in Connecticut that states it’s illegal to sell a pickle if it doesn’t bounce. Boom, connection made.
The Binghamton Rumble Ponies will suit up as the Bathtub Donkeys for two home games this season:
Saturday, June 28th vs. Portland Sea Dogs (Double-A Red Sox) - First Pitch 6:07 PM | Gates Open 5:00 PM
Wednesday, July 30th vs. Harrisburg Senators (Double-A Nationals) - First Pitch 1:05 PM | Gates Open 12:00 PM
Tickets are not yet on sale, but fans can shop for some fresh Binghamton laundry now!
