After a somewhat controversial, but successful launch in 2018, the Staten Island Yankees are bringing back the Staten Island Pizza Rats for a second season.

The minor-league A affiliate of the New York Yankees announced in a press release Tuesday morning that the Staten Island Yankees will play as the Pizza Rats for seven games -- two more planned dates than last season -- in 2019 at Richmond County Bank Ballpark at St. George.

“We thought the Pizza Rats brand was fun and unique when we were in the planning stages, but when we announced it last year, it took off like we never imagined,” said Will Smith, Staten Island Yankees President/Operating Partner. “Coming into this offseason, we wanted to focus on how we could continue to build on the Pizza Rats brand and add even more excitement to the alternate identity of the Staten Island Yankees.”

Last season, some Staten Islanders took exception to the Pizza Rats’ nickname and one Italian-American group pulled out of attending a game.

But the organization gained new fans, even from outside of the borough, and generated more revenue through the huge jump in merchandising sales.

For the 2018 Pizza Rats games, the team drew an average of 2,824 fans, some 800 more than the average for the rest of the games. How much the Pizza Rats contributed to that is unclear as it was often booked on Saturday nights when the park traditionally draws larger crowds.

Here is a look at the uniforms, merchandize and food associated with the Pizza Rats games at Richmond County Bank Ballpark in 2019.

As for 2019, the team said the Staten Island Pizza Rats will be taking the field in new uniforms. The uniforms will be red with navy blue piping down the chest. The Staten Island Pizza Rats primary logo will be on the left chest with the “Pizza Rats Chef” logo on the left sleeve. The team will wear their traditional navy blue pinstriped pants and don the NYC logo cap this season.

The rebranding will take place on every Saturday game and one camp day during the week. The first game will be Opening Night on June 15 at 7 p.m. followed by June 22 at 7 p.m.; both games are against the Brooklyn Cyclones.

The other dates are July 20 at 7 p.m., July 22 at 11 a.m., which will be the first time the Pizza Rats will appear at on camp day at the park, July 27 at 7 p.m., Aug. 3, and Aug. 24 at 7 p.m.

A post-game fireworks show will follow each Saturday 7 p.m. game.

Also, during every Pizza Rats Saturday game, Richmond County Bank Ballpark will feature a new food item, Chank’s Pizza Cones. Pizza cones are the perfect ballpark fare because of their portability. They are the best way to enjoy pizza on-the-go without the mess. Chank’s Pizza Cone dough is handcrafted and filled with the freshest ingredients to ensure a delicious, authentic pizza taste.

"We are excited to partner with the Staten Island Pizza Rats to offer our unique pizza product to fans. We feel it will help enhance the fan experience,” said Chank's Founder, Eric Ciancaglini.

There is all new Staten Island Pizza Rats merchandise for 2019 as well. New hats and shirts are available now at PizzaRatsBaseball.com, and more new merchandise will be coming in as the season gets closer.