The Kannapolis Intimidators Should NOT Change Nickname
Photo: independenttribune.com
Photo: daleearnhardt.net
Living in the Piedmont region of North Carolina, we are well aware of the Kannapolis Intimidators minor league baseball team and have been to several games. But to those who are not from around here, the Intimidators are a Single-A affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. They have been nicknamed the Intimidators since 2001, just a few months after NASCAR legend Dale Earnhardt bought a share of his hometown team, and shortly before his death in the 2001 Daytona 500. The team has honored him by using the nickname and not issuing the number 3 to any player since his death. Unlike many minor league baseball names, the Intimidators have a special meaning to the area that so many local residents are proud of. If you’re not from around here, it’s impossible to understand the significance Dale Earnhardt had, and continues to have, on our people.
Yesterday the baseball team announced a rebranding effort, in which the team plans to move to a new Kannapolis ballpark and change the nickname, logo, and mascot. The team stated they wanted a “fresh” start. The upcoming season will be the last season in the current ballpark and using the current name. I was very curious to see people’s reactions on social media and just as I suspected, everyone was highly upset. I didn’t notice a single person support the bid for a new name, and instead read reactions reflecting that it was an unwise move and a sad day in Kannapolis.
Like I mentioned in the opening paragraph, if you’re not from around here, you simply won’t get it. Dale Earnhardt is our legend. He’s our hero. He is our Babe Ruth. He was such a great driver with countless accomplishments on the track, but at the same time he was one of us. He was a superstar on the weekends and a blue-collar farmer during the week. Everything he did in NASCAR felt like a reflection of the “common people.” After his tragic death in 2001, it wasn’t only the NASCAR landscape that significantly changed, but the landscape of this entire region of North Carolina. The people didn’t know how to deal with his passing for a long time, living through memories of their hometown hero. Though it is a relatively minor thing, the Kannapolis Intimidators give the people of the town something to hang on to and be proud of. Earnhardt himself was honored and proud of the baseball team’s nickname after him, so the people of Kannapolis and surrounding regions are too. If you’re from this area, you want everyone around the world to know you are from the same place as the great Dale Earnhardt. The baseball team was one way of boasting that.
Photo: theknightshift.com
I completely understand moving into a new and improved stadium. Their stadium needed many upgrades and wasn’t ideally located. I just don’t understand wanting a new identity just because of moving into a new stadium. It’s not necessary, especially since the identity is stronger than perhaps every other minor league baseball team in the country. It may sound crazy to a lot of people, but I also think this will be bad for their business. The people of Kannapolis are so connected to Dale Earnhardt that many people will stop going to the games altogether in protest of the name change. Whenever social media responses are so overwhelmingly negative towards something, how can the decision-makers still believe it is a good idea? You have to listen to the people because the product you are selling (tickets, merchandise, etc.) are FOR the people. It makes me wonder if those making these decisions within the organization are from this area. If they aren’t, they might have good intentions, but just don’t realize what they are getting themselves into.
I don’t know if anything will change going forward with the team’s rebranding plans. Since it was just announced yesterday, maybe a continuing negative response from the fans will influence the team to think otherwise about a name change. I, along with thousands of people, really hope so. Perhaps we should start a petition to keep the name. Either way, long live The Intimidator.