The Changing Styles of Major League Baseball Uniforms

"Pink and blue for a baseball team? Whatever happened to good old gray?"--TV Commercial, circa 1978

Indeed, the above has been a common question in baseball fashion circles until recently.

After years of tradition, the buttoned-up flannel uniforms went out of style with the 1969 Mets. This made way for the Oakland A's of the early 70's and the beginning of the "polyester revolution."

In the new age of videotape and instant replay, the A's were a sight to behold, especially on a color television. They were the first "made for television" baseball team, as their bright uniforms literally jumped into the family den.

From then on, every other major league team wanted a colorful polyester uniform that would distinguish it from the rest of the league. Color would compete against color on the TV screen as fiercely as team would compete against team.

The movement even ensnared the Boston Red Sox. Yes, in the 1975 World Series, the American League champs were wearing those red caps and the word "BOSTON" instead of "RED SOX" on the home whites.

But the "polyester revolution" reached a fever pitch in 1979 when baseball fans were exposed to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Depending on the directives of management, the Pirates would wear black, white or gold pants or jerseys, either with or without pinstripes. The result was a wide variety of looks that may or may not have confused the Baltimore Orioles into losing the 1979 World Series.

This year, however, a trend towards tradition has emerged. The most prominent example this year is the Atlanta Braves. The tomahawk is back on the uniform for the first time since the team moved from Milwaukee.

Old-Style

But more and more teams are going back to old-style uniforms without the benefits of previous tradition. Players are wearing old-style uniforms with unfamiliar logos.

For example, the Minnesota Twins are wearing pinstripes in the Metrodome for the first time ever. At least, the Twins management had gotten rid of the confusing "T.C." lettering on the cap. Who outside of Minnesota thinks of Minneapolis and St. Paul as the Twin Cities?

The Seattle Mariners fall into this same category. Their uniforms are perfectly old-fashioned, right down to the piping on the collar. The writing on the front of their shirts, however, is too new for them. Yet, instead of wearing caps made out of a lower case "m" based on a trident, they now wear a prominent "S" on their caps. With all of the rumors that the Mariners may move out of the Kingdome, it is probably a good idea to wear an "S." Perhaps the team can move to Saginaw or Spartanburg or Sarasota or St. Cloud to save money on new uniforms.

But teams are not only changing their uniforms' basic design to an older style, but their design philosophy is also going back to another era. More teams are wearing the exact same uniforms both home and on the road, except the road uniforms are tinted gray instead of a team color. This has been the case for years with half of the teams in baseball, but more teams have joined the bandwagon in the past few years.

In fact, both Oakland and Pittsburgh, the pioneers of the "polyester revolution," are now wearing gray-tinted road uniforms instead of their gaudy primary colors. Also, Oakland now wears buttoned-up uniforms with cursive writing on the front for the first time since the team left Kansas City.

But the Astros are making an different sort of change. Never again will fans see the weird orange and yellow stripes across the torso for both home and away games. Houston now wears all white at home and an unfamiliar cream on the road.

Image Problem

The Chicago White Sox are the team with the greatest image problem. Nothing could have ever prepared Windy City denizens for the roller-coaster ride the Chisox image consultants have put them through over the past couple of decades.

In the late 70's. the White Sox switched from its traditional pinstriped uniform to strange mesh uniforms designed to make fans remember the era of Nap Lajoie. The uniforms themselves were pre-20th century in style. The sleeves would flail in the wind like tattered flags, much like the tattered White Sox fielders.

But when Chicago won a divisional pennant, the team appeared on national television wearing a big "SOX" across the front of polyester stretch uniforms with numbers on its pants. For once, the White Sox were taken seriously.

Changing Times

But times have changed, and so have the Chicago uniforms. There is a "C" on the cap for the first time in ages, and the new White Sox uniforms have a cursive "Chicago" borrowed from the basketball Bulls.

So, why reflect on baseball uniforms? Well, like the alleged flat seam on the baseball, the height of the mound, the spitball or the tricks the wind plays on a fly ball, the uniform is just another nuance of the game.

There is a feeling that the game has been modernized too much. Astroturf, indoor stadiums, polyester uniforms, aluminum bats, and the live ball have become household words for the baseball fan. The retreat from the polyester revolution has signaled a return to normality clean air, a fresh hot dog, green grass, and real uniforms. That's what the game is all about.