Long Beach’s new professional baseball team has a name – and an ‘alter ego’ as well – Press Telegram

Should the city’s new professional baseball team be called the Long Beach Coast or the Long Beach Regulators? The Long Beach Baseball Club said why not both?

The club announced the official name of Long Beach’s minor league baseball team on Tuesday, Jan. 13, during the annual State of the City address.

After a community team-naming contest and the team narrowing down the finalists, the Long Beach Baseball Club revealed that the official name of the team will be the Long Beach Coast – but moments after, officials also said the team would go by the Long Beach Regulators as well.

Officials said that few cities embody duality as Long Beach does, with 11 miles of coastline, and a culture that combines old-school roots with new-school energy. So the team decided to “push the boundaries” of what a baseball brand can look like.

“This team reflects the heart of our city and the community that supports it,” Ena Patel, president of the Long Beach Baseball Club, said during the address. “We’re quickly counting down to opening day, and we can’t wait to welcome you all back to Blair Field.”

The name emerged from an extensive community engagement process that generated 4,862 total votes, including online participation from 34 states and in-person voting at locations across the city. Throughout the process, the team met residents and reinforced the club’s commitment to building a team with Long Beach, not just for it, according to a press release.

The official name – Long Beach Coast – will celebrate the connective thread that runs through every part of the city and anchors the team’s visual identity and presence, officials said. The Coast will be complemented by a “dynamic alter ego.”

Across sports and entertainment, alter egos have long fueled creativity, officials said, from superheroes to athletes.

“We just really understood how diverse Long Beach is,” Patel said in an interview after the address. “We were thinking about a name, and what can encompass the entire community, all of the culture, music, everything, and then we really pulled from sports, entertainment and film.

“If you think of superheroes, Bruce Wayne is Batman and Tony Stark is Iron Man, and then you think about sports, you have Kobe (Bryant), who is also Black Mamba, and Allen Iverson as The Answer,” Patel said, “and then musicians, you have Eminem is Slim Shady and Beyonce is Sasha Fierce. Alter egos have always been around, and sometimes they’ve been a secret and hidden but we’re like, ‘No, we’re gonna come out and really push the boundaries of what a baseball brand can look like.’”

The team’s alter ego will be the Long Beach Regulators.

“Long Beach has always set its own tone and had its own swagger,” Warren G, a Long Beach native, cultural icon and co-owner of the team, said in a statement. “This baseball team, the Coast, represents the heart of the city – but the Regulators legacy will always be part of Long Beach culture. It’s respect for what we’ve been and excitement for where we’re going.”

While the Coast will be the foundation of the team’s primary on-field identity, the Regulators “alter ego” will tap into Long Beach’s legendary ‘90s hip-hop roots, unlocking bold creative collaborations, fan-powered energy and one-of-a-kind in-season activations.

The club’s visual identity was crafted by Los Angeles artist and designer Francisco Reyes, also known as Never Made, who has deep roots in Long Beach and added an authentic local voice and credibility to the brand, officials said.

“We do want to bring through different theme nights, music culture and things like that associated with the Regulators,” Patel said. “We’re excited about having the versatility of providing different experiences that anyone can relate to.”

Fan reactions during the reveal and on social media after the announcement were mixed to the official and alter ego name.

During the address, Mayor Rex Richardson helped announce the name and listed three options of what the name could be – Parrots, Regulators and Coast. People in the crowd audibly said “No,” to the Coast and Parrots, but cheered and said “Yes” for the Regulators.

The Long Beach Baseball Club’s official brand launch video then played, and when the Coast was revealed, there was a mixed reaction of clapping and upset groans. When the Regulators name was also revealed, there was more applause.

Following the address, the team also announced the official name and alter ego on its social media channels. Long Beach community members took to the comments – some with encouraging words, but the majority sharing their disappointment with the club not going solety with the Regulators.

“Regulators should’ve been the main name, and you could’ve done Coast as the alternative if you guys were committed to two identities,” one commenter said. “It’s a goofy idea to have two names, but I think having Regulators as the official name would’ve salvaged all the goodwill the team is suddenly losing.”

Other commenters said that they didn’t feel that the Coast reflected Long Beach’s culture as well as the Regulators did.

The mayor and club encouraged people to embrace both.

“Your city, your team and in Long Beach, we get the best of both worlds,” Richardson said during the address. “It’s the Long Beach Coast and the Long Beach Regulators.”

Long Beach Baseball Club will continue to work closely with the city and Cal State Long Beach to bring professional, independent baseball to the historic Blair Field beginning in the 2026 season, as part of the Pioneer Baseball League. Officials anticipate opening day being June 2.