Know Your Foe: The Grand Junction Jackalopes
Welcome to Know Your Foe, the season series of friendly fast facts to get to know the Ballers’ opponents at Raimondi Park.
Next up: The Grand Junction Jackalopes!
Their Season So Far: The Jackalopes are 1-5 on the young season after facing our Northern California neighbors, the High Wheelers, in Marysville (three losses were by single runs). Alex Pimentel, Matt Piotrowski, and Kendall Foster are all hitting above .300.
Hometown: Grand Junction, Colorado.
- Largest city on the western slope of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado.
- Along with nearby Palisade, famous for its peaches and other fruits shipped nationwide.
- Blacklisted screenwriter Dalton Trumbo (Roman Holiday, Spartacus) was raised in Grand Junction and went to Grand Junction High School.
Mascot: Jake the Jacked-alope, The Jackalopes, The Jacks, The Jakes
- The jackalope, if you haven’t seen one adorning the walls of countless diners, or perched atop gas stations counters, or peering deadeyed out from the lobbies of hotels or murals across the West, is the mythical combination of rabbit and antelope (though most taxidermied specimens use deer antlers). According to his obituary, Douglas Herrick “invented” the jackalope in 1932, and for years the city of Douglas, Wyoming issued hunting licenses for the creature, “despite rules specifying that the hunter cannot have an IQ higher than 72 and can hunt only between midnight and 2 a.m. each June 31.” Be careful: jackalopes are, apparently, only able to mate during a lightning storm and prefer whiskey.
Team History:
- The Jacks finished last in the Pioneer League in 2024, but they won it all in 2022.
- The team was bought by producer/director Mike Tollin in 2024. Among other exploits, Tollin executive produced the celebrated and forever meme-worthy “The Last Dance” documentary series about Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls.
- Originally the Butte Copper Kings (another amazing name), they became the Rockies after their major league affiliation with MLB’s Colorado Rockies. They played in Casper, Wyoming from 2001 to 2011, where they were renamed…you guessed it…the Ghosts. After moving to Grand Junction, they became the Jackalopes before the 2023 season, a name culled from over 1,000 fan suggestions.
- The Jacks play at Suplizio Field, 4,610 feet above sea level, which is 4,600 feet higher than Raimondi Park. Suplizio has hosted the Junior College World Series since 1958.
- Big league stars Cecil Fielder, Todd Helton, Dexter Fowler, Trevor Story, and Nolan Arenado all spent time with the team on their way up.
Best Promos:
- Ballpark Bingo!
- Bark in the Park!
- Science Night!
- Here’s hoping that they bring back 2024’s “Salute to Indoor Plumbing,” where the first 300 fans got a toilet plunger…it would go perfectly with our very own Rubenstein Supply Co. Toilet Paper Toss™
- And for me, in my very most humble and handsome opinion, you can’t do better than a possible return of “Dad Bod Night.”
What to Watch For:
- The Humpday Chubs! Every Wednesday (sadly, only in Grand Junction), the Jacks will transform into their alter ego, the Humpback Chubs, an endangered fish native to the Colorado River. Proceeds from the switch go to conservation causes as well as a college fund for local students. The Chubs prove that once again, fun baseball and merch can make anything cool. Get me one of these shirts! (Editor’s note to Ballers owners and fans: alter egos are amazing and we need our own…)
This is just one of the chubtastic options
Special thanks to Joey Miller, Director of Broadcasting for the Jackalopes.
