An ancillary tidbit in the news stories on Walter O’Malley’s Hall of Fame induction was the fact that his grandsons are the majority owners of the Visalia Oaks. They’re in the California League’s North Division, and are a Diamondbacks affiliate.
From “Walter O’Malley’s long road to the Hall of Fame” in the LA Times,
…even though Peter O’Malley sold the Dodgers a decade ago, his family remains involved in baseball. Tom Seidler and his cousin Kevin O’Malley — two grandsons of Walter O’Malley — are the majority owners of the Visalia Oaks, a minor league team. The other partners are family members.
Seidler, 39, was in attendance here when his grandfather’s election to the Hall of Fame was announced.
“He was a visionary for baseball and set a good example for all of us,” Seidler said. “I’m just excited. I’m extremely proud.
The Oaks have a couple of different logos, both of which are awesome. The first is this cool squirrel, named Chatter:
And then, this angry acorn:
However, according to Wikipedia,
The current team owner desires to change the team name and mascot to a more “marketable” one. Recently, fans have began submitting ideas and opinions on the change. The Visalia Times-Delta has reported that the new name and mascot will most likely reflect the local agricultural lifestyle.
What’s wrong with Oaks?!
Steve Sax | 05-Dec-07 at 3:39 pm | Permalink
hey, my alma mater has a tree for a mascot, and it seems to be working just fine (just ask Cal from this past weekend)
Robert | 05-Dec-07 at 6:12 pm | Permalink
Exactly!