Bee readers voted on their pick for a Sacramento MLB team name. Which was the top?
With baseball season in full swing, Sacramento sports fans have been pumped up with the recent bid by West Sacramento for an MLB expansion team, and they have shared their excitement with The Bee.
On May 29, Bee reporters made a handful of suggestions for names based on historical sports references and other symbols of Sacramento and California for readers to choose from.
Readers cast more than 130 votes with a total of 58 unique names submitted through the online poll and in emailed suggestions.
What should the potential Sacramento MLB team be named?
Suggested names spanned references from politics — such as the Sacramento Filibusters and the Sacramento Bills — to homages to city and state history, geography and flora and fauna.
The most popular choice among readers was a throwback to Sacramento’s baseball history. The Sacramento Solons, which refers to a former minor league team housed in Sacramento from the late 19th century to the mid-20th century. “Solon” itself has been used as a nickname for wise politicians, hailing from an ancient Greek lawmaker of the same name.
The historical name received 40 votes, the most for any name by a wide margin.
The next most voted-on name was the Sacramento Bears, with 12 votes, and the Sacramento Deltas came in third with 10. Rounding out the top five names were seven write-in votes for the Sacramento Capitals or Capitols — which could be nicknamed the Caps to avoid quarrels over the spelling — and six votes for the Sacramento Stingers or Sting, referencing the collegiate Sacramento State Hornets.
The remaining suggestions received one or two votes apiece, but they were among the most creative. References to Sacramento’s railroad history and California’s geography were common. Titles like the Sacramento Spikes, the Sacramento Steamers and the Sacramento Gandy Dancers paid tribute to the West Coast industrial giants of the 19th century, while the Sacramento Sierras and Sacramento Zephyr celebrated the natural icons of Northern California.
Some readers created twists on the more widely favored names, such as the Sacramento Grizzlies, the Sacramento Delta Kings and the Sacramento Senators — which was once an alternative name for the Solons.
Others riffed on existing Sacramento sports teams, such as the Sacramento Kings, with its baseball counterpart being named the Queens or the Jesters. In reference to the Sacramento River Cats minor league baseball team, a reader suggested the River Hawks, while one potential jokester pitched the River Rats.
One reader even wrote in to pitch the Sacramento Bees — and we’re certainly flattered.
Here’s a full list of the names and how Sacramento Bee readers voted:
Do you have any other ideas that readers may have missed? Let us know in our poll or email cpedrosa@sacbee.com.
This story was originally published June 4, 2026 at 2:35 PM.
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