There’s No Service Like Wire Service, Vol. 26

Most of the photos in this latest batch were submitted by Mako Mameli, plus a few are from Mike Hersh and BSmile. Ready, set”¦.

• Check out the little cartoon figure on Graig Nettles’s batting glove. Anyone know who/what that is?

• There’s something kind of lame, or at least unseemly, about wearing a T-shirt that promotes yourself — unless you’re Jack Brickhouse.

• White Sox equipment manager Sharkey Colledge shows up in a lot of old wire photos. Here he is in 1956 (is that T-shirt awesome or what?) and again in 1959 (look at that schedule!).

• Here’s Columbia football coach Lou Little, circa 1930. As you can see, this is yet another shot of a football coach from that era dressing like a player below the waist. Must’ve been a common thing back then. Meanwhile, I’m not sure what the “P” on the sweatshirt is for.

• Always good to see another view of the Denver Bears’ strike-zone uniform.

• I love these track shirts so much that at first I didn’t even notice that the two guys in the photo are twins. That’s Wayne and Blaine Rideout, who were competing in the 1937 Millrose Games at Madison Square Garden.

• You can never have enough Sox-in-shorts photos, especially one featuring the fat tub of goo.

• Hey, I remember this thing! It was called the Power Swing, and you’d occasionally see guys using it in the on-deck circle in the early ’70s. Hadn’t thought about it in years (or maybe decades) until I saw those photos. That’s Davey Schneck, who I believe is the only Met ever to have served in Vietnam.

• Here’s a close-up look at a Cardinals cap you don’t often see. That’s Buzzy Wares in 1940.

• I’m sure I’ve mentioned this before, but the Browns really had one messed-up insignia. No space between “St.” and “Louis,” but a big space between the L and the O — jeez.

• Not sure what’s going on here, but any team that mixes cycling and skating is A-OK with me.

• Ever been to a golf ball factory? If not, then these pics will have to do.

•  And here’s a bonus entry from our friend Jerry Reuss, from his days with the Astros. Look at those stirrup stars!

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Shamrock Shake report: Just a handful of MLB teams did the “Kiss Me, I’m Irish!” thing yesterday. The Red Sox, Dodgers, and Phillies went the whole route, complete with green jerseys, while the Brewers, Padres, Braves, and Mets went with green caps, and the Rockies’ caps had green trim. (Can someone give a good, non-bullshit explanation of why New Era gets to put its logo on these caps, by the way? No, I didn’t think so.)

Interestingly, the White Sox, who wear green for that bogus “Halfway to St. Patrick’s Day” promotion every year, were among the teams who couldn’t be bothered.

Meanwhile, the Bulls and Knicks wore green last night, while the Raptors did likewise the night before (which was also when the Celtics wore their gold-trimmed uni).

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Logo contest reminder: I’m currently conducting a logo design contest for the indie-rock supergroup known as the Baseball Project. Full details here.

Uni Watch News Ticker: This is pretty wild — a Patriots jersey made out of wood (big thanks to Matt Bessette). ”¦ Even better: Great Final Four moments as rendered in Lego (thanks, Phil). ”¦ Here’s a visual timeline of Notre Dame football uniforms (with thanks to Warren Junium). ”¦ Interesting corporate douchebaggery note regarding the NCAA tourney here (with thanks to Rob Bubeck). ”¦ Andy Chalifour reports that the Celtics celebrated 30 years of Mike Gorman and Tommy Heinsohn broadcasting games by giving them a pair of personalized “30” jerseys. ”¦ I’m not sure what was going on in this old cycling photo, but it looks pretty damn cool (with thanks to Chad Todd). ”¦ You Have Got to Be Kidding Me Dept.: Each of Bryce Harper’s at-bats this season will be sponsored (as reported by Robert Craig). ”¦ Shoe pornographer Joshua Exline sent along the new Air Jordan designs that UNC and Georgetown will be wearing in the NCAA tourney. ”¦ If you scroll to the March 17, 10:58am entry on this page, you’ll find some interesting NHL changes potentially in the offing, including “a newly-designed net with a red mesh and smaller holes strung across the top of net ”¦ to increase clarity in video review when trying to determine, conclusively, whether or not the puck crossed the goal line,” and “a communication system for all referees ”¦ [that] would allow the two refs to talk, via headset, during a play and lead each other based on what they’re seeing in the battle areas to allow play to continue or make a specific call.” John Muir asks, “Will the refs’ helmets get green dots?” ”¦ Who are these guys? They’re the Steelers basketball team, but they’ve taken “Steelers” off of their jerseys because of the lockout. Details toward the end of this page (nice find by Justin Shawley). ”¦ Ohio State football will apparently be wearing camo helmets for spring practice (as noted by Phil Haynes). ”¦ Did you know MLB baseballs are stamped with invisible ink? I didn’t! Fascinating (big thanks to Chris Flinn). ”¦ I had previously reported that the Giants might be wearing gold-trimmed jerseys for their ring ceremony. Now Sam Lam has sent me shots of a Giants cap with a gold “SF” logo and a gold-trimmed MLB logo. “The guy at the store said that these are the authentic caps that the Giants will wear when they get their rings,” he says. ”¦ Zebra-related chatter from Josh Neisler, who writes: “In the waning seconds of the Vanderbilt vs. Richmond game, as two referees crouched in deliberation at the scorer’s table with their rumps and backs positioned toward the camera in a most unflattering way, CBS color commentator Bill Raftery quipped, ‘They should put some advertisements on those backs!,’ provoking chuckles from play-by-play man Verne Lundquist. Raftery went on to refer to the refs’ jerseys as ‘silks’ before the discussion returned to the substance of the matter at hand.” ”¦ Lou Sherwood found a great Life cereal commercial featuring Casey Stengel and a kid in striped stirrups! ”¦ “The Penguins’ desktop wallpaper this month features Jordan Staal,” says Michael Koch. “However, as you can see, he’s posing with teammate Brooks Orpik’s stick.”