Sod Poodles, Yard Goats and Trash Pandas, Oh My

As Brandiose worked to create memorable mascots for minor league baseball teams, it found a tried and true recipe for success.

One of the hottest commodities in the minor leagues right now isn’t a fireballing pitcher or a phenom slugger. Instead, a garbage-can-flying raccoon astronaut named Sprocket has captivated baseball’s lower levels. Sprocket is the mascot for the Rocket City Trash Pandas, the Class AA affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels. And since the fall of 2018, when the team name and Sprocket were unveiled, he has helped the club in Madison, Ala., pull in more than $4 million in merchandise sales. Even in a sport with climbing merchandise sales, the Trash Pandas’ revenue is a staggering sum for a single team. That the total was largely achieved before the team played a regular-season game makes it almost dumbfounding. (It is noteworthy that the numbers were released at all considering the tight lips of most minor league clubs.)