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Cubs Celebrate Strike Season, Cuban Independence

Cuba hed

By Phil Hecken

First, and most important thing: Paul has his annual College Football Preview today (one of the most anticipated columns of the year). Here’s the link.

Now then. Yesterday, the Chicago Cubs continued their year-long celebration of Wrigley Field by donning their 1994 alternate jerseys, jerseys which many have said fairly resemble the Cuban national team uniforms. The year to which they were throwing back was 1994, memorable in its infamy as the Year Without A Santa Claus World Series, as that was the year a players’ strike canceled the season. It was also a forgettable season for the Cubs, who would end that year with a 49-64 record, good enough for fifth (and last) place in the newly formed National League Central Division.

As with all of their previous throwbacks, the folks at Majestic did a nice job with them. Those uniforms (or at least the jerseys) are noteworthy for three things: the 125th Anniversary of Baseball patch, the alternate “Cub” head, and the script “Cubs” which looks a LOT like “Cuba” if you look at it right. Many actually nicknamed these the “Cuba” jerseys, and even Bill Henderson had noted the similarities. Here’s a few pics from the game (click on any image to enlarge):

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Note the patches, which Majestic seemed to replicate perfectly:

1994-mlb-patch

CUCO00004

Here’s what some of the original 1994 uniforms looked like:

1994-Chicago-Cubs


Ninth Annual Cubs Fan Convention

Other than perhaps a desire to sell some of these jerseys to the public (and well, they were different), I am still wondering why the Cubs chose to throwback to these or to the 1994 year. The club was awful (although they did have a young Sammy Sosa — who hadn’t yet become Sammy Sosa, Mark Grace and Ryne Sandberg, among others), and the most memorable thing about 1994 was the fact that there was no World Series. I’m not even positive the Cubs wore this uniform at home in 1994 (or the entire three year run of the “script Cubs” font). The script Cubs more often was worn in gray. It was designed as a road alternate, to mimic the gray jersey. 1994 hadn’t ushered in the “softball jersey at home” epidemic we’re currently experiencing. Probably the most notable aspect of the blue top (and the gray roadie) was the fact that it bore such a strong resemblance to the Cuban National Team uniform, nicely documented below by Bill Henderson:

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The Cubs’ opponent yesterday, the Baltimore Orioles, were outfitted with 1994 uniforms as well, and those looked A LOT better (a few guys even mixed eras, wearing the 1954 stirrups!):

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All told, not a bad looking game — just a really odd year to which to throwback — unless it’s for some special 20th Anniversary of which I’m not aware. You can see more photos from the game here.

Also, as a bonus, reader Matt DeLeon was at the game and took these photos. If you can’t see the slideshow, click here.

Matt adds the following observations:

“100th anniversary of Wrigley Field, going back to the strike shortened 1994 season and the infamous “Cuba” alternate jersey (Harry Caray’s term, which turned Cub nation against them from the start). The Orioles joined in and wore their 1994 Road Unis.

Most notable uni bits for me: Cubs seemed to add a white outline to the 1994 version of the angry bear patch which wasn’t there in 1994. Orioles Roads had the nice touch of the name plate. 125th anniversary patch was nice–forgot how gaudy looking it was. Many Cubs went high cuffed, with Matt Szczur wearing actual stirrups. The stripes on the Jones and Cruz socks were cool, but not reminiscent of 1994. Orioles hats were nice, but I prefer the cartoon bird. No matching “ornithologically” correct helmets for Orioles.”

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colorize this

Colorize This!

Occasionally, I will be featuring wonderful, high-quality black and white photographs that are just begging to be colorized.

I usually run these on the weekends (so you weekday-only readers are in for a treat). Been holding on to these for a few weeks, so I thought today would be a good day to air them out.

Today’s colorizations all come from colorizer-extraordinaire George Chilvers, who has a few for us today:

Click on any image to enlarge:

. . .

The Football Batallion colour - George Chilvers


The Football Batallion

Hi Phil

Europe has been remembering the start of World War I this week in 1914, and this colourisation has relevance to that, and is a little tribute from me to those millions of brave men on all sides who were caught up in the chaos and carnage.

