Hartford Yard Goats
Current logo on the left, and the new... eh... on the right. (New Britain Rock Cats)

The people have spoken, and they say they want the Class AA minor league baseball team in Hartford, Conn. to be called the Yard Goats. The affiliate of the Colorado Rockies will keep its current name, the New Britain Rock Cats, until next year when it moves into a new stadium in downtown Hartford. As part of the move, the team is updating its image. The Hartford Courant is keeping track, and official reaction is mixed so far.

The mayor of New Britain, Conn., the town that's losing the team after this season, said this on Twitter:

Sour grapes? The mayor of Hartford had a different response:

Goats 'n' kids go together, just like baseball 'n' kids, is what this tweet might be saying.

The team received 6,000 submissions for a new name in a fan contest, and a committee including general manager Tim Restall whittled the choices down to five.

The Courant reports from what looked like a heck of a fun press conference:

So the franchise once known as the Bristol Red Sox is now … the Hartford Yard Goats.

People in the YMCA gymnasium saw two live goats, hedgehogs, toy helicopters and a rain of confetti after the announcement. The goats were brought onto the stage, but they nervously strayed to the side.

Get used to seeing goats. Although the name Yard Goats is technically an old railroad slang term for an engine that switches a train to get it ready for another locomotive, the animal angle lends itself to logos and merchandise. Hartford's stadium could have a petting zoo, at least on some nights.

"When you think of a name, it's about what you can market and what appeals to kids," Restall said. "We can do a lot with this name."

The name was submitted by Anthony Castora, who was awarded two season tickets for life. A 1998 UConn graduate, Castora lives in northern New Jersey and plans to donate his tickets to a charity. He will attend Opening Day next season.

As far as any negative reaction to "Yard Goats," this Facebook commenter seems to have the right attitude:

Yard Goat
Yeah, don't be sheep.