Move over, El Dorado Broncos. A horse of a different kind is moving into your pasture.

St. Joseph’s new baseball team, which debuts next summer, will be named the St. Joe Mustangs, and team owner Dan Gerson chose the Jayhawk League, of which El Dorado is a member, as its affiliation.

Mr. Gerson said he chose Mustangs as the college summer wood bat team’s name for several reasons, not the least of which was a little luck his two sons have had with teams using the same mascot.

He has had some success as the coach of his 11-year-old son’s team. Mr. Gerson also is an assistant coach to Jeff Montgomery, a former Kansas City Royals closer, on his 14-year-old’s team with the same name that won the state tournament the past two seasons.

The Kansas City businessman added that he liked the tie-in that Mustangs had with St. Joseph’s horse-related history as the starting point of the Pony Express.

“I think it lends itself to some great marketing possibilities,” Mr. Gerson said. “And one of my favorite songs of all-time is ‘Mustang Sally,’ so I know we’re going to work that into the mix there somewhere.”

Mr. Gerson said the team’s primary uniform color will be red, possibly with some black trim, though both uniform and logo design have yet to be finalized.

Mr. Gerson on Wednesday completed his official application to join the Jayhawk League, which fulfilled the $1,500 bond and paid a year’s dues as a deposit, said to Jayhawk League president J.D. Schneider. Mr. Schneider said annual dues to remain in the league cost about $600.

“We do not see any problems,” Mr. Schneider said of the Mustangs’ acceptance into the league.

He added no objections were raised when he polled other league members.

“We have his application and his letter of credit from the bank, and he’s about as solid a member as we’ve had in a while,” Mr. Schneider said.

The Jayhawk League is completing its 32nd season and has eight National Baseball Congress champions to its credit. The Broncos and the Liberal Beejays both have won the title four times, with the league boasting several runner-up finishes in the NBC World Series, Mr. Schneider said. Former major league manager Mike Hargrove currently manages the Beejays, too.

Along with El Dorado and Liberal, Jayhawk members include the Dodge City A’s and Hays Larks on the Kansas side and the Nevada Griffons and Joplin Slashers in Missouri. Between league and non-league games, the Mustangs are projected to play about 30 contests next summer at Phil Welch Stadium, which is the subject of extensive renovations to begin soon. With the addition of the Mustangs, the league plans to have two divisions, and road trips to the far western Kansas members would be necessary only every other season, Mr. Gerson said.

Mr. Gerson said he opted for the Jayhawk League over the MINK League, of which the St. Joseph Saints were a member, because he believes it was a better fit and he liked the caliber of baseball. It was also a matter of making a break from the past.

“It was a tough decision, but maybe this allows us to form our own identity, apart from what the Saints were,” Mr. Gerson said. “But if it wasn’t for the Saints and how great a job they did, there wouldn’t be nearly the interest there is to bring a wood bat team back to St. Joseph.”

Sports reporter Rick Dunaway can be reached at rickd@npgo.com.