The friendly pig at St. Paul Saints games this season will have yet another in a long line of colorful names.The St. Paul Saints (independent; American Association) announced Monday the name of their 2009 pig: Slumhog Millionaire.
The name was selected out of more than 1,300 entries in a bname-the-pig content. The winning entry was submitted by Dave Christensen of Edina, Minn. He was the first of six people to submit the winning name and will receive a prize pack from the Saints, Big Brother Big Sisters, the Star Tribune, and a $100 gift card from Cub Foods. He will also be honored at a Saints game during the season-opening homestand May 19-24.
The similarities between the 2008 Academy Award winning film and the 2009 Saints swine made it tough not to go with the Slumhog Millionaire. The movie is about a Mumbai teen living in the slums who gets his chance on the popular game show “Who Wants To Be A Millionaire?” and uses it as his big break. Slumhog Millionaire was chosen out of numerous pigs at the Minnesota Zoo and will have the opportunity to make a name for himself on the giant stage of Midway Stadium.
“We received some incredibly creative names from our fans, but this one stood out among them all,” said Saints Executive Vice President/General Manager Derek Sharrer. “The possibilities are endless with Slumhog Millionaire including his own theme song Jai Ho. We look forward to all the creative promotions we can do with the newest member of our staff.”
During all 17 seasons the Saints have had a pig deliver baseballs to the home plate umpire and unique names play a role for all of them. Many of the names play on hot topics of the year, current events or local celebrities. Past names have included Boarack Ohama (2008), Notorious P.I.G. – Piggy Smalls (2003) and Kevin Bacon (2001).
Subscribers to the weekly Ballpark Digest newsletter see articles before they’re posted to the site. You can sign up for a free subscription at the Newsletter Signup Page.
Join Ballpark Digest on Facebook and on Twitter!