Back when I first started collecting uniforms, about the only thing I did when checking the size of jersey was look in Total Baseball to see if the height and weight made sense for player in question. Over time I learned that size does matter as it relates to both the period of the jersey in a player’s career as well as the actual or true size of the jersey. In trying to determine the proper size of a jersey for a player in a given year, the best information would come from the actual team order sheets. This sort of documentation is extremely rare. The next best evidence would be a picture of a player from the season in question that shows the tagging in sufficient detail to allow the tagged size to be seen. In the absence of either of these two forms of evidence, what we end up doing is some form comparative analysis based on recorded sizes of both the player and uniforms offered or seen in the hobby over time.
I recently pick up a 1988 Paul O’Neill Cincinnati Reds home jersey. The jersey had many upsides including the original 1988 All Star Patch, solid use/wear, and it is the earliest Paul O’Neill jersey I have seen. In order to determine if the jersey was the proper size, I did a couple of things. I began the process by culling year specific data from Street & Smith Baseball Yearbooks. I prefer Street & Smith as a data point as opposed to static references such as Total Baseball, The Baseball Encyclopedia or on various on line references since it offers year by year snapshots. O’Neill played 17 seasons and like most of us, the size of what we wear is likely to have changed over time. I then placed various O’Neill uniforms I had information on into the mix to see what I could see. I also have Cincinnati Reds period yearbooks which show the same information. What is good about the team yearbooks is that also provide insights and data on the period before he joined the big club. Like most team year books, the 1984 and 1985 editions offer information on Paul O’Neill as a ring star in the Reds minor league system.
1984 Cincinnati Reds Yearbook: 6’, 4”; 190lbs
1985 Cincinnati Reds Yearbook: 6’, 4”; 200lbs
1986 Street & Smith Baseball Yearbook: 6’, 4”; 205lbs
1987 Street & Smith Baseball Yearbook: 6’, 4”; 205lbs
1988 Cincinnati Reds Rawlings Home Jersey Size 46, 1 ½” Extra Body Length, Tapered
1988 Street & Smith Baseball Yearbook: 6’, 4”; 205lbs
1989 Street & Smith Baseball Yearbook: 6’, 4”, 210lbs
1990 Street & Smith Baseball Yearbook: 6’, 4”, 215lbs
1991 Street & Smith Baseball Yearbook: 6’, 4”, 215lbs
1992 Street & Smith Baseball Yearbook: 6’, 4”, 215lbs
1993 Street & Smith Baseball Yearbook: 6’, 4”, 215lbs
1994 Street & Smith Baseball Yearbook: 6’, 4”, 215lbs
1995 NY Yankees Russell Home Jersey: Size 48, 1” Extra Sleeve Length
1995 Street & Smith Baseball Yearbook: 6’, 4”; 215lbs
1996 Street & Smith Baseball Yearbook: 6’, 4”, 215lbs
1997 Street & Smith Baseball Yearbook: 6’, 4”; 215lbs
1998 Street & Smith Baseball Yearbook: 6’, 4”; 215lbs
1999 Street & Smith Baseball Yearbook: 6’, 4”; 215lbs
2000 NY Yankees Road: Size 48, 1” Extra Body Length, Tapered
2000 Street & Smith Baseball Yearbook: 6’, 4”; 215lbs
2001 Street & Smith Baseball Yearbook: 6’, 4”, 215lbs
The data suggested that size 46 appeared proper in his early playing days and that there was a trend for customizations with respect to lengths and taper. In the recent article on the 1995 Barry Larkin road jersey, I made mention of taking the time to count pinstripes as an indication of width or relative chest size. I did this same thing in looking at later images of O’Neill with the Yankees and how these compared to other Yankees home jerseys in a size 48. In this case, I was more or less working backwards in that if a size 48 was correct with his playing height and weight being recorded at 6’, 4”; 215lbs, then a size 46 with similar customizations at a height and weight of 6’, 4”; 205lbs was appropriate.
Satisfied that a size 46 with extra length and tapered tagging made sense, I then ensured that these were also the true measurements of the actual jersey. I was not overly concerned that this shirt was a salesmen’s sample or period retail product since by 1988, O’Neill could have hardly been considered a star or period star player. Up to this point he had only appeared in 92 games over the course of three seasons with a career average of .259 by then. The tagging was also original to the jersey and not one manufactured after the fact and correct for Rawlings in 1988.
Since I had the Street & Smith Guides out anyway, I thought I would look at some other players of prominence from the same time period that I was looking at for Paul O’Neill.
Cal Ripken
1987: 6’, 4”; 218lbs
1988: 6’, 4”; 225lbs
1989: 6’, 4”; 225lbs
1990: 6’, 4”; 223lbs
1991: 6’, 4”; 223lbs
1992: 6’, 4”; 224lbs
1993: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
1994: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
1995: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
1996: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
1997: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
1998: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
1999: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
2000: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
2001: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
Barry Bonds
1987: 6’, 1”, 185lbs
1988: 6’, 1”, 185lbs
1989: 6’, 1”, 185lbs
1990: 6’, 1”, 185lbs
1991: 6’, 1”, 185lbs
1992: 6’, 1”, 190lbs
1993: 6’, 1”, 185lbs
1994: 6’, 1”, 185lbs
1995: 6’, 1”, 190lbs
1996: 6’, 1”, 190lbs
1997: 6’, 1”, 190lbs
1998: 6’, 1”, 190lbs
1999: 6’, 2”; 206lbs
2000: 6’, 2”; 210lbs
2001: 6’, 2”; 210lbs
For what its worth, on page 277 of “Game of Shadows,” the San Francisco Giants equipment manager reports Bond’s uniform size since coming to Giants had gone from a size 42 to a size 52, his shoes size from a 10 ½ to 13, and his cap size from 7 1/8 to 7 ¼.
Roger Clemens
1987: 6’, 4”; 215lbs
1988: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
1989: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
1990: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
1991: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
1992: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
1993: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
1994: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
1995: 6’, 4”; 220lbs
1996: 6’, 4”; 225lbs
1997: 6’, 4”; 225lbs
1998: 6’, 4”; 230lbs
1999: 6’, 4”; 230lbs
2000: 6’, 4”; 230lbs
2001: 6’, 4”; 238lbs
My point in all of this, if you have a player or players that you collect, consider building a similar sizing data base that is a combination of year specific and offered uniforms. Use it as a guide for the jerseys you consider buying and always measure the jersey after you get it to confirm what the tagging information shows.
As always, collect what you enjoy and enjoy what you collect.
MEARS Auth, LLC
For questions or comments on this article, please feel free to drop me a line at DaveGrob1@aol.com.