Sometimes when I do my colourisations I look at the people involved and wonder what became of them, particularly when I do photos from about 1910 to 1914. This is a sad one, I fear, but is hugely relevant and has to be done. I’ll quote from the Imperial War Museum:

“The Football Battalion

The formation of the ‘New Armies’ during World War One (1914-18) allowed footballers to enlist en masse in ‘Pals’ battalions. Clapton Orient (now Leyton Orient FC) were the first English Football League club to enlist together. Following the example of club captain, Fred Parker, around 40 players and staff volunteered. They joined the 17th (Service) Battalion of the Middlesex Regiment, which was known as the ‘Football Battalion’ and soon went on to attract players from other clubs.

This photograph depicts several players from the battalion, including Richard McFadden of Orient (seated centre) who was awarded the Military Medal before being mortally wounded during the Battle of the Somme in 1916.

Standing second right is Frank Bullock of Huddersfield Town and England, who survived the war. Edwin Latheron of Blackburn Rovers and England stands second from the left. He was killed in action at Passchendaele in October 1917. 17th (S) Battalion, The Duke of Cambridge’s Own (Middlesex Regiment), 1915”

Remembering is about more than wearing camo.

George

. . . . .

walter tull colour - George Chilvers


walter tull

Hi Phil

I notice that because of the changing responsibilities you haven’t used my picture of the “Football Battalion”, so I’ll send you a couple of others to make up a triptych of football related/WWI related colourisations. These all have a little story – and I hope you’ll forgive the lack of (football) unis per se. If you don’t think they fit into UW, then I really won’t be offended.

The first shows an ad hoc match between officers and men of the Artillery Train in Salonika in Greece on Christmas Day, 1915. On Christmas Day, 1914, on the trench lines of the Western Front British and German soldiers stopped trying to kill each other briefly, and they actually played a “kick about” of football in No Man’s Land. A number of websites use this image to illustrate the story, but as I said this is 1915, and of course no-one had a cellphone on the front line then to snap a picture or selfie of the 1914 “Christmas Day Truce”. I like the fact that in this picture they pretty well all have hats and caps – presumably there was something in King’s Regulations about being in uniform without your cap.

. . . . .

xmastruce-footballbritswin colour - George Chilvers


xmastruce-footballbritswin

The second picture is of Walter Tull in Army uniform, a man who should be more widely known.

He was of mixed race, raised in an orphanage,and became a professional football with Tottenham Hotspur, becoming one of the first black/mixed race players in the Football League. However he was so strongly racially abused in one game he left them, and moved on to Northampton Town. When War came he joined up into the Football Battalion, mentioned in the first picture I sent, and during his military training was promoted three times. In May 1915 he was sent home suffering from PTSD, but in September 1916 returned to the Front, and his courage and abilities led his superiors to recommend him for officer training.

There were at the time regulations forbidding ‘any negro or person of colour’ being commissioned, but despite this he was promoted to lieutenant in 1917, and became the first black officer in the British Army, and the first black officer to lead white men into battle. He was later recommended for the Military Cross (but didn’t receive it) and was killed in action at the Somme on 25 March 1918 trying to help his men retreat. His body was never recovered.

A memorial to him has been erected at Northampton Town’s Sixfield Stadium, and there are many calls for greater recognition of this man who broke down so many walls.

George

. . . . .

Thanks George. Tremendous stuff, as always. Please keep them coming!

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Texans Mock - Contest Reminder

Design Contest Reminder

In case you missed it, I’m hosting a WFL Design Contest. All the rules and instrux are in the link…

…but if you don’t want to click there it’s pretty basic: If the World Football League hadn’t folded in 1975, and the League were still active today, what would the teams’ uniforms look like in 2014? Click the link for more details. Deadline is September 1, and you can send all your submissions to me: Phil.Hecken@gmail.com.

Should be a fun contest, so if you are a concepter or designer, give it a whirl!

OK? OK!

