When I first heard the TinCaps name, I wondered how long it would be until the media and locals came up with their own nickname for the team or shortened it to something “cute”. Â Reflecting on it, I guess I didn’t wait too long because it was shortly after the announcement that a herbal reference began making the rounds. Â It was not assimilated into our local vernacular and I’ve not heard it much since. Â There does seem to be an affinity for nicknaming or shortening an athletic team’s moniker – for whatever the reason – much often to the chagrin of the team. Â (Remember the Wiz Kids?)
So today, I picked up a copy of Frost Illustrated.  Guess what?  The writer of the article, after establishing the full name of the team once, decides to refer to them thereafter simply as the Caps.  Now I’m not one to pick apart some one’s grammar because God only knows that I certainly could use a few refresher lessons on this myself – you know this if you read this blog frequently.  However, if you’re lopping off the first part of a name, shouldn’t there be an apostrophe in there somewhere?  (i.e. ‘Caps??)
What purpose does it serve to refer to them as the Caps? Â Is this simply a matter of laziness? Â I can imagine that not typing 3 letters – TIN – saved probably a quarter of a second every occurence, but really? Â Was it perhaps a move to save the ink needed to repeatedly print Tin? Â Or was it a space saving technique?
What bothers me is that the TinCaps have invested a lot of time and money into developing this name – and took a lot of heat from the community when it was first revealed. Â Currently, they are on top of the world with a 10-game winning streak as well as the successful debut of Parkview Field. Â Can’t we show them the respect they’ve worked so hard and unabashedly deserve?
Related Images:
