Shore thing: PaddleHeads row into Missoula
The moose was let loose.After 21 seasons as the Osprey, Missoula's Pioneer League team announced a name change at a team rebranding event held Monday morning at the Missoula Children's Theater.The Osprey are now the Missoula PaddleHeads, Rookie Advanced affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The moose was let loose.
After 21 seasons as the Osprey, Missoula's Pioneer League team announced a name change at a team rebranding event held Monday morning at the Missoula Children's Theater.
The Osprey are now the Missoula PaddleHeads, Rookie Advanced affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The PaddleHeads' name and logos, buttressed by vivid orange and green hues, have a variety of connotations. Moose antlers are also known as paddles, making a male moose a literal "paddle head." Paddle also serves as a reference to kayaking, canoeing and other river-based activities popular in Missoula and its surrounding west Montana locales.
The Clark Fork, Blackfoot and Bitterroot rivers all run through Missoula; the novella A River Runs Through It, adapted into a movie in 1992, was set in the city. PaddleHeads pays homage to this freshwater and wildlife legacy. The primary logo features a baseball bat paddle as well as a glowering, partially submerged moose. A baseball is nestled within one of its antlers, while fishing line is wrapped around the other.
The name change comes during a time of transition for Missoula's sole professional sports team, which was established as the Osprey in 1999 after relocating from Lethbridge, Alberta. Mike and Judy Ellis, owners of the franchise since 1993, sold it in October 2018 to Peter Davis and Susan Crampton Davis of Big Sky Professional Baseball. Matt Ellis, Mike and Judy's son, has worked for the team since its inception and continues to serve as the team's executive vice president.
Taylor Rush, PaddleHeads director of marketing and public relations, said discussions about a potential name change began soon after the new ownership group arrived.
"We'd had the same logo since 1999, and this is coming from someone who has to do creative content: the center of that logo is not where you think the center is. It was a real pain for graphic design," Rush said. "The goal was to find something that really represents what it means to be from Missoula. But we wanted to make sure it was a decision that the entire team was OK with. Matt Ellis, he and his parents moved the team here in 1999 and developed the Osprey branding. It was a special thing for him, so the fact that he got on board and is excited as he is says a lot about what we've been able to come up with."
The Osprey name had a special significance, as Missoula was the only professional sports team named after a species that lives at the ballpark in its natural habitat. A specially constructed osprey nest, sitting atop a tall man-made platform and monitored by University of Montana researchers, is located just beyond the right-center field fence at the team's home of Ogren Park at Allegiance Field. The osprey families that live in the nest feed on trout from the Clark Fork River, which runs just behind the ballpark.
The team developed its new PaddleHeads identity in conjunction with Jason Klein and Casey White of Brandiose, a San Diego-based logo design company that has worked with dozens of Minor League teams over the past 15 years.
"Jason and Casey flew out and then we held focus groups with a lot of people, both baseball fans and not," Rush said. "We had fans submit ideas and ended up with more than 600 over the course of a month, and 400 of them were different. We had about a half-dozen variations of moose and one that referenced paddles as antlers.
"During a brainstorming session with Jason and Casey, we threw PaddleHeads out there. It's a double entendre. There's the moose antlers but also the Missoula lifestyle -- the kayaking, fishing, paddleboarding that are all happening outside the stadium. Paddles is one of those things. We didn't make it up, but it's still obscure enough that we can have that brand. That's one of the toughest things about the whole process. Everything and its mother is already trademarked."
Pick up some PaddleHeads gear »
"Casey and I thought, 'No Minor League team owns the moose concept. What could we do with the moose?'" Klein said. "And when we left and were at the airport, we just noticed that everything in the airport was Montana and a moose, Montana and a moose. We can own it in our own way, which is really exciting."
Referencing previous Brandiose clients, he continued, "They definitely believed they had to create a brand that couldn't be ignored, that could hang alongside the [El Paso] Chihuahuas, the [Jacksonville] Jumbo Shrimp, the [Hartford] Yard Goats. That was the basic thrust -- how to create something like that for a Pioneer League franchise. Before the [Rocky Mountain] Vibes, it hadn't been done since the Casper Ghosts, a Pioneer League team jumping to national celebrity. Now the Missoula PaddleHeads have thrown themselves into the ring."
Rush and Klein feel this potential for national prominence is a result of the variety and vibrancy of the logos. One mark shows the moose, clad in Birkenstocks, lounging in an inner tube while gripping his baseball bat paddle. (Klein said the bat-paddle will be "an icon throughout the brand.") Another logo, in the shape of Montana, depicts the moose in the background as he hooks a trout. There's also an antler-topped "M" and, finally, a mark that incorporates several of the above elements into a ramshackle peace sign.
"The peace sign is one of my favorite things about all of the marks," Rush said. "Missoula has a surprisingly liberal, hippie culture -- outgoing and open-minded people. A university town, a blue circle in a red state. There's a mountain to the north of downtown that had a peace sign on the hill."
Even more subtle is an Easter egg in the primary logo, contained within the submerged moose.
"The eye of the mascot, if you look closely, you can see [Missoula's] Mount Sentinel and Mount Jumbo, with the moon and the sun over it," Rush said.
"From a color standpoint, everything is bright," Klein added. "The Missoula color palette, when we visited it was steel blue, Texas orange, Big Sky colors, real rough and worn over time. 'OK, let's hang out in that color universe and punch it up.' We saw great photos of rivers in summertime that were electric green, and the rust orange color of the buildings moved its way into the moose color.
"And a little bit of logo fanatic trivia, this orange was the orange that the Nashville Sounds originally went with on their launch [prior to moving into a new ballpark in 2015]. For a brief time, Nashville had this orange, but they abandoned it. We can safely say that Missoula is the only team with this electric neon hunter orange."
