This article is part of Minor League Baseball's "Celebrating Our Heroes" content series, presented by T-Mobile.
Wobby got the start. Stuff Plus got the win. Fat Boy Slim got the save.
Maverick and Goose had the need … the need for speed. Wobby, Stuff Plus and Fat Boy Slim combined to strike out 15.
That's how it looked from the stands at Blue Wahoos Stadium during Double-A Pensacola’s 2-1 win over Biloxi on July 3. Those names written across the backs of the three Blue Wahoos pitchers were not traditional nicknames, but rather the club’s homage to the longstanding Navy pilot tradition of “call signs.”
The specialty jerseys were worn by Blue Wahoos players and coaches for two games in July and designed in collaboration with members of the leadership at the nearby Naval Air Station Pensacola, the club’s partner for its military appreciation celebration.
“An organization like the Blue Wahoos that really celebrates and supports our military personnel throughout the community is second to none and it’s just a great way to celebrate our service members,” said U.S. Navy captain Chandra Newman, the commanding officer at NAS Pensacola.
Wobby was, of course, Marlins No. 4 prospect Robby Snelling (MLB No. 79), Stuff Plus was right-hander Nigel Belgrave and Fat Boy Slim was Miami’s No. 21 prospect Josh Ekness. In keeping with tradition, the call signs were not chosen by the respective players, but bestowed upon them by teammates.
“The more they fight [the name], the more it sticks,” said Newman, who earned the call sign Mama San when she began her 24-year military career in Pensacola. “It’s a good way to keep a little bit of jabbing and razzing with your teammates out there.”
Other notable call signs included manager Nelson "Jefe" Prada, top Marlins prospect Thomas "King" White, Ryan "Iggapotamus" Ignoffo, Kemp "Skelly" Alderman, Josh "Turtle Man" Zamora, Shane "Phone Bill" Sasaki and Cody "Velcro" Morissette.
The jersey design also celebrated the 250th anniversary of the founding of the U.S. Navy, Army and Marine Corps. The call signs were featured across the back while the front sported the petticoat look of military uniforms worn in 1775.
Newman and other high-ranking officials from NAS Pensacola were in attendance for the club’s second military celebration during the July 19 game against Chattanooga. After that game, the jerseys were auctioned with the proceeds going to “Feeding the Gulf Coast,” a local food bank.
The Salute to Service nights were the highlights of the club’s ongoing military appreciation efforts. They regularly offer discounted tickets to military members and maintain a thriving relationship with NAS Pensacola throughout the year. There are also a number of veterans among the front office and gameday staff.
Blue Wahoos games have long been bonding experiences for people brought to Pensacola from around the country for military service.
“The way we bonded was actually right here in this stadium,” Newman said, recalling a time when she was getting ready for a 10-month deployment with a group of other rising officers. “To learn each other and hang out on the proverbial liberty in between classes on a couple of nights and really that paid dividends in our relationship and our professional working when we deployed [together]. That bonding started right here in this stadium.”