The New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Class AA; Eastern League) will play a game this season as the New Hampshire Mountain Men, one of the finalists in a 2004 name-the-team contest.
The name pays homage to New Hampshire’s most beloved natural landmark: the Old Man of the Mountain. In a fan vote prior to the team’s inaugural season, the Fisher Cats moniker edged out the Manchester Millers, the New Hampshire Primaries, the New Hampshire Granite, and the Granite State Mountain Men. (In fact, the team name was originally to be the Primaries, and the team has held similar promotions playing under this name in the past, as seen here as well.)
“The voting came right down to the wire, and we’ve always wondered: what if the Fisher Cats didn’t win?” said Fisher Cats President Mike Ramshaw in a press statement. “Even for just one game, it’s a fun way to envision what our team would look like, and we’re always proud to recognize one of our state’s most iconic landmarks.”
Designed by Brandiose, the Mountain Man logo is dressed as a colonial soldier from the Revolutionary War, brandishing a baseball bat in lieu of a musket. This detail is a nod to New Hampshire’s history as the first state to declare independence from Britain.
The first 1,000 fans in attendance on July 8 will receive a replica Mountain Men jersey.