First the originality of the Houston Texans, and now.... The Washington Nationals! That is officially the stupidest sport team nickname I have ever heard and I have heard of WUSA, WNBA, and Arena Football names. (For those of you who don't know, the Nationals is what the Expos are renaming themselves)
I've found pretty much everyone hates a teams new name right off. Give it a year and then see how you feel. Lee
Says the "Silverback" fan. Nationals is not that bad at all. Burn, Crew, Wiz and Clash are pretty bad. They sound like a beer can being kicked down steel stairs.
I dunno... the Washington Nats isn't exactly the catchiest name. Your team name is never good when its nickname sounds the same as a type of insect.
I feel like I can get used to any name. I mean, I follow the Rapids. It just takes awhile to settle into the norm. Too bad they didn't go back to the Senators. I liked that.
No the Nationals is the new official name of the team. Therefore Nats is the nickname of the team. 11/22/2004 12:00 PM ET D.C.'s team to be the Nationals Name reached after extensive research By Bill Ladson / MLB.com WASHINGTON, D.C. -- City and team officials announced at a Monday press conference at the Main Hall in Union Station that Washington, D.C.'s baseball team would be named the Nationals. http://washington.nationals.mlb.com...nt_id=915341&vkey=news_was&fext=.jsp&c_id=was
A weird one I liked was the Solar Bears, a minor league hockey team from Florida. See, we're in Florida! No polar bears here, it's too sunny and warm! We've got Solar Bears instead! Well, I liked it.
and we have a High School around here called the Ann Arbor River Rats. so ha! I win. and for greatest nicknames of all... may I present the Zeeland East "Chix" and the Zeeland West "Dux" http://www.zeeland.k12.mi.us/zhs/projects/athletics/Index.html
Nationals is a historic Washington baseball name. The team was called that before the Senators. It's kind of a blah name. It doesn't evoke love or hate for me. But its definitely better than any WUSA, WNBA and Arena Football League names. I wouldn't go that far.
you think silverbacks is a bad name? i, and most people who have discussed the name with me, actually like it. its extremely original and rolls off the tongue. but then again, you are a fc dallas burn 1996 fan.
The House would have demanded equal time and space. Let me guess: the team plays in the National League.
Remember the Cyber Rays from the WUSA? That's the bottom of the naming barrel as far as I'm concerned. Houston Texans is close, though.
Yeah, but they were officially the Washington Nationals back in the first iteration of Washington baseball as well, and were nicknamed the Senators from wikipedia.com The Washington Senators (officially named the Washington Nationals during the 1901–1956 seasons) were an American League baseball team from 1901 to 1960. The franchise then moved to Minneapolis and became, and still remains, the Minnesota Twins. The Senators won one World Series (1924) and lost two (1925 and 1933). Among its stars included Hall of Famers Goose Goslin, Sam Rice, Heinie Manush, and Walter Johnson. Up and coming Washington star Harmon "Killer" Killebrew was a young phenom in the late 1950s and early '60s who went with the team to Minneapolis and spent all but one year of his career with the Senators/Twins. It is said that prior to the Cuban revolution, Fidel Castro tried out for the Senators as a pitcher during the early 1950s. The team played its games at Griffith Stadium, sharing it with the Homestead Grays of the Negro Leagues (who played some of their games there). Team nickname: Nats, short for Nationals. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The Washington Senators were also an American League baseball expansion team from 1961 to 1971. The franchise then moved to Arlington, Texas and became, and still remains, the Texas Rangers. In eleven seasons, the Senators posted only one winning season (1969). Frank Howard was the team's most accomplished player. Ted Williams of Boston Red Sox fame managed the team from 1969 to 1971, and moved with the franchise to Texas in 1972. The team played its games at D.C. Stadium (renamed Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium in 1968) on East Capitol Street and the Anacostia River. Team uniform colors: Red, blue and white, with script "Washington" across the player's chest Because the original Senators' relocation to Minnesota and the expansion Senators' arrival occurred in the same year (1961), it is a very common mistake to combine the two franchises into one, as they both had the same name.
Forget copying these European team names overseas, these MLS executives have got to do a better job coming up with creative names that have a distinctive American identity. Can you imagine any team elsewhere in the world calling themselves in the Yankees? I don't... so why the hell are we calling ourselves a Spanish team name and even worse... pronouncing it differently. A team name needs some history... look at... MLB Yankees Red Sox White Sox Braves Dodgers NBA Knicks (Knickerbockers) Celtics Lakers etc... etc... What an MLS teams needs is a local identity... why the hell is the LA Team called the Galaxy? KC Wizards? Seeing that home games bring in local people obviously you gotta give them something in common to identify with.
Man, I was waiting for someone to bring up the CyberRays. [cringe] And to be fair, I don't think high school and college nicknames should be considered, because they are often obscure or bizarre - a high school back home has the nickname "Knotty Oakers", and as far as college goes... UCSC Banana Slugs, anyone? That being said, there is an AHL hockey team called the Albany River Rats (Devils' farm team), so that's pretty dumb. I personally think Chivas USA ranks up there with Team America (NASL) and Team Hawaii (guess who) as far as unoriginal names go. Other names that suck, imo: Columbus Blue Jackets (NHL) Minnesota Wild (NHL) Tampa Bay Devil Rays (MLB) Utah Jazz (NBA - didn't like it when it was New Orleans Jazz, either) BTW, have the rest of you heard about the Angels' owner who wanted to rename the team "The Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim"? If this gets accepted, it's moving right to the top of the list.
Galaxy - there's an important observatory around LA, I believe. Plus Hollywood has a bunch of stars (it's a stretch, but I think that's how they justify it) Wizards - KC ---> Kansas ---> Wizard of Oz