IE 66ers Unveil New Look

For the first time in 10 years, the 2013 California League Champions, the Inland Empire 66ers, unveiled a new set of logos — one that pays homage to the team’s namesake, historic highway Route 66. The new “mechanic” logo and overall muscle car theme is intended to commemorate what made Route 66 so prominent in Southern California. 66ers general manager Joe Hudson said, "When we went through the whole rebranding process, we looked at a number of new concepts and logos, including cars, trucks and, ultimately, characters like the mechanic. From the start of the process we wanted a logo that we could bring life to it and when the mechanic character was presented, it just made sense and fit great within the whole brand and theme of Route 66. We have truly created a new and exciting brand that focuses on the family fun entertainment that minor league baseball is all about. Our new identity symbolizes both a new era in an already historic franchise as well as an investment to our fans and community. This is a look that will appeal to all ages and will present a brand image that we feel all of our fans will love. Our fans can expect the same great entertainment, world class service and community focus that they love us for. We’ve simply re-imagined our identity.” The home cap logo depicts a mechanic batting with an oil-drenched wrench. Other logos also tie in the muscle-car theme, depicting wrenches, engines and the "66ers" on wings. Creating and perfecting the logo took nearly a year of collaboration between the 66ers and Brandiose, a San Diego-based company led by founders Jason Klein and Casey White. Clients include a number of MLB teams, including the Lehigh Valley IronPigs and the Richmond Flying Squirrels. Jason and Casey often traveled to San Bernardino and visited with fans, staff and community members to get a sense of what type of logo would perfectly emanate both the team and the Inland Empire community. From there, the design team was able to settle on the new logo and the team’s new colors of powder blue and orange — colors not usual in the league. "From the start, when we talked about changing our logos, it was more than just logos," said Hudson. "It was changing the brand of the 66ers. We wanted the new brand to be fun, exciting, and unique while at the same time paying homage to the history of Route 66. When we looked at colors, we thought of the classic muscle car colors and found the baby blue and orange combination not only fit perfectly within the new theme and brand, but also looked great when combined together." Following the unveiling, merchandise featuring the new logos and colors became available for purchase online and by visiting the merchandise store inside San Manuel Stadium. As merchandise was up for sale, items flew off the shelves and into the hands of eager and supportive 66ers fans. For Hudson and the rest of the team, the brand represents both the team's growth and the family fun it has brought to the Inland Empire for years. "I think the most exciting part of the new logos and the overall brand are all the possibilities that it allows us as a front office to have from a creative standpoint. It opens up a lot of new possibilities from video board graphics to merchandise to print material," said Hudson. The 66ers players themselves will soon be sporting the new look on their uniforms, which will be unveiled at a later date.