Why I Appreciate Baseball Mascots Very Much

A purple triceratops in a striped white jersey. A handsome elephant with a vibrant personality. An adorable fuzzy green space alien. What do these three characters have in common, you may ask? They are all Major League Baseball mascots.

There are twenty-seven mascots in major league baseball. The only three teams without them are the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. In my opinion, mascots are the unsung heroes of the sport.

My absolute all time favorite mascot is Dinger the Dinosaur of the Colorado Rockies. I have seen a lot of people on the Internet bashing on him. My thoughts? Dinger is a cute and versatile dinosaur. People are frightened of how he can spin his head 360 degrees.

Dinger is a cute and versatile dinosaur. People are frightened of how he can spin his head 360 degrees. However, I always find Dinger’s very happy-looking face adorable. Something that I love is that he helps deliver Valentines on behalf of the Colorado Rockies. Plus, he is allegedly in charge of the Colorado Rockies social media accounts. I actually remember an exchange that happened in March of 2018.

One user was talking about their thoughts on how the Saint Louis Cardinals Twitter account was run. The Rockies pointed out that their Twitter account was run by an unpaid intern. I quote-tweeted the post and said that I thought that Dinger was in charge of the account.

The Colorado Rockies replied that Dinger was still considered an unpaid intern. I might be wrong about Dinger being the mastermind behind the social media accounts. It might be an inside joke with fans, however, I hope Dinger is in charge.

Another mascot I am in love with is Stomper the Elephant of the Oakland Athletics. He’s one of the main reasons elephants are my favorite animal. He is very fun and adorable. I also admire his humility. I have seen many photos of Stomper appearing at community events in the Oakland, California, area. That, along with his fantastic dance moves and his adorable personality, have won my heart over.

Mascots in general are just amazing. I love the spirit they have. One of the things that I love mascots doing is waving a flag after each team victory. In my opinion, I feel like it brings a lot of optimism, especially when the team wins the game last minute in the bottom of the ninth inning (known as a walk-off) or if the team has won their first game in a long time.

Mascots getting dressed up for themed nights is another adorable thing that they do. From getting dressed up as Yoda for Star Wars Themed games to dressing up as Stranger Things characters for a Stranger Things themed evening, I find it beyond adorable when they do that.

I think it brings plenty of spirit to the evening. When I look at them, I think, “Wow! They’re really having fun and bringing extra joy to the ballpark!”

Speaking of bringing joy to the ballpark, I feel like mascots are a huge part of keeping the joy during a day to the ball game. Young kids get the chance to meet a mascot and I imagine it makes their hearts happy.

I fondly remember meeting one of my favorite mascots ever. He was visiting my university. He pointed to my outfit and did the “okay” sign with his hand, pointing out he approved of my choice of apparel. Later, I took a picture with him, and of course I had to hug him as hard as I could muster. Seeing mascots could mean different things for different people, but I imagine many good experiences, I might be wrong on that, however.

I feel like mascots are the heart and soul of the ballpark experience. I think they are some of the first impressions for the team. In my opinion, mascots having fun send a message to the fans that they are here for a good time.

I also believe that fan interactions with the mascots are very important. I think that if fans love crossing paths with the mascot, they will associate positively with the team.

Major League Baseball mascots are the unsung heroes of the sport. They are first impressions and spirit captains of the sporting world. Who get to spread theme night cheer? Mascots do! Who gets to shower fans with love home game after home game after home game? Mascots do!

Who gets to share all the joy of a victory with the home team’s fans? That’s right? Mascots do! Heck, there should be a parody of the song Run The World (Girls) by Beyoncé called Run Major League Baseball (Mascots).

To all the mascots out there, stay awesome. Keep sharing the spirit of the game with your fans and capturing the hearts of baseball lovers everywhere. Y’all deserve all the love in the world. Your positive energy and community adoration are what makes the baseball world a beautiful place.