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Uni Watch News Ticker:

Baseball News: This is a new take on the current Marlins logo. Says submitter Travis Martin, “Found this gem outside the office this morning. At least they added a fish?” … Gotta love MiLB Part XXXVII: Albuquerque Isotopes’ Joc Pederson’s Car To Be Given Away Next Friday (via Jonathan Daniel). … Just what Paul will love: MLB will be using purple bats next season (see last paragraph of article), for PTSD awareness in June, 2015 (thanks to Nicholas Roznovsky). … “My friend recently ordered this Mets poster at the Topps online store,” says Eric Wright. “There is a uniform inaccuracy as Darryl Strawberry is wearing a uniform that didn’t debut until the 1988 season.” (This was worn in 1986). … Interesting baseball ‘fashion’ article on Cut4 asks, “Where do you stand on these five pressing baseball fashion debates?”, and includes such things as “High socks vs low cuffs” (get the terminology right! It’s “high cuffs” not “high socks”). Thanks to Chris Flinn and Steve Dodell for that. … Matt Larsen was watching Eight Men Out and noticed some discrepancies: “First of all the White Sox are shown with a striped cap in Cincinnati — contrary to the Dressed To the Nines website which shows Chicago wearing a striped cap only at home, solid on the road. Also, the movie shows the White Sox buttons on the road jersey going all the way down instead of down to the about the navel (I know there’s a name for that type of jersey but can’t recall it).” [I believe those are known as Henley-style shirts — PH] … From Mike Engle (via CJ Fogler), comes this “UW moment of zen”: Eduardo Nunez, incapable of keeping his helmet on, gets homemade tape strap. … Wow! Check out this video on baseball uniform making and fashions: St Louis Cardinal manager Red Schoendienst looking at uniform drawings 1968 (great find from Todd Abramson. … Um…check out the Harrisburg Senators urinal screen. Says submitter Charlie Charnigo, “Just about the coolest logoed thing I have ever seen. Don’t know why more teams don’t do this.” … Matt Ryburn was watching yesterday’s Cubs/Orioles game, and noticed the difference in the coaches hats. “I wonder if one is an original. (The one on the left.)” … Not only have stirrups largely disappeared from MLB, they’ve left the kids game too. Check out this photo of the 1971 Indiana Little League, in old footage from the 1971 LLWS (screen grab by Gary Brackle). … On Saturday evening, Matt Adams was having issues with the STL on his helmet (nice grab by Erik Spoonmore). … Gotta love MiLB Vol 273: the Tri-City Valley Cats have a Saratoga (horse racing) themed jersey (via Dave Plante). … This is pretty bad: “Found on the wall of a Buffalo Wild Wings,” says Patrick Bombard. “Disgraceful.” … Speaking of disgraceful, are these going to be the 9/11 ‘Patriots Day’ caps? (h/t Walter Young). Update: It’s just a false alarm

NFL/CFL News: Hopefully, once the regular season starts, the incidences of biker shorts will decrease. Until then, here’s Tim Masthay flouting a pair (screen shot by Jeff Shirley). … Apparently Colts quarterback Andrew Luck has switched helmets from the regular Riddell Revolution to the Revolution Speed helmet, (from Tony Shiffman). … “Ive been in the market for an authentic Chicago Bears throwback jersey and while shopping, I noticed something peculiar about the jerseys,” says Matt Gray. “They may in fact use two different number fonts for the front of the jersey and the back of the jersey.” This concerns Matt “because of my slight OCD about authenticity but I figured I’d ask for your input since you do write for a website devoted to sports uniforms. (T)here is a difference in the 6 on the front of Jay Cutler’s jersey and the 6 of Roberto Garza’s jersey. Thoughts?” … Rob Holecko documented six instances last season where officials were still wearing the 2006-2012 font, but in yesterday’s San Diego-San Francisco game, the Head Linesman #54, is still wearing it!. This was also spotted by David Wellerstein … Also from yesterday’s 49ers/Chargers game, Jim Harbaugh is still wearing his old Super Bowl cap (from Chris Perrenot). Will Hubert thinks Harbaugh needs to stop living in the past. … The field yard numbers at Sunlife Stadium on Saturday were outlines, says Rick Edelman. He asks, “Is that a pre-season only element?” … Alex Giobbi asks, “Are the Chargers helmet stickers bigger than they were last year?” … The Ottawa Redblacks played the Calgary Stampeders yesterday, wearing their new “alternate” uniforms. There was just one problem: the Redblacks helmets (you know, the plaid ones), weren’t ready. So they wore their regular hats. Here’s what the rest of the uniform looks like.

