(Asheville Tourists, High-A affiliate of the Astros)

The eastern hellbender salamander, one of three giant salamanders species to be found on this planet, live among the rocks of Western North Carolina’s rivers. While Hellbenders would make for a cool team moniker in and of itself, the Tourists opted for the giant amphibian’s attention-grabbing nickname: Snot Otters. This juvenile alter-ego is displayed on the jerseys in a dripping, mucus-like green, because how could it snot be? The Snot Otter in question emerges from the river with a baseball in its four-fingered left hand.

(Arkansas Travelers, Double-A affiliate of the Mariners)

Greg Johnston, the Travelers vice president of stadium operations, has worked for Little Rock’s Double-A franchise for 50 years. His constant companion, Dizzy, is about that old in dog years. The cream-colored canine is a year-round fixture at North Little Rock’s Dickey-Stephens Park, and during ballgames he can often be found mingling with fans and signing pawtographs. The Travelers paid tribute to their ballpark’s most famous citizen by playing as the Barkansas Dizzys for an entire six-game series in June, during which the dog of the hour celebrated his eighth birthday.

(Binghamton Rumble Ponies, Double-A affiliate of the Mets)

On two occasions this season, the Rumble Ponies shed their usual carousel-centric identity in favor of a different and arguably even stranger breed of domesticated equine: Bathtub Donkeys. This bizarre alter-ego references an archaic and perhaps apocryphal New York law that deemed it illegal to have a donkey sleep in a bathtub on Sundays. The logo features a baseball-loving donkey in a baseball-themed tub, because some laws were made to be broken.

(Erie SeaWolves, Double-A affiliate of the Tigers)

Moon Mammoth is, of course, the only alternate identity in history to have been created by a talk show host. In May, “Last Week Tonight with John Oliver” ran a segment on Minor League promotions that concluded with Oliver’s offer to create a new identity for one Minor League team. The SeaWolves were chosen, and Oliver and his staff got to work creating the Moon Mammoths: a tribute to the wooly mammoth bones that were discovered in Erie County’s Lake Pleasant by a diver named George Moon. Moon Mammoth mania then ensued, emanating outwards from Erie and eventually encompassing Earth’s entirety.

(Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp, Triple-A affiliate of the Marlins)

Honey Drippers marked the Jumbo Shrimp’s first foray into the world of alternate identities, and they immediately made their mark by utilizing a vibrant, multi-layered blue, yellow and pink color scheme. It’s an homage to an iconic frozen dessert, popularized in Jacksonville’s Eastside neighborhood, that often includes fresh fruit. The Honey Dripper in question is depicted holding a spoon as a bat, because that’s just something an anthropomorphic dessert on a baseball hat should do.

New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Double-A affiliate of the Blue Jays)

What happens when you take two disparate facts about your home state and cram them into a single identity? Well, in this case, you have the New Hampshire Space Potatoes. The Granite State was home to a widely-reported (alleged) alien abduction, the Barney and Betty Hill incident, which took place in the White Mountains in 1961. New Hampshire is also an avid producer of potatoes, the state’s official vegetable. Mash potatoes and extraterrestrials together and you have an alien spud who is improbably ready to play ball despite its recent adjustment to Earth’s strange customs and atmospheric conditions.

Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (High-A affiliate of the Brewers)

Did you know that Tombstone Pizza was founded by a pair of Wisconsin brothers who ran a bar called the Tombstone Tap? That’s just one of the state’s many claims to frozen pizza fame; several of America’s largest frozen pizza companies are based in Wisconsin, and local supermarkets are renowned for their vast frozen pizza selection. Therefore it only makes sense that the Timber Rattlers would pay tribute via an identity featuring a Brewers-esque color scheme. The iced-out primary logo, featuring a pizza-twirling toaster oven, is complemented by a grimacing slice toting a baseball bat pizza cutter. Call them legends of the thaw.