Monday's unveiling marked the PaddleHeads' official introduction to the Minor League Baseball landscape. Rush is optimistic about what the future holds.
"What we wanted out of this, and what I think we were able to accomplish, is to create a brand and image that speaks to the culture and people of Missoula and west Montana," he said. "We are a community that is frankly unlike anywhere else in the world. We're lucky to be here and wanted something for our community to be proud of."
Benjamin Hill is a reporter for MiLB.com and writes Ben's Biz Blog. Follow Ben on Twitter @bensbiz.
Orioles' Honeycutt joins The Show Before the Show
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Red Sox prospect rips double THROUGH Fenway-esque scoreboard
Red Sox No. 4 prospect Franklin Arias, an infielder for High-A Greenville, REALLY didn’t want to let visiting Asheville score any runs in the top of the eighth inning on Friday night. With runners on first and second base in the bottom of the fourth, Arias showed he apparently held
April's hottest hitting prospects -- one for each organization
The Minor League season is a month old and several of the game's best hitting prospects are off to fast starts. Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony is tearing up Triple-A (just like he did at the end of last year), Padres shortstop Leo De Vries is leading the High-A Midwest
Check out the best -- and wackiest -- Minor League promos happening in May
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
MiLB podcast coming LIVE to a Somerset this June
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
New ballparks highlight 2025 MiLB road trip stops
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
Minor League Baseball partners with TruGreen
FRANKLIN, Tenn. -- TruGreen, the nation's leading lawn care treatment provider, is proud to announce a groundbreaking partnership with Minor League Baseball that includes activations across all 120 clubs, a makeover of the home dugout in each market, sponsorship of select MiLB team grounds crews, and a new initiative called
Podcast explains why the Syracuse Mets are looking for Jim Morrison
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Dash im-prom-tu promo and Mets' Suero joins the podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Minor League Baseball partners with Circle K
Minor League Baseball announced a new national partnership with Circle K, which will see the convenience store giant become the “Official Convenience Store of Minor League Baseball.” During the 2025 season, the Circle K brand will be integrated into the MiLB in-stadium experience through in-game video board assets at most
These 15 moments led to season No. 15 of Minor League road trips
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from his newsletter is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
MiLB podcast crew makes Opening Day predictions
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Everything you need to know for Triple-A Opening Day
First, there was big league Opening Day. Now it's Triple-A's turn to take the spotlight. The Minor League season opens Friday when the Triple-A International League and Pacific Coast League seasons get underway for the first of MiLB’s two Opening Days. And right out of the gates, several of baseball's
Top prospects to watch at Triple-A -- one for each organization
It’s Triple-A’s turn up to bat on Friday. The regular season begins for the Minor Leagues’ highest level one day after the action starts on the Major League side. Fun fact: it’ll be the earliest start to a Minor League season since 1951 (March 27). Double-A, High-A and Single-A will
Here's where every Top 100 prospect is expected to start the season
The 2025 Opening Day prospect roster announcements began last week when the Cubs informed Matt Shaw (MLB No. 19) he was making the trip overseas to compete in the Tokyo Series. Roki Sasaki (No. 1) also received the good news, but his assignment was much less of a surprise. Now
Nationals prospect King joins MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Here are the 2025 All-Spring Breakout Teams
Fifteen games, several jersey swaps and countless highlights later, the second edition of Spring Breakout has officially concluded – and it lived up to its billing. Of the 16 contests sprinkled across four days, only one game (Dodgers vs. Cubs) was rained out. Coincidentally, the Cubs were one of two
Rox young sluggers aim to bring pop back to Coors Field
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Coors Field may provide the best run-scoring environment in Major League Baseball, but the Rockies haven’t taken advantage of it in recent years. Even without adjusting for Coors, they have fielded offenses worse than the league average the past three seasons, and they scored the fewest runs
Astros brass sees potential in consistently 'underranked' farm system
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The last time the Astros landed in the top 10 of MLB Pipeline’s farm system rankings was before the 2019 season. Since those rankings expanded to all 30 teams ahead of the 2020 season -- 11 lists in total -- they’ve never ranked higher than
Complete results and highlights from Spring Breakout
The second edition of MLB Spring Breakout is complete, and there was no shortage of highlights from the future stars of Major League Baseball over the four-day showcase. Here's a complete breakdown of the 16-game exhibition:
Southpaw Spring Breakout: White Sox future on display with Schultz, Smith
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- If all goes as planned for the White Sox, left-handers Hagen Smith and Noah Schultz won’t spend much time following each other to the mound in a single game. Schultz, the No. 1 White Sox prospect and No. 16 overall, per MLB Pipeline, and Smith, who is
In first pro game, Rainer offers pop, promise to Tigers fans
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- Bryce Rainer’s pro career consisted of workouts and batting practice until Sunday.
'Me and Brady on the dirt again': House, King reunite at Spring Breakout
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The 2025 Spring Breakout was a flashback for Brady House and Seaver King. Over 10 years ago, the infielders were travel ball teammates in Georgia who shared the dream of making it to the Major Leagues. Now, they are top prospects in the same organization,
Lambert -- 'an adrenaline guy' -- hoping to be next Mets bullpen gem
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Ryan Lambert loves throwing hard. He relishes the idea of getting to two strikes and blowing hitters away. “Get me in a game,” Lambert said, “cool things will happen.”
Stewart embraces Spring Breakout: 'What's not to love?'
PHOENIX -- Sal Stewart was one fired-up Reds prospect. On Sunday in the first inning during the organization's 9-7 Spring Breakout win over Brewers prospects, Stewart lifted a 2-2 pitch that sailed over the center fielder's head to the wall. Already not known as a speedster, he stumbled running between