Cape's minor league baseball team gets a name this afternoon

Today we will learn the name of Cape Girardeau's new minor league baseball team.

The wood-bat Prospect League team is preparing for its inaugural season in summer 2019. The team is expected to play a 60-game schedule, and the home location will be Capaha Field. Team owner Andy Patel deserves credit for his investment along with management group Jim Limbaugh and Mark Hogan. This is a labor of love, and I'm looking forward to the experience of watching minor league baseball in my hometown.

Part of the fun is that Capaha will get a nice upgrade. Ownership is investing about $500,000 in upgrades and the city, through the parks and recreation sales tax, will contribute $1 million.

Back to the name of the team.

The public was given an opportunity to vote, and the options included: Cape Catfish, Cape Bluebirds and Cape Steamboats.

I won't pretend to know all of the discussions or how they came to these conclusions. I do appreciate the time and expertise that goes into branding an organization. And I do not have any inside knowledge of what the name will be. That said, as a baseball enthusiast here's my take on the choices.

Cape Catfish. We're a river town, and when I think catfish I think about Port Cape in downtown Cape Girardeau. I also think of Lent and the number of church fish fries each year. It's catchy. (Pun intended.) And it has some context to the area.

Cape Bluebirds. We have the Redhawks, St. Louis Cardinals, Memphis Redbirds just to name a few teams. Charleston High School has the Bluejays. For my taste, the bird theme is overplayed in this region. And plus, who's intimidated by a blue bird?

Steamboats. I get the connection. We certainly have our fair share of riverboats. What kind of mascot are you going to have with this name? Billy the Boat?

Though late to the game, I've put together three alternatives.

The Heat. Summertime in Southeast Missouri is hot. I mean tongue-out, 100 percent humidity hot. During my younger years I played many games in Cape Girardeau with 100-degree heat. We did all kinds of things to cool down. Have you ever put cabbage on your head? I have. Certainly iced towels around the neck are a popular option. And keep the tap running with ice, cold water.

In baseball the phrase "bring the heat" refers to throwing your fastball. Seems a nice fit for a baseball team. But I realize this is a name already used in minor league baseball with the Chico Heat in California.

The Tomahawks. OK, my original idea here was to go with Cape Indians. SEMO's previous mascot was the Indians. Mark Hogan, the GM for the wood bat team, coached the Indians at Southeast Missouri State University for years before Southeast switched its mascot to the Redhawks. But if Indians isn't original enough or too politically incorrect, the Cape Tomahawks would be a nice fit. Tomahawks embraces Cape Girardeau's Indian heritage. It fits with the name of the home field for the team, Capaha Field, and it's intimidating. Who would you rather play: The Cape Tomahawks or the Bluebirds?

Capahawks. I can't take credit for this name, but one of my colleague's at the Southeast Missourian suggested the Capahawks. It pulls in Capaha Field and the Redhawks.

A few other names I've heard by friends (how seriously, I'm not sure): Channel Cats, Roustabouts, Deckhands, Flying Carp, Cape Toenails, the Humidity and River Walls.

Regardless of the name, here's to more baseball next summer.

Watch semissourian.com and semoball.com for the latest news today on Cape's new baseball team.

Lucas Presson is the assistant publisher of the Southeast Missourian.