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The ballpark or the breakfast table? Check out the Columbia Fireflies new alter ego

A hat featuring the logo of the Carolina Grits, the new “alternate identity” of the Columbia Fireflies. The team will play several games as the Grits during the 2024 season.
A hat featuring the logo of the Carolina Grits, the new “alternate identity” of the Columbia Fireflies. The team will play several games as the Grits during the 2024 season.

The Columbia Fireflies will be getting in touch with their culinary side in 2024.

The Class A minor league team, which plays in Segra Park at BullStreet, announced a new “alternate identity” on Friday: The Carolina Grits. The team will play under the Carolina Grits moniker several times in 2024, beginning April 26-28 during their home series against the Augusta GreenJackets.

“Our team is thrilled to unveil this fun new Carolina Grits identity,” Fireflies President Brad Shank said in a statement. “We have been working on this brand package and identity for nearly two years, so this launch is a culmination of a lot of hard work by our fantastic team in partnership with Confluence Design in Atlanta.

“Food is such a big part of the ballpark experience and ultimately food, and namely grits, has brought people together at the breakfast, lunch and dinner table, so why not let grits bring people together at the ballpark, too.”

On the occasions the team plays under the Carolina Grits name, it will sport uniforms featuring the Grits wording, patches and logos. The Grits character logo features a cartoon hat filled with grits, wielding a large spoon like a baseball bat.

Carolina Grits merchandise will be available throughout the season, and a presale of gear is already happening online. Additionally, dishes made with Adluh grits will be offered at Segra Park this season at the “Grits, Y’all” food cart on the concourse. Fans can choose from plain cheesy grits, loaded grits, chicken and grits, or shrimp and grits, and there will be an option, naturally, for fans to have the grits served in a Carolina Grits mini-helmet.

This isn’t the first time the Fireflies have adopted an alter ego. They also play as the Chicharrones de Columbia several times each year, and that will continue in 2024, a team spokesman said.

A hat for the Carolina Grits, the new “alternate identity” of the Columbia Fireflies. The team will play several games as the Grits in 2024.
A hat for the Carolina Grits, the new “alternate identity” of the Columbia Fireflies. The team will play several games as the Grits in 2024. Provided

This story was originally published March 22, 2024 at 12:12 PM.

Chris Trainor
The State
Chris Trainor is a retail reporter for The State and has been working for newspapers in South Carolina for more than 21 years, including previous stops at the (Greenwood) Index-Journal and the (Columbia) Free Times. He is the winner of a host of South Carolina Press Association awards, including honors in column writing, government beat reporting, profile writing, food writing, business beat reporting, election coverage, social media and more.
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