College/High School Football News: Did you ever want to meet the fan who makes the Mississippi State cowbells? Now you can (thanks to Ryan Perkins). … Jarrod Leder was at TCF Bank Stadium the other day and “I noticed that the Gophers’ jersey font including the numbers has made its way to the scoreboard including the ridiculous serif on the top of the 4. I didn’t get a picture, but here is one from the interwebs. Note the clipped corner in the middle of the 9 and the 5.” … Interesting helmets for Mohigan football in Morgantown (from Coleman Mullins). … “My son plays football for St. Paul High School in Santa Fe Springs, Ca.,” says Michael Crespo. “Their mascot is the Swordsmen and they have a sword decal running down the middle with the player’s number on each side. Do you know of any other schools or teams that have a similar type of helmet with a Sword?” … Rumor around Illini fan circles has been that there is going to be a gray “Galloping Ghost” alternate football jersey for the Nike rebrand, according to Brad Kruizenga. “Well, this just went on sale on Fanatics.com. … Wow! Check out this beautiful 1935 Football Letter Sweater from Eau Claire State Teachers College, now known as UW-Eau Claire. That comes from reader Kurt Vogler, and belonged to his cousin’s grandfather. … Apparently KU will have 3 uniform choices for their season opener — none of which include blue/blue/white (via Dave Hanson). … North Texas has a new helmet; here’s what it looks like without the filter. … Eastern Washington Eagle FB players honored victims of the Oso, WA mudslide with these helmet decals. … In case you missed it, Kent State is honoring fallen teammate Jason Bitsko by wearing “54” (his number) on their helmets. … In Saturday’s EWU Kickoff Game, the EWU quarterback had to remove his visor after referees noticed it was tinted in the 4th quarter (great spot by Coleman Mullins. … The Tulane GreenWave is going to have a float that leads them from Tailgating Village to Yulman Stadium (via Morgan Wittenberg). … The University of Houston honoring Heisman winner Andre Ware with an 11-yard line on their new field (from Chris Rodriguez). … Trés Lawless noticed that Vanderbilt freshman, Trent Sherfield, had a different helmet bumper than usual. Vandy is also expected to unveil a new helmet (and maybe full uniform) for their Thirsday opener against Temple. … Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly has a shelf containing the helmets of the teams he has coached (h/t Andrew Lind), including all of the Shamrock Series helmets, and some at the end for the Cincy Bearcats (where he coached from 2007-09).

Hockey News: In Friday’s ticker were the Alumni jerseys of the St. Louis Blues. “They read Alumni underneath the Bluenote,” notes Jeff Benton. “That was not Paul, but his father Peter Stasney taking the penalty shot in the video. They play charity games around town and even played against a nashville alum team after the March 17th game this past season in Nashville.” … The Edmonton Oilers’ AHL team, the Oklahoma City Barons, unveiled a new third jersey that seems inspired by the Oilers WHA orange/blue combination. “Not only that, but the jersey was tested last year in their ‘Barons Buddies’ auction benefiting Special Olympics Oklahoma,” notes Robert Newton. Pictures of the new alternate jersey along with the WHL jersey can be found here. A link to last year’s charity auction jersey is here. … Here is a new goalie mask for Andrew Hammond of the Ottawa Senators (from Jason Perrier).

Soccer News: Bit of a “mixing” of sponsor logos with Man U: Scott R. Jamison “thought it a bit odd” that Manchester United players were sporting the Chevrolet logo on their jerseys, but the coaching staff were sporting Aon logos. … More on Man U from Laurence Holland, who writes, “Manchester United wore their new away kit for the first time in league action against Sunderland yesterday. It looks as though Nike badly misestimated where they needed to leave a gap in the red sleeve stripe in order to accommodate the EPL patch, which is worn on both sleeves. So the patch touches the stripe below it and leaves an awkward space above it. It was consistent on all the United players’ shirts (cf. Van Persie and Cleverley) So it’s not a one-off misplacement of the patch.”

