Logo Glow-up: Miami Marlins
Back in 2012, when the Florida Marlins rebranded themselves as the Miami Marlins, they unveiled a new logo meant to embody “Miami.” Bright, bold colors met with sharp lines and shapes. It was Miami Vice mixed with abstract art. The logo was, to say the least, not a hit with the fans.
It was a logo that never quite gave me a “Miami” vibe, but I suppose I am hardly the authority of things from Miami. Instead, it somehow reminded me of Aquafresh, in it’s bold contrast of colors with white sandwiched in the middle. Not to mention the simplified shape barely resembling a marlin just terminating into a point midway down the “M,” not unlike a glob of toothpaste Surprisingly, while the team struck out with this design, they kept it around for six seasons.
In 2018 they finally announced a logo change in what I consider to be one of the best logo updates in recent sports history. The new stylized “M” had a latin feel, and the strong color choices of “Miami Blue”, “Caliente Red”, “Midnight Black” and “Slate Grey” not only paid homage to the original logo from 1993, but felt fresh, vibrant and gave feelings of nightlife in the magic city.
The marlin, while still simplified, makes the best use of the dynamic shapes of fish. The curve of the body leaps out at you, while complimenting the stiching, giving the appearance of a baseball, without flat-out illustrating “Hey look, we’re a baseball team!”
I give this logo an A+, and even though I am not really a fan of baseball, someday I will buy a Marlins cap, because I love the design so much.