Fans get to choose new Modesto baseball team’s name. Here’s when they’ll start
New details about baseball returning to Modesto were revealed Thursday during the city’s formal announcement of its partnership with the Pioneer Baseball League.
The announcement, held in front of Tenth Street Place, was attended by elected officials and Pioneer League representatives, including its president, Michael Shapiro.
“This is a fabulous community, centrally located, and for the Pioneer League, the fact that (there’s a) ballpark is just spectacular,” said Shapiro. “The community has supported minor league baseball in the past and so it was a great, great opportunity for us as we begin to expand more into California.”
Just a day after the Modesto Nuts’ final game, the City Council voted unanimously to approve a lease agreement with Main Street Baseball LLC, which will own the team, for the use of John Thurman Field.
Main Street Baseball CEO and President Dave Heller said he has big plans, including a name change.
Contest will determine team’s name
Heller said the name of the team will be determined by a two-phase contest where community members can submit their ideas via a “myriad of platforms,” including social media. After submissions are narrowed to five names, they’ll be voted on by the community. The only idea Heller would not entertain, he said, would be the Nuts. The naming contest will begin sometime in October, he said.
As for the name John Thurman Field, Heller said he plans to sells the naming rights. The city’s lease agreement provides an opportunity for Main Street Baseball to sell the rights and keep most of the revenue. However, the city would get a cut.
If naming rights revenue is under $150,000, the city will get 15% but if it’s over that amount, the city will get 20%.
“We want to make this a win-win for everybody. We want it to be a win for Modesto taxpayers, because we pay a much higher rent than what the Nuts were paying,” Heller said. “We want it to be a win for the team, and we do that by selling naming rights.”
The five-year lease is slated to begin Oct. 1 with a possible three-year extension. Per the lease agreement, the tenant (Main Street Modesto LLC) will pay $120,000 per year in rent, with a 4% annual rent increase.
The rent is more than what the Seattle Mariners paid for the Nuts in 2024 ($75,000) but less than the Mariners paid in 2025 after the city increased the rent to $600,000.
Heller added that he hasn’t “had a single conversation with anybody” regarding selling the rights, but if there is a president or vice president of a company out there who “wants to buy naming rights, wants to put their company on John Thurman field, please reach out and call me.”
City Manager Joe Lopez acknowledged the naming rights provision in the lease when asked about it by Rosa Escutia-Braaton during the City Council meeting on Sept. 8. Lopez said while Main Street Baseball can sell the rights, the name still will need to be approved by the council.
Other plans include renovating the stadium to expand netting and padding for safety. The lease agreement states that taxpayers will pay up to $950,000 for these improvements, which also include new drink rails, flooring, tile, paint, fixtures and other aesthetic improvements.
Heller said he doesn’t want to draw people just from Modesto but from all over the Central Valley. He plans to incorporate nonbaseball events such as concerts, chili cook-offs and wine tastings.
Heller also wants to start a rivalry with the Oakland Ballers — who made headlines last year for bringing baseball back to the city after the Oakland Athletics began their move to Las Vegas via Sacramento.
“It is not the community’s job to support the team. It is the team’s job to support the community,” said Heller.
Team details
Mayor Sue Zwahlen said that a new Modesto baseball team “will throw their first pitch in May of 2026.” Heller added that any renovations made to Thurman Field will happen before the first pitch is thrown.
Because Modesto’s club is an expansion team and not a relocation, the team will need to be fully rostered by mostly new recruits. Heller said that since Major League Baseball cut its draft from 40 rounds down to 20, he’s aiming for players who in previous years would’ve been drafted.
“Those are the next best players in the draft, and we want to sign as many of those as we can,” said Heller. “Major League Baseball also has a cap… on the number of players every major league team can have in its organization. So when they get 20 new players that they just drafted, they got to get rid of 20 players. We want to be the first step for those players, to give them a second chance.”
Heller said the Pioneer League is unique in that it mostly has young players with three or fewer years of experience. His hope is that MLB scouts can come to games and find talent they may have passed on during the draft.
Shapiro noted that famous names got their start in the Pioneer League such as Frank Robinson, George Brett, Pedro Martinez and Tommy Lasorda.
The Pioneer League was founded in 1939 and started out as an MLB affiliated league until 2020. After Minor League Baseball restructuring in 2020, it became one of four partner leagues, along with the American Association, the Atlantic League and the Frontier League.
This story was originally published September 18, 2025 at 4:01 PM.
