The Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp are the Triple-A affiliate of the Miami Marlins, playing at 121 Financial Ballpark in Jacksonville, Florida. The team’s current visual identity dates to November 2, 2016, when owner Ken Babby unveiled the Jumbo Shrimp name and logos at the Times-Union Center for the Performing Arts, ending the franchise’s long-running “Suns” moniker. The rebrand was developed with San Diego-based design firm Brandiose, the same agency that had previously worked with Babby on the Akron RubberDucks identity. [1] [2]
Design and History
The centerpiece of the new identity is a tenacious Jumbo Shrimp in the shape of a “J,” set amid water that reflects the natural geography of the River City on the First Coast. [2] The primary logo features the oxymoronic crustacean contorting its muscular frame so that it resembles the letter “J.” [1] Alternate marks include a Jumbo Shrimp clutching the state of Florida and a Shrimp Boil logo showing the resilient shrimp fighting its way out of a boiling pot of water. [2] [1]
The rebrand was not preceded by a fan vote or “Name the Team” contest, a break from established Minor League Baseball rebranding protocol. Babby said the decision came after “quiet conversations with local officials and community leaders.” [1] The team worked on the new name throughout the 2016 season and brought in Brandiose, which specializes in branding sports teams. [3] Brandiose produced several final logo concepts, and Babby described the result as “a gritty, tough, hard-working shrimp.” [4]
The identity has evolved since its 2017 launch. A Jumbo Shrimp wordmark was added for the 2023 season to mirror the traditional Jacksonville script, and in 2023 the “J” from the Jacksonville wordmark was separated into its own logo and added to two alternate on-field game hats. [5]
Meaning and Symbolism
The Jumbo Shrimp name celebrates Jacksonville as a “big small town,” and the logo expresses the resilient character of Northeast Florida. [6] The shrimp’s tenacious expression and posture represent the determination and resilience of the Jacksonville community, while the animated style represents affordable family fun. The water in the logo is included as a natural feature of the First Coast. [5]
The alternate logo featuring the shrimp holding the state of Florida appears on road caps “to show that our home is where Florida begins.” The Shrimp Boil logo is described as a symbol of the shared experience of families and the melting pot of Jacksonville. [5]
Typography and Design
The team’s official colors are St. Johns Navy, Patriotic Blue, American Red and Shrimp, which pay tribute to Jacksonville’s military heritage. [2] The letters and numbers of the wordmark and uniforms use a custom Jumbo Shrimp font. [5] The aquatic-themed “Jacksonville” lettering on the home and road jerseys includes water as a natural part of the First Coast. [5] The home jersey lettering features a rolling streak of blue through the city’s name, representing the St. John’s River, with a Jumbo Shrimp antenna emerging from the “J.” [1]
The “Bold City” wordmark, referencing Jacksonville’s nickname as the “Bold New City of the South,” appears on an alternate jersey. [5] The red cap worn on Friday nights has two meanings: it is an homage to the history of the Negro Leagues in Jacksonville, where the team was the Jacksonville Red Caps, and it honors the military through “Red Shirt Friday.” [1]
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