D. Baxter the Bobcat

D. Baxter the Bobcat, sometimes also called D. Baxter Bobcat, is the official mascot of the Arizona Diamondbacks. His name is based on the typical abbreviation of the team's name into "D-Backs" and "Bob" which was the name given by fans to their home ballpark, Bank One Ballpark or "the BOB" (this no longer works as in 2005, a corporate merger led to the name becoming Chase Field).

D. Baxter is a large furry bobcat character wearing a D-Backs jersey with the number 1 but no pants; he also sometimes wears a D-Backs cap, specially adapted with holes from which his large ears can stick out. He was introduced in 2000. Brantley Bell, the son of Arizona player Jay Bell is credited with the original idea for the character, by stating to his dad that "the team should have a 'BOB' cat as a mascot since the team played in the BOB (Bank One Ballpark)." Bell informed management about his son's idea and Baxter was born.

As most of his peers, in addition to entertaining fans at the ballpark, he serves as an ambassador for the team and makes charitable visits to hospitals, schools and other community events around Arizona. He resides in a special enclosure called "Baxter's Den" at Chase Field.

Related Sites

• Official biography