Football

The Grizzlies expect to set a merchandise sales record this year, at least partly on the strength of the Tacos brand. In addition to the game-worn jerseys, fans could buy T-shirts declaring their loyalty to Teams Lengua, al Pastor, Carnitas and Carne Asada, or choose a cap with a jaunty taco truck or tank top in the pseudo-sarape design. And two weeks after the game, the Grizzlies added a design that parodies Donald Trump's "Make America Great Again" -- a red cap that promises "Taco Trucks on Every Corner."

It’s been a decade since the Fresno Grizzlies unleashed upon the world an alternate brand that changed the Minor League Baseball logo landscape. In 2015, the team, a single-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies in the California League, paid tribute to their annual Taco Truck Throwdown with an on-field alternate, the Fresno Tacos.

Central California is the self-proclaimed birthplace of the taco truck, and to celebrate that local history, the Fresno Grizzlies, Triple-A affiliate of the Houston Astros, will take to the field as the Fresno Tacos for one game this summer.

For four years, the Fresno Grizzlies’ Taco Truck Throwdown has been one of the team’s biggest promotions of the season—at last year’s event, more than 27,000 tacos were sold by taco truck vendors from around the San Joaquin Valley. Until this year, the promotion was kept off the field, but that’s all about to change with the fifth annual Taco Truck Throwdown on August 6, when the Grizzlies take the field against the Albuquerque Isotopes in green, orange, and white taco-themed jerseys.

Having the team wear the taco-themed hats and jerseys, which were designed by the Grizzlies’ in-house graphic designers Dorian Castro and Andy Inman, allows the Grizzlies to combine the ingredients of a team promotion and their local community with the game on the diamond, and then wrap them all up in some kind of delicious, crispy, corn-based container.

fresno-tacos-logo“This is one of our largest-attended games of the year,” said Grizzlies Manager of Communications and Marketing Ryan Young, “and this is a way we can also give attention to the players on the field.”