1990 PREVIEW
An e-mail from troubleshooter Rudy over at Game Used Forum reminded me of the briefly worn 1990 Chicago White Sox gamers that were designed like the 1991 duds.
The White Sox, having already announced the uniform change to the still-used silver and black motif, wore a preview style of both the home game jerseys and the black BP tops for six games in 1990. These six games took the form of two 3-game series that comprised the last homestand ever at the original Comiskey Park. Like the 1991 attire, both game and practice jerseys were made by Rawlings. Both were flag tagged SET 2 1990, with the game gear tagged in the collar and the BP threads tagged in the left front outside tail. Few have surfaced in the way of game jerseys, and a few more, though not a major portion of the BP top supply have also been infused into the hobby.
A look at one can be had on the cover of some 1991 White Sox pocket schedules, with a collar-tagged 1990 Fisk gamer shown.
CAN’T FIND MANY OF THESE, EITHER
Another rarely-worn, one-year style that hasn’t, by any means, flooded the hobby would be the 1995 Detroit Tigers navy blue alternate jerseys. Styled similarly to the BP tops of the era, but in knit material instead of mesh, the alternates were worn in a handful of games by the Tigers, one of which I attended at old Tiger Stadium.
I recently noticed an eBay lot that may explain where most of them went. The item was a Lakeland Tigers (Class A Florida State League) jersey strongly resembling the Major League version, but with two differences made by the folks at Lakeland. First, sleeve patches were used (in this case, a minor league logo patch and a Jackie Robinson 50th Anniversary emblem). Second, the big league logo on the front, an Olde English D with a Tiger crawling through it, was replaced by the tiger strolling past a capital L. The jersey carried detailed strip tagging in the tail beneath the Russell label, though specifics were scratched out with a marker. This leads me to believe that Lakeland got the majority of the dark blue duds as hand-me-downs, and made change accordingly. Assuming the jersey was, indeed, a recycled item, and also assuming the number (very large and with NNOB) was original, the major league user would have been pitcher Mike Moore.
MLB AUCTION ACTION
Many special issue MLB game-worn jerseys are on MLB.com’s auction listing at this time, with closing dates ranging from today to one week from today.
Among the styles represented are:
2008 Mariners TBTC 1978 road
2008 Pirates TBTC Negro League
2008 Tampa Bay Rays TBTC Negro League and St. Pete Pelicans
2008 Mets Jackie Robinson day jerseys
2008 Astros TBTC Rainbow Jerseys
Varied Tigers jerseys, including 2007 and 2008 Jackie Robinson Day Jerseys
2008 White Sox July 4th camouflage jersey of Carlos Quentin
RARE UNIFORM FETCHES OVER $28,000
The most recent Huggins & Scott auction featured a 1933 National League All-Star Game jersey of Dick Bartell, a style using the league name on the front, instead of the common practice of individual team unies. The final price, including add-on fees, ended up at $28,750. It is on of six known NL jerseys from the 1933 contest.
2008 ALL-STAR GAME UNIFORM NOTES
Not too much unusual to report from the Yankee Stadium event. All players wore either home white or road grey (no alternates), and the one vest jersey in the bunch (Nate McLouth of Pittsburgh) had the ASG patch on the chest, not on the undershirt sleeve. The Hall of Famers gathered there were issued All-Star caps of the adjustable variety for the pre-game ceremonies. Dave Winfield had two such caps: a Padres one he wore, and a Yankees lid he waved at the fans when he was announced.
THE FIRST OF ONLY TWO
This past Friday back in 1927, Ty Cobb became the first player ever to reach the career 4000-hit mark. The 4000 mark has only since been attained by Pete Rose
OBITUARIES
Dave Ricketts, a catcher and coach for the Cardinals and Pirates for close to 30 years, died. He was a member of the 19667 World Champion Cardinals. His brother, Dick, played in two pro sports: the NBA and MLB. He died in 1988.
WOOD AND DEMPSTER: ROLES SWITCH,QUALITY IMPROVES. GO CUBS!!