Fun Cup (MiLB) returns in 2022

When Minor League baseball parks across the country open their doors next week, there will be a feeling of normalcy once again. The sacred names of the league will return. The stadiums will return to their maximum capacity. The best prospects in baseball will continue their rise to the Big Top.

This year, one of the most innovative and popular initiatives in gaming returns bigger than ever.

The Copa de la Diversion, with which MiLB honors Hispanic communities throughout the season, returns for its fifth season with more teams, stories, logos, uniforms and promotions than ever before. This exciting initiative welcomes eight teams in 2022 for a total of 85 unique identities on the field, the most in the history of this initiative. Those clubs will combine to play 387 games under their alternate Cup identity this season according to a schedule released by Minor League Baseball on Thursday.

“The continued growth of the Copa de la Diversion initiative reinforces the importance of connecting with Latino fans and the Latino community across the country,” Kurt Hunzeker, vice president of Minor League business for MLB, said in a statement. “Our teams continue to authentically connect with the Latino population in their communities, leading to a deeper and more meaningful fan experience.”

Hunzeker was one of the officials at MiLB who developed the Cup pilot program in 2017, and what started with a handful of teams for brief periods has grown into a community outreach and sports marketing giant. Since then, the program has rapidly expanded from 77 to 120 total minor league clubs participating in 2021. In addition to the eight new teams debuting in the initiative this year, five clubs are back with redesigned identities.

Among the new members of the Cup family are the Double-A Frisco RoughRiders of the Texas League, who will adopt the identity of Quesos de Frisco.

Joining Frisco as Cup debutants are three High-A Class teams – the Fort Wayne TinCaps, Great Lakes Loons and the Quad Cities River Bandits. of the River of the Quadruple Cities); two Double-A squads – the Somerset Patriots (Somerset Foxes) and the Wichita Wind Surge (Tumba Vacas de Wichita); and two affiliates of Triple-A – the St. Paul Saints (St. Paul Saints) and the Syracuse Mets (Syracuse Congueros). The Double-A Corpus Christi Hooks (Cumbias) and the Winston-Salem Class-A Dash (Salsa) return to the initiative with new identities, while the Class-A Fresno Grizzlies, the Lehigh Valley IronPigs Triple-A and the Upper-A Class South Bend Cubs have refreshed their looks.

Of course, the Cup names and logos are just the hook. From cultural education and bilingual in-stadium announcements to multicultural dining venues and donations to Latino-focused organizations, the Copa is a comprehensive way to change the experience of the game of baseball.

The 2022 Copa de la Diversion kicks off on April 9 when the Class-A Alta Hillsboro Hops take the field as the Hillsboro Dreamers against visiting Tri-City in Premier League Opening Week action. Northwest.