Copa brings celebration to even more communities

Minor League Baseball has unveiled the schedule of games and the 85 on-field Hispanic identities for this season’s Copa de la Diversión (Fun Cup) event series. Continuing its annual expansion into more communities, eight new teams joined Copa this season, with five teams returning with rebranded personas.

The 387-game event series will kick off April 9 in Hillsboro, Oregon, with Nationwide returning as the Official Insurance Partner of the Copa initiative.

The eight MiLB teams joining Copa for the first time include the Fort Wayne TinCaps (Manzanas Luchadoras de Fort Wayne), Frisco RoughRiders (Quesos de Frisco), Great Lakes Loons (Pepinillos Picantes del Norte), Quad Cities River Bandits (Bandidos del Rio de las Ciudades Cuádaruples), Somerset Patriots (Zorros de Somerset), St. Paul Saints (Santos de St. Paul), Syracuse Mets (Congueros de Syracuse) and Wichita Wind Surge (Tumba Vacas de Wichita).

Two teams – the Corpus Christi Hooks (Corpus Christi Cumbias) and Winston-Salem Dash (Winston-Salem Salsa) – return with all-new identities, while the Fresno Grizzlies (Fresno Lowriders), Lehigh Valley IronPigs (Lehigh Valley Coquís) and South Bend Cubs (Cabritos Maldichos de South Bend) are back with updated looks.

Explore all the Copa de la Diversión identities >>

Copa de la Diversión is the centerpiece of MiLB’s “Es Divertido Ser Un Fan” (“It’s Fun to be A Fan”) Hispanic fan engagement initiative, which was created in 2017. Through the success of the Copa program, now in its fifth season, MiLB has solidified its commitment to the long-term growth of its U.S. Latino communities and its diversity and inclusion efforts across the country.

"It is important to our organization and all of Minor League Baseball that we continue to embrace everyone in and around our communities through the Copa initiative,” said Frisco RoughRiders president Victor Rojas. “We are excited to honor our rich and diverse Latino culture in hopes of creating a deeper connection to our community on a year-round basis."

During the first four seasons of the initiative, Copa-designated games had a nearly 20 percent higher average attendance than non-Copa games, and participating teams saw significant increases in merchandise sales, partnerships and concessions revenues. Extending their reach into local communities, teams partnered with more than 200 local Latino organizations on various events and charitable endeavors.

“The continued growth of the Copa de la Diversión initiative reinforces the importance of connecting with our Latino fans and the Latino community nationwide,” said Kurt Hunzeker, MLB’s vice president of Minor League Business Operations. “Our teams continue to authentically connect with the Latino population in their communities, leading to a deeper and more meaningful fan experience.”

At the end of the season, MiLB’s Latino Leadership and Community Growth Council, comprised of industry experts and civic leaders, will recognize the top-performing teams in several categories, including ballpark experience, community engagement and philanthropic impact, and one team will be named the overall Copa de la Diversión champion. Previous winners include the Mariachis de Nuevo México (2018 and 2019) and the Wepas de Worcester (2021).

For more information on Minor League Baseball’s Copa de la Diversión initiative, visit MiLB.com/copa.

To purchase tickets and official merchandise, visit MiLB.com/fans/copa/teams.