Awesome Sports Logos Blog

September 19th is Talk Like a Pirate Day

Ahoy, Matey! September 19^th is International Talk Like A Pirate Day. It’s a holiday to celebrate for no reason. Just kick back, keep an eye on your social media accounts, and watch people take advantage of this crazy day. Don’t hesitate to get into the action yourself! Find clever ways to plug in some pirate lingo into your everyday conversations. Arrr! Aye! Matey! Avast! Ahoy! Jolly Roger! Pillage! Plunder! These are all phrases that you can use to get involved in International Talk Like A Pirate Day! Here at Awesome Sports Logos, we will celebrate by presenting you some of the best pirate logos in sports!

But first, a joke you can use on this awesome day. “Did you hear about the newest Pirate movie? Just don’t bring the kids because it’s rated RRRRRRRRRRR!” Guaranteed to get a chuckle, just like our shirts. Okay, Okay, on to the sports logos which is why you are reading this.

The Oakland Raiders have one of the fiercest pirate related logos in the NFL! This three-time Super Bowl winning team has pretty much carried the same look since their inception in 1960. Their look features a true scallywag, wearing an eye patch and a leather helmet from an earlier era in football. He sits in the center of a black shield, with crossed swords behind him. When you see the Oakland Raiders logo, you know this guy means business, and so do the fans. The Raider Nation is known for showing up to games early, dressed in awesome costumes, masks and face paint! Some of them can look even scarier than the meanest pirate you have ever seen.

The Tampa Bay Buccaneers give the Oakland Raiders a run for their money in the pirate logo department. Their look is even more hardcore. The Bucs get right to the point, featuring a skull on a red flag. Again, we see crossed swords in this look, just under the skull, with a football at their intersection. The Tampa Bay version of the Jolly Roger flag is torn at the end, signifying their constant battles on the field. Their only Super Bowl win was in 2002, against the very same Oakland Raiders we mentioned above. Dubbed the “Pirate Bowl” by media and fans, this game was a clash of the scoundrels of the sea! And shiver me timbers! The Bucs managed to pull off a victory against the Raiders, forcing them to walk the plank!

Of course, when we talk about awesome logos, it never fails that Minor League Baseball teams end up in the mix.

The Bradenton Marauders have one of our favorite pirate logos! They are the Advanced-A minor league affiliate to none other than the Pittsburgh Pirates. Marauders training to be Pirates! Yo-ho-ho! What a sight. The Marauders logo is nothing to scoff at. It features exactly what you would imagine a pirate to look like. With an eye patch, thick scraggly beard and three-point captain’s hat, this pirate shows that he’s ready to pillage and plunder the opponents, all the way to a win!

At Awesome Sports Logos we haven’t made a Pirate logo yet but you never know what can happen. We do have a logo that looks similar to a Pirate but this logo didn’t steal. This logo played a big part in our American history! We present to you, the New York Zouaves!

The name Zouave actually comes from Algeria and was first used by the French army as they recruited military from the Zouaoua tribe. Zouaves are distinguished by their uniforms which included short open-fronted jackets, baggy trousers and often sashes and oriental headgear.

The New York Zouaves also known as the 11th New York Infantry took on the Zouaves name, uniforms and drill style during the Civil War. These volunteers actually started fighting immediately occupying Alexandria, Virginia just 24 hours after the state succeeded from the Union.

We hope you like this historic t-shirt as much as we do! Be sure to show off your International Talk Like A Pirate Day support, by picking up this super soft tee today! Even better, make it one of your choices by joining our T-shirt of the Month Club.

Thanks for reading!

Stay AWESOME!

Blake Cole

T-Shirt Wearer

Sports Logo Enthusiast

Posted in History T-shirts by Gavin on 9/4/2016 at 12:21:38 pm.

Sports Logo Spotlight on the Pittsburgh Pirates

The Pittsburgh Pirates are one of baseball’s oldest organizations, establishing themselves in 1881. They joined the National League in 1887. They’ve won five World Series titles, with the first coming in 1909 and the most recent in 1979. Their franchise has had a lot of notable players that also grace the walls of Cooperstown. Names like Roberto Clemente, Honus Wagner, Willie Stargell, and World Series, hero, Bill Mazeroski.

The Pirates logo is one of baseball's best. With an element of intimidation and a real-life feel, the image sets the foundation for success, on top of which is a unique regional tie and some creativeness that sets it a part.

Let's start with the colors. The official colors are black, gold, and white. Pittsburgh has something that few cities have with their sports teams: color symmetry. The Steelers, the Penguins, and the Pirates all feature the black-gold-white mix. I think that's such a uniquely cool element, intentional or not. It would be cool if more cities adopted this, though that would be difficult with the established teams. When I consider others that come close, Seattle comes to mind. The Mariners and Seahawks have that blue-green mix, but that's more of a loosely-based connection.

Here is their primary “P” logo.

Photos courtesy of sportslogos.net

Beyond the symmetry, the colors present an intimidating front, parallel to the vibe of a pirate. Add in the red that comes with a buccaneer and there is now an added element of guile.

