Late night host John Oliver awards rebrand to Tigers affiliate after viral segment

During his May 4 episode of Last Week Tonight, host John Oliver closed with a segment dedicated to the quirky and oftentimes slightly ridiculous world of Minor League Baseball. He roasted some teams boringly named after the major league club (looking at you, Iowa Cubs and Springfield Cardinals) and praised others for everything from their names (Rocket City Trash Pandas, Amarillo Sod Poodles) to creative theme nights dedicated to making baseball fun.

He closed the segment with an offer: a full rebrand and theme night courtesy of Last Week Tonight, fully researched and "in the spirit of your team, city and the league to which you belong," but with the caveat that the team would have zero creative input in the process.

He followed up on his latest episode on May 18 to reveal that 47 minor league teams (almost 40% of the minors) had reached out to the show. Some had sent videos to make their case — the Lake County Captains (Guardians High-A affiliate) even had a row of mascots do the wave with giant John Oliver heads — but one team stood out above the rest: the Erie SeaWolves, Tigers' Double-A affiliate.

Erie SeaWolves awarded a full rebrand by late night host John Oliver after viral MiLB segment

Oliver said that the SeaWolves gave the show "11 good reasons to pick them, one of which was: the SeaWolves play baseball nowhere near the sea." They'll be getting a new name, mascot, and a theme night — again, with zero creative control.

Erie is currently home to three Tigers' top 10 prospects — Thayron Liranzo (No. 5), Jaden Hamm (No. 7), and Troy Melton (No. 10) — and have the best record in Double-A's Eastern League at 27-14. Their name is a nod to their origin as a Pirates' affiliate but they haven't been renamed through two changes in ownership; first to the Angels in 1999 and then to the Tigers in 2001. Their typical logo still contains some nods to their Pirates origins, which (if we can offer suggestions) the rebrand should correct.

Tigers baseball has been fun this year top to bottom, and this just adds to it. Hopefully, whatever Oliver comes up with, the SeaWolves keep it around for a while instead of just letting it be a one-off.