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Best of 36: Bulls and Jumbo Shrimp cook up rivalry

'Surf and Turf' loser to give away T-shirts commemorating defeat
The Durham Bulls and Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, newly minted Triple-A foes, upped the steaks of the rivalry via the Surf and Turf Series.
@BensBiz
May 28, 2021

Despite hundreds of years of professional baseball history between the two cities, 2021 marks the first occasion in which Jacksonville and Durham have operated within the same league at the same time. It didn't take long for them to become rivals. Earlier this week, the Jumbo Shrimp and the Bulls,

Despite hundreds of years of professional baseball history between the two cities, 2021 marks the first occasion in which Jacksonville and Durham have operated within the same league at the same time. It didn't take long for them to become rivals.

Earlier this week, the Jumbo Shrimp and the Bulls, divisional foes within the Triple-A East, jointly announced their "Surf and Turf" rivalry series. This initiative adds a first-of-its-kind layer of intrigue to their newly antagonistic relationship, which will only become more contentious over the course of a whopping 36 games against one another. The team that loses the season series will give away a T-shirt in 2022 commemorating their ignominious defeat. "We lost the 2021 Surf and Turf Series to the [winning team]," the shirt will read. It will not include the phrase "And all I got was this lousy T-shirt," though many of the fans who receive them are likely to have that thought.

A wordplay-laden press release expounded upon each team's sentiments regarding the giveaway. "If the Bulls win the season series, the Jumbo Shrimp will prawn off 500 T-shirts" is complemented by the even more obscure and absurd "If Jacksonville somehow wins by ‘devein intervention,' the Bulls would be forced to give away 500 shirts." This is believed to be the first punning reference to shrimp deveining contained within a professional sports press release.

The Jumbo Shrimp, a longtime affiliate of the Miami Marlins, were previously members of the Double-A Southern League. They made the leap to Triple-A in 2021, becoming the first Jacksonville team to compete at that level since the 1968 Suns won the International League championship.

"Our fans have been holding on since 1968, waiting and watching for us to defend our Triple-A title," said Jumbo Shrimp promotions director David Ratz. "Now that we’re back, they’re rising up out of the sea, buying tickets faster than we can put them on sale, energized to 'sea' us grab what is rightfully ours."

The Durham Bulls, home to an iconic "Hit Bull, Win Steak" ballpark sign and subjects of an even more iconic baseball movie, heartily embody the Turf portion of this nascent culinary rivalry. The Bulls have been affiliated with the Tampa Bay Rays since 1998, which was also their first season at the Triple-A level.

"You've already got the Marlins versus Rays angle, but then it became 'Let's have fun with Surf and Turf,'" said Durham Bulls digital and social content manager Andrew Green. "We have the bet with the payoff at the end, but we'll also have fun with this on social media. ... We've already gotten started with all sorts of puns and pop culture references."

A six-game set between the Bulls and the Jumbo Shrimp is taking place in Jacksonville through Sunday. This follows closely on the heels of a six-game series earlier this month in Durham. The Bulls earned a 3-0 win on Wednesday, taking the lead in the first inning on an RBI single by uber-prospect Wander Franco and never looking back. This evened up the season series 4-4, which brings to mind a pertinent question: What if the two teams finish the season with a perfectly even 18-18 record against one another?

"In true Minor League Baseball fashion, when that problem arises we’ll solve it," said Ratz, who was then faced with a more difficult query: What if the Jumbo Shrimp lose, and the team is forced to give away T-shirts commemorating Surf's inferiority to Turf? After much deliberation, Ratz chose to take a diplomatic approach.

"With humility and good humor, we'll accept our defeat," he said. "And look on the bright side: Putting giveaways in the hands of our fans is always a good thing, no matter what’s on it."

A lot can happen over 36 games, but Green is confident that the Jumbo Shrimp will indeed have to "prawn off" T-shirts in 2022.

"Have you seen our roster? Multiple publications, including MLB Pipeline, rated our Opening Day roster as the most talented in the Minor Leagues. We also have this guy named Wander Franco. Maybe you’ve heard of him."

Benjamin Hill is a reporter for MiLB.com and writes Ben's Biz Blog. Follow Ben on Twitter @bensbiz.