This year's Futures Game featured more old-fashioned, Minor League-style fun than ever, and the most visible addition was one fans could see at every moment. Each of the 45 players who appeared in the game wore on his head the cap of his Minor League team. As a result, some
This year's Futures Game featured more old-fashioned, Minor League-style fun than ever, and the most visible addition was one fans could see at every moment. Each of the 45 players who appeared in the game wore on his head the cap of his Minor League team.
As a result, some of the coolest logos in the sporting landscape got a share of the spotlight on the international stage for one afternoon and evening. We present here a closer look at seven great Minor League hats -- from classic standbys to funky new looks -- that turned fans' heads during the Futures Game.
Beloit Sky Carp, High-A Marlins -- Noble Meyer (MLB's No. 40 prospect), Thomas White (MLB No. 57)
What's adorned with a goose is worth a gander. Meyer and White -- a pair of young Marlins hurlers in the midst of a fantastic campaign -- took the mound in Texas wearing this fowl-bedecked wonder, which came into the world when the Midwest League team formerly known as the Snappers adopted the Sky Carp identity in honor of not only geese, but Beloit's aviation and industrial heritage. Get a Sky Carp hat »
Chattanooga Lookouts, Double-A Reds -- Rhett Lowder (MLB's No. 20 prospect)
This one's a classic, which Lowder's flowing locks made look even cooler as he turned in a scoreless frame. The Lookouts' eyes peeking out of the Chattanooga C redefined the standard for Minor League logos in the early 1990s and remains a fan favorite far beyond southeastern Tennessee. Get a Lookouts hat »
Eugene Emeralds, High-A Giants -- Bryce Eldridge (MLB's No. 70 prospect)
Was that Sasquatch you saw at first base for the National League? Yes -- not the 6-foot-7 beast from the San Francisco system, but the illustrated figure on that man's hat. Eldridge spent the first three months of the Minor League season raking for Single-A San Jose and earned a bump to the High-A Emeralds at the end of June. Up in the Pacific Northwest, Bigfoot reigns. The MiLB team representing Oregon's Emerald Valley celebrates him accordingly. Get an Emeralds hat »
Greensboro Grasshoppers, High-A Pirates -- Termarr Johnson (MLB's No. 76 prospect)
Johnson, the NL's starting second baseman in the Futures Game and winner of the Futures Skills Showcase's "Call Your Shot" round, was looking sharp in the new cap of the Greensboro Grasshoppers, whose offseason logo update somehow feels fresher and also like more of a charming throwback. Get a Grasshoppers hat »
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Jersey Shore BlueClaws, High-A Phillies -- Aidan Miller (MLB's No. 27 prospect), Justin Crawford (MLB No. 55)
With two prospects in the NL's starting lineup, Philadelphia might have had haters in a crabby mood. The BlueClaws lids atop the domes of Miller and Crawford, though, are a virtual guarantee to put a smile on anybody's face. Red-brimmed with an aquatic blue crown, it features the silhouette of a crab with baseball stitching. Get a BlueClaws hat »
Portland Sea Dogs, Double-A Red Sox -- Marcelo Mayer (MLB's No. 7 prospect), Kyle Teel (MLB No. 24)
If you didn't catch this one in the Futures Game, you likely saw it on Roman Anthony as he won the Futures Skills Showcase. With a harbor seal holding a bat out of its mouth while popping out of the opening in a red P, the Sea Dogs' cap nods to the team's mascot -- Slugger the Sea Dog -- as well as the parent club in Boston. Get a Sea Dogs hat »
Spokane Indians, High-A Rockies -- Chase Dollander (MLB's No. 36 prospect)
The club in Spokane has a number of unique looks, including its Salish script uni sets that are designed to promote the language and culture of the Spokane Tribe of Indians. The Redband Trout cap you spotted on Dollander as he pitched a scoreless first inning is another result of the team's relationship with the Tribe (and also with the City of Spokane), this one to raise funds and awareness to preserve fish habitat in the Spokane River. Get an Indians hat »
Josh Jackson is an editor for MiLB.com. Follow and interact with him on Twitter @JoshJacksonMiLB.
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