\n
![](\"https:\/\/fortune.com\/img-assets\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/03\/AP24089554830513-e1711731677703.jpg?w=2048\")
<\/p>\n [ad_1]
\n<\/p>\n
For a Minnesota minor league baseball team known for a history of outlandish promotions, the idea of naming its longtime live pig mascot after the weight loss drug Ozempic made perfect sense.<\/p>\n
The St. Paul Saints quickly found out that not everyone was amused by the pig\u2019s name, Ozempig, or the team\u2019s posting of a backstory about the pig\u2019s embarrassment at gaining weight and promise to try to remain trim.<\/p>\n
Almost immediately after the team announced the name this week ahead of Saturday\u2019s opening day game, criticism began pouring in on social media from people distressed by the name, calling it hurtful and insensitive.<\/p>\n
Sean Aronson, the Saints\u2019 vice president and media relations director, said the team only wanted an amusing, topical name for its pig when it chose Ozempig from nearly 2,300 entries in its \u201cName the Pig Contest.\u201d Team officials were shocked that so many people found the name offensive, Aronson said.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn today\u2019s world, people don\u2019t want to be diminished, they don\u2019t want to be made to feel a certain way and I\u2019m not going to tell them how they feel is wrong,\u201d Aronson said. \u201cBut I can tell you there was no ill-intent, there was no maliciousness, there was never even a discussion in the room when we were going over the name that hey, this may offend some people.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ozempic is among several new drugs that been effective at helping people lose significant weight. The drugs can be expensive, depending on insurance coverage, but have drawn extensive attention in part because the have been promoted by celebrities and on social media sites.<\/p>\n
The Saints\u2019 pig is a beloved participant in the team\u2019s games played at CHS<\/a> Field in downtown St. Paul, about 10 miles (16 kilometers) from the much larger home of the Minnesota Twins in downtown Minneapolis. The animal carries out balls to the umpire and over the course of the summer becomes noticeably larger \u2014 so much larger in fact that another young pig takes over duties midway through the season.<\/p>\n Naming the pig mascot after the high-profile drug seemed a natural for the Saints, a Triple-A affiliate of the Twins that has a long history of amusing promotions, such as attaching a fan to a Velcro wall in the outfield and holding races in the infield between people dressed as giant eyeballs.<\/p>\n With such past stunts in mind, some Saints fans defended the name as a play on words and nothing more.<\/p>\n Aronson said team officials understood why some people are outraged and considered making a name change but decided to stick with Ozempig.<\/p>\n \u201cWe knew how we originally came up with the name and we\u2019re good with it but we did discuss it and decided we\u2019re going to keep it,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nSubscribe to Well Adjusted, our newsletter full of simple strategies to work smarter and live better, from the Fortune Well team. Sign up<\/a> for free today.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n