It’s not Shohei Ohtani switching L.A. teams. But a game of minor league musical chairs is shaking up a baseball team named for tremors.
As a result, fans of the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes will be seeing red next season.
A stylized Q with a halo on top is part of the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes’ new uniform and color scheme. (Courtesy of Rancho Cucamonga Quakes)
The team, which is switching affiliations from the Los Angeles Dodgers to the Los Angeles Angels, recently unveiled a new color scheme and uniforms reflecting the change.
Next spring, the Quakes’ primary color will be red, to match the Angels’ main color. The uniforms also will resemble the big league club’s, with a red jersey including the trademark Angels halo over the lower-case “a” in “Quakes” and the “Q” in a red cap.
An official launch for the new uniforms, scheduled for Nov. 15, was canceled. Quakes Interim General Manager Mike Lindskog said the event is now set for December, with more details to come soon.
The Quakes’ previous color scheme featured blue to tie in with the Dodgers’ color.
Most minor league teams are affiliated with major league clubs, who supply players dreaming of reaching the sport’s highest level. Injured major league players often play in the minors while recuperating.
The Quakes’ new look stems from a reshuffling triggered by the landing of the Ontario Tower Buzzers, a new Dodgers affiliate that will debut in a newly built 6,500-seat stadium next year.
With the Dodgers affiliate now in Ontario, the Quakes switched to the Angels, the team with which the Quakes partnered from 2001 to 2010 before aligning with the Halos’ rivals up the freeway.
The Angels’ previous affiliate, the San Bernardino-based Inland Empire 66ers, will become a Seattle Mariners affiliate in 2026. So far, there’s nothing on the 66ers website to indicate if the team will change its uniforms or colors to reflect the new affiliation.
The Quakes, Tower Buzzers, 66ers and Lake Elsinore Storm — a San Diego Padres affiliate — all play in the California League, one of the lower rungs, known as Class A, on the minor-league ladder.
The league’s season runs from April to September.