Y for yellow, given that's the color of the handle and that you need something to be representative of the color. Even having a yellow square could confuse it with S for square, or having a banana can confuse it with B for banana. Similar problems exist with S for Sun, C for (a yellow) crayon etc.
Also the handle is what has been drawn superimposed over the letter.
Still, confusion with A for axe isnt any better than S for sun or whatever. Maybe the reasoning was that axe was semantically far enough away from being one of the usual standard bearers of the color yellow, that children would associate the letter with the color rather than the object?
As my long-suffering better half said about me recently (to her psych no less): sometimes he just says and does things to see what kind of reaction it gets from people; to work them out, to understand their limits and motivations, to find their boundaries.
...and maybe even more accurately: just to entertain himself.
Certainly. The limits, the boundaries, are where there be dragons; excitement; life!
Personally, I can't see the answer being "yellow", as this is all about nouns and tangible objects (like things and animals).
Having said that, I enjoyed how the case was built on the faded outline, while this entire spot of the ball shows faded black print, as may be observed by the outlines of the infamous "Y".
(I'd rather opt for the "yxa" approach, probably the route taken by someone just browsing image search for quick ideas and failing to realize that this is not an English word. — Non-indo-european languages and scripts do exist.)
I didn't even notice the difference in printing quality on that part of the ball, I just assumed it was part of the normal variation for such things and didn't think it had any meaning beyond that.
However that being said I think the analysis in the original article is probably as valid and likely more so than mine; I was having fun trying to bullshit-lawyer what was clearly the consequence of a hasty mistake into the work of over-thought intent.
Extending this, can there be found a single image that can be representative of all letters of the alphabet?
A is for A Xylohphone
B is for the Band in which I will play the Xylophone
C is for the all the Concerts in which I will play the Xylophone
D is the for the Disappointment my parents showed for my selection of the Xylophone
.
.
.
M is for the Mallets, used to play to Xylophone
.
.
.
W is for the time Wasted, learning to play the Xylophone
X is for the way the Mallets are held whilst playing the Xylophone
Y is for Why did you choose to dedicate so much time to playing a Xylophone?
Z is for the Zoo to which the Xylophone was donated as entertainment for the chimpanzees
Just having the stream-of-consciousness writing above, I think it should also turn into the story of the eventually fatal decline of enthusiasm for the instrument.
Good observation, it could conceivably be a slightly distorted image of paint coming out of a tube! The waviness of the axe handle does look quite strange.
However it'd be a really counter intuitive choice to use a green Y for "yellow"...
Also the handle is what has been drawn superimposed over the letter.
Still, confusion with A for axe isnt any better than S for sun or whatever. Maybe the reasoning was that axe was semantically far enough away from being one of the usual standard bearers of the color yellow, that children would associate the letter with the color rather than the object?