I know what you all must be thinking: what in the hell is a Dock Spider? And why are we even thinking about Dock Spiders? To answer the second question, it’s because a Northwoods League baseball team starting play in Fond Du Lac, Wisconsin has chosen Dock Spiders as its name ahead of 800 other possible suggestions.
“We are excited to open our inaugural season as the Fond du Lac Dock Spiders,” said General Manager Ryan Moede. “The team logos turned out great, and we think Fond du Lac will be proud to be the home of the Dock Spiders.”
The five finalists for a fan vote weren’t much better than Dock Spiders: Barn Owls, Lake Flies, Pipsqueaks, and Shantymen. Not much happens in Fond Du Lac, does it?
The fine folks at Deadspin decided to research what a Dock Spider is, because we all have the same question: what are they? Well, they’re real. They’re called dock spiders in Canada, but are normally called fishing spiders in the States. They eat things in water, obviously, and they’re not only Canada’s largest spider, but they’re venomous too.
That sounds bad, but what’s good about this is that they normally don’t bite humans unless you accidentally step on them, but since they’re dock spiders, I guess you can find them on docks quite often – so maybe this is common?
In a time where minor league teams are being rebranded as the Baby Cakes, Jumbo Shrimp, and Rumble Ponies, Dock Spiders certainly qualifies. The team begins play next summer, so hopefully you don’t step on them accidentally.