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Toward the end of the 2023 season, Blue Jays prospect Peyton Williams wore a t-shirt to a player meeting emblazoned with the logo for his neighbor’s company, Iowa Meat Truck.
The shirt was an immediate hit with his High-A Vancouver teammates. Players and coaches loved it, and they quickly decided it would be an especially apt nickname for the 6-foot-5, 255-pound Iowa native. Manager Brent Lavallee even suggested that Williams should celebrate his big hits by mimicking a trucker honking his horn.
Now, nearly three years later, “The Iowa Meat Truck” has steamrolled the competition in Nickname Knockout and been voted the best one in Minor League Baseball.
Over the course of 10 days in May, fans got the chance to fill out brackets to choose between 32 of the best monikers in the Minor Leagues, and Williams’ nickname pulled away as the clear favorite.
At first, Williams thought the nickname was a little strange. But it caught on so well and so quickly, that it became difficult for him not to appreciate it.
The Canadians’ bullpen and bench would go wild, using the horn-honking motion as a rallying cry, and team announcer Tyler Zickel started using the nickname on broadcasts. By Spring Training, Williams began to hear fans yelling, “The Iowa Meat Truck” at him and he could tell the nickname was really blowing up.
“I think it’s pretty cool,” Williams said. “The big thing is everyone likes a nickname that’s they’ve never seen before. No one’s really ever heard of a nickname being ‘The Iowa Meat Truck,’ so I think, I think that’s why everyone kind of gets drawn to that one.”
Back in the Hawkeye State, Williams’ neighbor Jason Curry has been tickled by the rise of the nickname. It’s been great for merch sales and brought more eyes to his business, which sells premium meats.
Williams loves how nicknames are a big part of Minor League Baseball. Last season, while playing with Double-A New Hampshire, he faced off against Jhostynxon Garcia, better known as “The Password” because of his first name can be difficult for some people to spell. He considers that, along with Johanfran “The Username” Garcia and Jhonkensy “Big Christmas” Noel, to be the best monikers outside of his.
“I love it, the fans love it,” Williams said. “I don’t think there’s any reason to slow down on the nicknames. I think more people need nicknames. I think that’s what fans get drawn to. I think I have a good fan base, and it’s because people get drawn to the nickname, so it’s easy to get drawn to liking me. I think other guys need to get their nicknames out there. It’s a fun thing to get fans connected to you.”
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