NBA/College Hoops/WNBA News: There is now a new Louisville Cardinal bird logo on floor of Yum Center (thanks to Alex Davis). … This Kentucky hoops photo op shows tremendous font inconsistencies (h/t Brandon Owen), especially the 1, 4 and 2. More evidence here (via Tyler Thompson). … There is a new basketball court in Tulane’s Devlin Fieldhouse (via Andrew Lemoine). … In Saturday’s game between the Indiana Fever and the Washington Mystics, Layshia Clarendon of the Fever wore a #98 jersey with no name instead of her usual #5. Apparently she forgot to pack the jersey for the trip to Washington. As #98, and her usual #5 (sent in by Kevin Brown). … Will new Cavalier Kevin Love be wearing “0” in Cleveland, or is that just a placeholder? (h/t Will Lombard).

Grab Bag: New university UT-Rio Grande Valley has narrowed its search for a new mascot down to the final ten contenders (thanks to Cort McMurray). … Here’s an interesting infographic on the Word Counts of Famous Books (sent in by Anthony Nuccio). … Want to break in your new cap? Wear it in the shower (thanks, Brinke). … Ouch. A $200 bottle of Johnnie Walker says “Holiday’s” (thanks to Chris Flinn). … Stripes, stripes baby! In the 1991/92 and 1992/93 seasons, English Division Two team Brighton and Hove Albion wore a strip which featured blue and white striped shirt AND shorts (great find by Graham Clayton). … Pacific Rim Correspondent Jeremy Brahm was watching the Japan vs. Belgium match from the World Grand Prix Finals and a Belgian player got substituted into the match, without a name on her jersey. Ilka Van De Vijver, and #20 was her registered number for the tournament. The rest of her teammates had their names. … A hand bag manufacturer is making bags out of the Baggie wall from the old metrodome (from Patrick O’Neill). … Looks like the big, bad Red Sox will be heading to court over a hockey team who wants top use the name “Stinky Socks” (thanks to Richard Stover).

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And that’s going to do it for today. Looking forward to that College Football Preview, so make sure you check back here as I’ll post a link to it as soon as it goes live. There’s a LOT of news, new uniforms, fields, helmets, etc., so you won’t want to miss this one! Big thanks to George for the wonderful colorizations — make sure you guys let him know how great those are!

Everyone have a great Monday (or as good a Monday as you can have) and I’ll catch you all tomorrow.

Follow me on Twitter @PhilHecken.

Peace.

.. … ..

“Nobody should ever throwback to 1994. No, not ever.*

*Exception: if the Nats make the World Series, they need to wear ’94 Expos unis for at least one game.”

–Jim Vilk

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Comments (62)

    that Marlins logo looks like someone wrote a bit of fan fiction and wanted to see a bit of fish on fish action

    A BIG thanks to all the Uni-Watchers who voted for my Quicken Loans paint scheme. I really appreciate it!

    The Cubs sleeve piping seems to be a little inaccurate as the 1994 version has a thicker white stripe while the throwbacks feature two equal stripes.

    For the third straight throwback, the cut of the sleeves for the Cubs is wrong.

    For the 1969 throwback, the Cubs used raglan sleeves and should have had set-in sleeves…for the 1978 and yesterday, they had set-in and should have had raglan. Obviously majestic can easily make either cut…so why screw it up 3 straight times?

    That is a quote from Steve D made in the comments following the last Cubs throwback. Well, you can now make that four straight throwbacks where the cut of the sleeves for the Cubs is wrong.

    The Nats should never wear Montreal Expos uniforms. The District of Columbia took out a $600 million mortgage so there would be a team wearing Washington uniforms.

    One game, one time, just to tell the ’94 Expos, “You (kinda) finally made it to the Series.” It can be a road game if that will make you happier.

