Hendricks County Resident Jake Martinez Keeps ‘em Rowdie as Indianapolis Indians Mascot

Jake Martinez grew up loving Batman and Buzz Lightyear. His mom owned a dance studio and he learned a dozen different styles of dance.

He took gymnastics, joined the Circus Club in elementary school, learned how to ride a unicycle, juggled, and more.

As Martinez got older he loved breakdancing and enjoyed comedians like Chris Farley and Adam Sandler, imitating their physical comedy and humor. He played sports too, but by the time he reached college as a mechanical engineer major at the University of Toledo, Martinez said he got a “reality check” regarding his future in sports.

“I cheered with my twin sister in college but I knew I wasn’t going to go far in sports at the college level,” Martinez said.

He says he wasn’t even a “school kid.”

“From the jump, my mom knew I just didn’t care about school, and she always says, ‘We realized what type of person you would be, and we leaned in and let you be that kid,’” Martinez said.

Yet, there was no doubt that he was smart and talented, with a big future ahead.

Then he had a bad car accident, sidelining plans for nearly five years, but little did he know, things were just getting started for him.

“They were auditioning for mascots and someone suggested I give it a try,” he said. “Most auditions are about 15 minutes long and mine was 45. They kept asking me to do one more thing. God set me up to be an incredible mascot, but I had no idea it would become a career.”

For several years he served as Spike the walleye and CatTick the cat for the University of Toledo. Then he did a stint as Chomps for the Cleveland Browns, but when Martinez graduated in 2018, he got serious – at least for a minute.

After all, an engineer’s career is nothing to frown upon, but what kept him going was always the mascot role. It’s what got him through college and has inspired great conversations during interviews.

“I always put mascot on my resume,” he said. “I went in to be interviewed for my engineering job, and my boss said it was great I had my degree, I was personable and they were interested, but let’s talk about this mascot thing.”

They were right. Martinez’s outgoing personality and welcoming disposition did shine in the engineer office setting.

“I was in the 1% of engineers that wanted to talk,” he said. “I wanted to know how your day was and I was the one they wanted to do the sales calls. I was never meant to sit at a desk, and when this season of life is over I’m not sure what I’ll do next, but I won’t be sitting when I do it.”

It didn’t take long for the mascot role to surface – this time in Indianapolis.

“About five months after moving to Indianapolis and getting my engineering job, my wife suggested finding another team to mascot for,” Martinez said. “I emailed some of the minor league teams and heard back from the Indianapolis Indians. I met them that night and we had a great conversation.”

Indianapolis Indians fans may recall the mascot Rowdie undergoing a few changes over the years.

That was Martinez, working with the team to refresh and rebrand the bear.

“If you look at a rendition of Rowdie in 1993, you might say he looks like a rat, opossum, aardvark or mouse,” he said. “I had been to a couple of games and I didn’t know he was a bear. Now he looks like a bear. It was a complete refresh with a new suit, new look and new character. We didn’t have his personality. No one had been in the suit long enough to establish one.”

After an initial part-time gig, Martinez became the full-time mascot program coordinator last year, and works to make Rowdie a character who fans remember – and the character’s popularity has skyrocketed.

“Most mascots have a story about growing up and loving a particular mascot,” he said. “I never really did that, but on the other side of it, that’s what makes being a mascot so fun. It’s putting smiles on faces, having that ability without saying a word. It’s truly magical, and a privilege and honor and blessing to do what we do.”

It’s fun, but hard work too.

As expected, it’s pretty hot in the Rowdie suit, and the main question Martinez gets when people find out what he does for a living relates to the heat.

“It’s a giant fur body suit,” he said. “It’s about 20 to 30 degrees hotter in the suit and I’m never cold in the winter. In July it can get pretty hot. In the beginning I was a part-time mascot and full-time engineer, and was still doing 60 games.”

On average, Rowdie makes more than 100 appearances per year, and an additional 75 baseball games. Martinez and his team also do school events, parades, birthday parties, mascot nights, company outings and, yes, even weddings.

Now, two years in as a full-time mascot, Martinez says he’s happy with the decision he’s made. Not a day goes by when he doesn’t think the decision to go from engineer to mascot was completely worth it, and after 12 years, it still never gets old.

He’s friends with many fellow mascot professionals across the country and is watching some of his favorite mascots retire, but he knows the future looks bright.

“We can do it for as long as our body lets us,” he said. “I used to do a lot of aerobics and I’ve toned that down a bit. It’s funny because if you do it once, they want you to do it a million times, but I know guys who have been mascots well into their 50s and 60s.”

Martinez describes it as exhilarating. He knows what it means to others too, and is very intentional about his daily interactions as Rowdie.

In fact, Martinez said he’s terrible about taking breaks throughout the game.

“If that hug, high five, signature, picture or fist pump changes something for you that day, it’s worth it,” he said. “I can have the worst day ever, and the minute I put that suit on, it’s just transformative. I walk through the door and I’m Rowdie. I’m ready to put smiles on faces and that’s why we continue to do it. It’s the joy that we bring to others, but that they are bringing to us too.”