The Boston Red Sox have a new Single-A team name.
The location isn't changing. Their minor league affiliate in the Carolina League still plays in Salem.
But they will no longer be called the Salem Red Sox.
Now, they're the Salem RidgeYaks.
Check out the logo:
The Single-A Carolina League affiliate of the #RedSox has a brand-new identity!
— Minor League Baseball (@MiLB) November 8, 2025
Say hello to the Salem RidgeYaks: https://t.co/3yA6Bq7jvT pic.twitter.com/ZtLw5sDsTU
What is a RidgeYak?
Good question.
The Blue Ridge Mountains loom behind the ballpark in Salem, Virginia.
"In southwestern Virginia there are a lot of outdoor activities, and we wanted to incorporate that," team GM Allen Lawrence told MLB.com. "And then yaks. A yak is a home run [slang term] in baseball, and it's short for kayak, which are very popular around here. There are no other yaks in baseball and we really like that, the uniqueness of it."
Salem used to be known as the Avalanche.
"There wasn't an avalanche in Salem either, but people loved when we were the Salem Avalanche," Lawrence told MLB.com. "And I don't think there are any bulls in Chicago or lions in Detroit, you know?"
There certainly aren't any other RidgeYaks in pro sports.
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