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Diamondbacks rallying around new mascot — a hamster named Slider

Mark Townsend
·Yahoo Sports Contributor

With all due respect to dogs everywhere on this National Dog Day, we must tip our cap to another furry, four-legged friend, the hamster.

Last week in Cincinnati, the Arizona Diamondbacks adopted a praying mantis while at the Great American Ball Park and ended up sweeping the Reds to climb over the .500 mark. Now that they're back in Phoenix, they've brought in a more playful companion that can provide hours of entertainment, a hamster named Slider.

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Hey, we all know rosters are set to expand in September anyway. The D-Backs are just getting a jump on the competition by adding their own form of reinforcements to the clubhouse.

Slider was in the Diamondbacks clubhouse on both Monday and Tuesday, rolling around in her green hamster ball as the Diamondbacks prepared for a big series against the St. Louis Cardinals.

“Probably wouldn’t be a bad thing to have something running around in here,” said reliever Josh Collmenter, who introduced Slider to the team on Monday. “A little team mascot. Can’t quite well have a rattlesnake in here, so I figured a hamster would be pretty safe."

Joe Maddon once brought a 20-foot python into the Tampa Bay Rays clubhouse. But yeah, despite the Diamondbacks name, the hamster is probably more in line with the clubhouse vibe they're going for.

It sounds like Slider is making friends at every turn, too. Even manager Chip Hale.

“Something just rolled into my office when I was doing my work,” Hale said. “I didn’t know what was going on. I went in my bathroom and there was a hamster rolling around in a ball.”

Most managers have an open door policy, but this is probably the first time a hamster has taken advantage of it. As long as she stays in the ball, we doubt Hale will care too much.

(MLB)
(MLB)

Then again, he might care a little bit if the Diamondbacks don't get back on track. They lost each of the first two games of the Cardinals series, leaving Slider winless.

It's not Slider's fault, of course, but these are baseball players and when something or someone isn't working they'll move on to the next thing pretty quickly. Unless Slider is willing to take a demotion to the minors, she might have to take her ball and go home.

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Mark Townsend is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at bigleaguestew@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter!