FIVE (ACTUALLY 7) RETROS I LIKE
While I will save the comments, pro and con, for next time, I will take this opportunity to list my 1 through 5 (in no particular order) Turn Back The Clock MLB uniform designs. Two of the entries will be pairings from the same event…that’s where the 7 comes from. Here goes…
1964 Cardinals/Browns 1944 OTG flannels: The 20th Anniversary of the only city World Series the Gateway City ever saw, or will see, found the gathering of 1944 Cardinals and Browns clad in flannels styled after their uniforms of the day. Rawlings made both teams’ unies, and detailed tagging on a par with the originals, coupled with spot-on attention to detail in the respective designs, make these among my all-time retro favorites.
1990 White Sox 1917 home design: These turned out nicely for a game that wasn’t even on the original schedule. The White Sox needed to host the Brewers to make up a rained out spring contest, and, with the All-Star Game across town in Wrigley Field, the Sox decided to add the make-up game the day after, and had other 1917 promotions (such as lineups and batters being announced by megaphone) besides the Pale Hose threads. Rawlings made these, and the often-used habit of ordering two sets…one for the game, one for the players to keep…was started here. The full uniforms in the immediately following years were garnering over $1,000 each in auctions, although I’ve not seen any transact lately to determine how much (if any) prices have dropped.
1991 Phillies 1961 home design: Rawlings got around in those days, as this uniform was also their work. The jerseys were exact replicas of the ’61 club’s garb, and was well-received to the point that, when Russell took over in 1992, the Phillies made this design their regular home attire, a move still intact in 2009. Also, for trivia’s sake, both of these designs (Phils and White Sox) employed the wider red Rawlings manufacturer’s label that became the standard for Rawlings in their 1992-94 MLB knits (Cardinals, Dodgers, Pirates).
1997 White Sox and Cubs c.1910 designs: The oldies but goodies in this game (white for the Sox, dark blue for the Cubs) were part of the first ever interleague regular season game between the two clubs, as opposed to the exhibitions held on and off over the previous decades. Wilson made them both, detailed tagging was a part of the mix, and the game itself (at New Comiskey Park) was won by the Cubs…what more could I ask for?
1999 Brewers 1969 Seattle Pilots home: Anything worn by the one-year expansion Pilots (who changed cities and team ID during spring training of 1970) is game-used hobby magic, and, with the quality and accurate design (the opposite of the inaccurate travesties the White Sox wore in the same game), the regular season home design of the Brewers’ forerunners was a winner. One food stand at Miller Park identified with Gorman Thomas even has a specially made Pilots TBTC shirt of Stormin’ Gorman hanging on the back wall.
NBA JERSEY NOTES
The New Orleans Hornets again broke out Hardwood Classics uniforms, replicating the old ABA New Orleans Bucs on January 28th.
NHL JERSEY RETIREMENTS AND AUCTIONS
Two of these are due this week. Today, Sunday, the Edmonton Oilers will retire the #9 worn by Glenn Anderson. Number nine will also be retired on Tuesday, at Madison Square Garden, as the New York Rangers recognize Adam Graves.
Also, with cooperation from MeiGray, the second period sweaters of the players involved in the NHL All-Star Game nine days ago are available for bidding on both nhl.com and nhlpa.com . Proceeds will go to the league’s pet charity, Hockey Fights Cancer. Bidding is active now, and will run until 8PM CST on February 12.
DID YOU KNOW?…
That the Chicago Cubs, in 1979, used the first logo or patch on an MLB uniform that carried a registered trademark symbol with a team logo? In this case, it was the large, round CUBS crest on the jersey front, a practice still in use 30 years later.
NEW 2009 MLB UNIFORM STYLES
Both the Texas Rangers and Pittsburgh Pirates will introduce new field attire this coming season. The Rangers will sport 4 styles, the traditional home and road, a blue alternate to be worn both at home and on the road, and a red alternate for selected home games. The fronts on all will be TEXAS, with uniform and piping colors, depending on the style, including white, red, blue and grey.
The Pirates have dropped red as a secondary uniform color, meaning the red alternates so popular during their brief usage are now history. The new alternate jersey will be the already used black hue the Bucs first introduced in 1997, although design elements on the current black garb will be different. The team will have only one vest shirt, the Sunday home pinstriped design, with the standard home whites and road grays shedding the vest look and returning to the use of sleeves.
PITCHERS AND CATCHERS REPORT IN 2 WEEKS…HALLELUJAH!!