We have the five finalists for the team name for the Carolina League Fayetteville (NC) team planned for 2019, as announced by the Buies Creek Astros (High A; Carolina League).
The team is playing at Jim Perry Stadium as the Astros until a new Fayetteville ballpark is constructed.
The finalists, as announced by Fayetteville Baseball Club LLC: Woodpeckers, Wood Dogs, Fatbacks, Fly Traps and Jumpers. Here are the explanations of each:
- Fatbacks: The name is derived from the fat of pigs that is prevalent in Southern and French cuisine. Fatback is one of the delicious, delectable pork products that is the result of a hog roast that brings the community together, the release says.
- Fly Traps: The name refers to the flytrap plant native to the wetlands of the Carolinas. The name also relates to baseball and how outfielders are taught to catch fly balls.
- Jumpers: A tribute to the 82nd Airborne, based at Fort Bragg.
- Wood Dogs: Not dogwoods, but wood dogs. The intent, according to officials was to “have the name take the form of a dog, which resonates with the city’s and military’s characteristics of loyalty, compassion and protection.”
- Woodpeckers: A tribute to the endangered red cockaded woodpecker, which calls the long leaf pine in our area home.
Names that were rejected include the Babes, for Babe Ruth, who hit his first professional homer while barnstorming through the city, and the Generals, the longtime moniker for Minor League Baseball in Fayetteville. The Generals name is already in use in Jackson, alas.