Throughout history, minor league baseball organizations have searched for ways to increase fan engagement. Team names are often a method to get fans excited, with teams such as the El Paso Chihuahuas, Triple-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres, or the Montgomery Biscuits, Double-A affiliate of the Tampa Bay Rays.
Uniforms are another way teams promote fan engagement, creating jerseys for special events at the ballpark on a given day or night. Two examples of this include the El Paso Chihuahuas’ “Bark at the Park Night”, which featured enormous faces of a Chihuahua, as well as the Fresno Grizzlies’ “Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle” jerseys, which were worn shortly before the release of the newest movie.
The Iowa Cubs, a Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs, is no exception, having featured multiple exciting events, in which the team wore a special uniform.
Iowa Cubs History
In 1969, Des Moines, Iowa introduced a new Triple-A franchise. This new team was named the Iowa Oaks and would be one of the six teams playing in the American Association. It wouldn’t be until 1982 that the Oaks would be renamed the Cubs, which happened one year after the team became an affiliate of the Chicago Cubs.
In 2005, Principal Park, the current home stadium of the Iowa Cubs set a single-game attendance record with a crowd of 13,669, in a game that featured Chicago Cubs pitcher Kerry Wood, making a rehab start, as well as post-game fireworks.
Principal Park has a capacity of 11,500. The team set a franchise attendance record in 2007 after they drew in 576,310 fans during the season, which equates to selling out the stadium over 50 times.
As a member of the American Association from 1969-1997, the Iowa Cubs won the league one time, in 1993 and won their division three times, in 1973, 1993, and 1997. Following their time in the American Association, the Iowa Cubs joined the Pacific Coast League, in 1998.
During their time in the Pacific Coast League in 1998, the Iowa Cubs have one conference title, which came in 2004, as well as five division titles, coming in 1998, 2001, 2004, 2008, and 2019.
The First Snow ❄️🦃🎄 pic.twitter.com/fCqcjMS8uB
— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) November 15, 2022
Current Uniforms
Currently, the Iowa Cubs feature the same color scheme and similar uniforms to their MLB affiliate, Chicago Cubs. The team uses the same logo as the Chicago Cubs, with the only addition being the word “Iowa” on the top left corner of the logo. On their hats, the Iowa Cubs feature an “I”, while the Chicago Cubs feature a “C”.
The minor leagues are very unique in that there are some teams, such as the Iowa Cubs and Oklahoma City Dodgers, who sport the same team name and color scheme as their MLB affiliate, while there are so many others, such as the Sacramento River Cats, whose name and colors are nowhere near their San Francisco Giants MLB affiliate.
In November of 2021, the Iowa Cubs introduced a new logo into their current collection. This new logo featured the face of a bear, which would be featured at the beginning of their most recent 2022 season. The bear face was that of the Iowa Cubs’ team mascot, Cubbie Bear and would be featured on an all-blue cap, as well as a red, white, and blue three-panel cap.
Best Specialty Jerseys
Over the years, the Iowa Cubs have featured multiple specialty jerseys to be worn in particular games. Oftentimes, the jerseys are worn to promote awareness of a certain cause and are auctioned off during the game, with all proceeds going toward the specific charity.
On April 28, 2019, the Iowa Cubs held a “Scout Day” at their home Principal Park. For this game, the Iowa Cubs worked with local scouting directors in order to create a very special day at the ballpark for Scouts, in which they were able to throw out the first pitch at the game and sing the national anthem. For this event, the Iowa Cubs designed jerseys based on the uniform an Eagle Scout wears.
After getting approval for the design from the Boy Scouts of America and Minor League Baseball, the jerseys were made and worn in their April 28, 2019 game. During the game, fans were able to bid on each of the players’ jerseys. Those who placed winning bids were able to meet the player who wore the jersey after the game to have their jerseys signed.
Another of the Iowa Cubs specialty uniforms has a bit of history attached to it. On August 30, 2019, the team played as the “Iowa Caucuses”. Political parties use caucuses during presidential and midterm elections in which members discuss and vote on candidates.
The significance of these caucuses is that the state of Iowa has been recognized since 1972 as the first state to vote in primaries through these meetings. As part of the promotion at the game, the Iowa Cubs offered opportunities for voter registration at Principal Park.
Coming August 30 — the Iowa Caucuses!
📰>>https://t.co/e5zcBXijro pic.twitter.com/PAUDTZIpxN
— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) August 7, 2019
Pink In The Park
On August 23, 2019, “Pink in the Park” night was held at Principal Stadium. Here, the Iowa Cubs featured pink jerseys in support of breast cancer.
Much like other promotions the Iowa Cubs have held, fans were able to bid on the players’ jerseys, with all of the proceeds benefiting the Susan G. Koman Foundation of Greater Iowa.
We are proud to partner with @SusanGKomen Greater Iowa for Pink in the Park night on Aug. 31!
🎟️ >> https://t.co/wZGIVd4zLh pic.twitter.com/oHI8ndAHO4
— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) August 25, 2018
Demonios de Des Moines
While the Iowa Cubs have featured a number of specialty jerseys that were auctioned off for various charities, they do have a recurring specialty uniform.
The “Demonios de Des Moines” uniforms were worn three times during the 2019 season by the Iowa Cubs. After taking the 2020 season off, the uniforms returned for four games during the 2021 season.
These are part of Minor League Baseball’s “Copa de la Diversión”, which is an initiative designed to celebrate the culture and heritage of the local Hispanic and Latino communities. The Iowa Cubs were one of 76 minor league organizations to join in supporting MiLB’s initiative.
Demonios de Des Moines replica jersey are in and they are 💯
🛍>>https://t.co/LExGQRdZxr pic.twitter.com/RtCSDKcEWW
— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) July 11, 2019
Iowa Oaks Jerseys
From the team’s creation in 1969, until being renamed in 1982, the Iowa Cubs were originally named the Iowa Oaks. While the team does currently partake in giveaways of replica Iowa Oaks jerseys, the team did wear the jerseys frequently during past seasons.
On multiple occasions during the 2014 season, the Iowa Cubs wore throwback Iowa Oaks jerseys, remembering the history of the organization. They would wear the jerseys for the last time on June 18, 2014.
Josh Vitters ready for Iowa Oaks throwback game. 6:35 vs Albuquerque Dukes. #cubs #PCL #MiLB pic.twitter.com/PQKxkStD
— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) April 11, 2012
Final Thoughts
Of the many ways that Minor League Baseball organizations work to increase fan engagement and popularity of the team, promotional events that include specialty jerseys are one of the best.
Whether it be a one-time jersey that will be auctioned off to raise money for a charity, or a uniform that will be worn on a few special occasions throughout the season, fans love watching their teams play in something that deviates from their typical norm.
Over the years the Iowa Cubs have used uniforms to market their team, creating fun and exciting environments at Principal Park for fans. Much like the rest of Minor League Baseball, the Iowa Cubs have done a great job over the years in using uniforms to their advantage. It will be very interesting to see what the organization unveils in the 2023 season.
Credits on Featured Image: Minda Haas Kuhlmann, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