The simple detail is very much exhibited with this image. From the cut of the bandana to the style of his hair, not to mention his devilish snarl, the image has life. You can almost see the gold earring--which blends nicely with the gold lettering--flopping with the head's imagined movement.

I love the substitution of bats in place of swords, crossing behind the image in the shape of a threatening "X." It is a simple decision, but sometimes simplicity is not executed properly, so hats off for that.

Overall, the logo is an outstanding mix of all that I want in a logo: good color scheme, regional significance, and simple detail. What more could you ask for? My grade for the Pirates Logo: A.

Another “A” grade goes to the Awesome Sports Logos T-shirt of the Month Club. Unlike other clubs where you hope to like the shirt that arrives, you pick your favorite t-shirts. You also receive great discounts for joining and free shipping. It’s a great deal that is receiving rave reviews. Support the cause and see for yourself.

Thanks as always for reading,

Jared Sandler

Awesome Sports Logos

Posted in Baseball by Gavin on 9/20/2015 at 9:17:31 pm.

How Pittsburgh Named Their Team the Pirates

Here's a joke for you: What do you call a team that signs players away from other teams by offering them more money than what is socially acceptable? The Yankees (insert courtesy laugh).

That joke warrants a fake laugh now, but over 100 years ago, that method of building a team actually earned one of baseball’s longest standing franchises its nickname. Pittsburgh’s professional baseball history dates back to 1882…kind of. Back in the late 1800’s, Pittsburgh was considered a separate city from Allegheny, named for the Allegheny River. The standings identified “Allegheny,” and not Pittsburgh. The Alleghenys (note: stylistically, it was “-ys” and not “-ies”) played in the American Association until 1886, when the team moved to the National League before the start of the 1887 season. Three years later, the Alleghenys made a decision that would shape the course of its franchise’s history.

Prior to the start of the 1890 season, the franchise re-identified itself as “Pittsburg,”—at that time the ever-so-important “h” was not a part of the name—and acquired Lou Bierbauer, arguably the team’s most significant transaction of all-time. Bierbauer was a good second baseman, but nothing crazy. A career .267 hitter, Bierbauer collected 1,521 hits and 835 runs batted in during his 13-year career. Why so significant? [read as “The Joker” in the Batman series]. Let me introduce you to the “steroids” of the late-19th century.

In 2014, a pitcher with zero MLB experience gets paid more than $20 million in annual salary. In 1888, owners established rules that—get this craziness—paid players according to their production by categorizing them and ranking them. The problem is that, because this was orchestrated by the owners, they eventually froze players’ salaries. Fortunately for the ballplayers, Columbia Law School graduate, John Montgomery Ward, who played in the Majors in the late-1800’s, founded the “Brotherhood of Base Ball Players,” the MLBPA before the MLBPA existed. The BoBBB’s intentions were to protect the interests of the players. Since the owners never consulted the players about their new ranking system, the players not only were not happy, but they had a voice to express their feelings through Ward’s creation.

Despite their efforts to work with the owners, the players ended up revolting and formed the “Players League” in 1890. With financial backing, the league thrived in attendance, easily besting its competing leagues. In spite of this, the league lasted just one year. Upon the league’s disbanding, its players were supposed to return to their previous teams. In order for this to happen, however, their teams were supposed to “reserve” each player, a process that was a mere formality. See where this is going? No? Not yet?

The Philadelphia Athletics failed to reserve Bierbauer (and Harry Stover) so Pittsburg jumped at the chance to sign them. Despite Philadelphia’s protests, the board ruled in Pittsburg’s favor, allowing their in-state rivals to keep the second baseman. Unhappy with the end-result, the Athletics resorted to everyone’s favorite mode of redemption: name-calling. They cited the Pittsburg organization as “Pirates” because they “stole” their players. Well, name-calling is an unsung hero in this case because the name stuck and we are thankfully calling Pittsburg the Pirates and not the “Rivers” or something weird because of it.

So, while the Texas Rangers weren’t run by actual law enforcers and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are only partially run by real angels, the Pittsburgh Pirates were, in fact, run by Pirates…in a weird way.

Did you know? The Pittsburgh Steelers, who rented out the Pirates’ Forbes Field when they came into existence, were originally known as the Pirates. And that’s not all…the short-lived NHL franchise, the Pittsburgh Pirates, existed in the 1920’s and 1930’s.

We wish we had a Pittsburgh t-shirt to showcase but we'll get there because "The Steel City" is at the top of our list as far as cool places to visit. We do feature an interesting Pennsylvania team, the Intercourse Witnesses. Intercourse is where the Amish live and the movie "Witness" with Harrison Ford nominated for multiple Academy Awards was filmed in Intercourse. Awesome history makes an awesome sports logo.

As always, thanks for reading!

Jared Sandler

Awesome Sports Logos Columnist

Posted in Awesome Sports Logos by Gavin on 2/17/2014 at 3:08:33 pm.

Awesome Sports Logos Blog

September 19th is Talk Like a Pirate Day

Sports Logo Spotlight on the Pittsburgh Pirates

How Pittsburgh Named Their Team the Pirates

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