Yankees' Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Farm Team Renamed 'RailRiders'
DICKSON CITY, Pa. (CBSNewYork/AP) — The top minor league affiliate of the Yankees is looking to northeastern Pennsylvania's history for its new identity.
After spending all of last season as the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees, the club renamed itself the RailRiders on Wednesday in a nod to the region's railroading history.
The new logo features a porcupine mascot in navy and gold with maroon lettering for the team name.
"I look forward to the top of the charts on merchandise sales, with people saying it loud and saying it proud," Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said, according to the Scranton Times-Tribune. "It's an awesome new stadium coming on line, a new uniform and rebranding it. And the association with the Yankees is as strong as ever."
The porcupine is native to the area and had been among the other candidates for the team name.
The club spent all of last season without a home stadium amid a $43 million renovation project at PNC Field, just outside Scranton. The team played 37 "home" games in Rochester, N.Y.
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