    I know assuming the Expos would be in the Series is a wee bit presumptuous, but 1) they had the best record in baseball when the strike began, so without a Series that year they should be considered ’94 champs, and 2) it’s the least MLB could do to say sorry and the Nats could do to say thanks. The Nats would probably still be the Expos if they hadn’t been screwed over twice by work stoppages.

    The Cavs website lists Kevin Love as #0, and several other players simply don’t have a number listed. That pretty much indicates to me that he’ll be wearing #0.

    Maybe he’s a tennis fan?

    The tennis reference is the first thing I thought when I saw that piece of news. It’s a little too cute for me.

    Actually, I’d forgotten that until you brought it up. Nate Thurmond wasn’t a Cav for long, but his was the first number retired by the franchise.

    ESPN shows two Cavs with 22 and three guys with 33, but those guys have no number on the actual team site.

    The script on the 1994 Orioles is better than the one they use now. The “O” on the new uniforms is overdone, while the old one looks more like the one from the Brooks Robinson era.

    As a Manchester United supporter, I must point out that the blue kit worn yesterday at Sunderland is our third strip.

    Our primary change kit is white, but we couldn’t wear it since the Black Cats wear red & white stripes. We’ll also wear it at Stoke City and Arsenal.

    And by “this comment” I mean the one directly above which I apparently forgot to hit the reply button on.

    While Chevrolet is the primary shirt sponsor, Aon is the sponsor of the training/technical gear of Manchester United.

    And it’s not that weird for the on-field sponsor to be different from the touchline sponsor.

    Liverpool’s game jerseys are sponsored by Standard Chartered but link.

    I almost commented on this when I saw a picture of Rooney & Carrick side-by-side wearing the different shirts during the preseason. I thought perhaps Carrick had been wearing last season’s training shirt. But before I goofed an asked the question, I did some digging, and it turns out, as “random reader” noted, that Aon signed a deal with the club that took effect July 1, 2013 that renamed the training complex after the sponsor and placed their logo on training shirts. The deal is in place for 8 years and will net the club nearly $30m per season.

    Which means, between the Aon & Chevy sponsorships and the new kit-making contract with adidas, in 2015-16, United will take in a staggering $240m from those deals alone.

    And Aon is basically taking the training wear sponsorship from DHL – Manchester United link figuring it could negotiate a better deal (DHL is still MUFC’s “logistics partner”, lest you lose sleep over the dissolution of the relationship).

    Anyway, it’s kinda amazing how little local fans matter to big clubs now.

    Most notable thing about the Red Schoendienst video is that the drawings show the birds on the bat paired with vests and red sleeves. Thankfully that never came to fruition.

    The best player on that 1971 Gary Indiana LLWS team was future major leaguer and current Mariner’s manager Lloyd McClendon. During that LLWS he homered in FIVE straight at-bats. He was intentionally walked in EVERY other plate appearance.

    On the way to work I always pass the Davidoff of Geneva Cigar Store, and each time I see the Camacho Cigars logo, I think how it would look on the front of the Chicago Cubs road uniform.

    Is there a hidden tribute to the time the Orioles actually played a home and home against the Cuban nationals? I seriously doubt it, but it’s probably the coolest thing about seeing the Cubs’ “Cuba” jerseys. Might as well do a comprehensive throwback program, but completely forgettable.

    “Hopefully, once the regular season starts, the incidences of biker shorts will decrease. Until then, here’s Tim Masthay flouting a pair”

    I think you mean “flaunting a pair”. He may be flouting a rule, but not the pants.

    Does Brian Kelly’s helmet collection include any Central Michigan helmets? It’s hard to tell, but I couldn’t notice them in the photo. He coached at CMU from 2004-2006.

    I believe it does. His collection starts with his own playing helmet (Assumption College, IIRC). It might extend beyond the shelf shown in the photograph.

    Hey, those Chilvers colourisations are out of this world. The picture of the Tommies playing soccer is funny and poignant both. Thank you, George.

    PS Today is the anniversary of the liberation of Paris in 1945. I very much recommend a visit to link for some great visuals (including newsreel footage). The photo of DeGaulle and LeClerc is a classic.

    The ticker seems to be mixing up Patriots’ Day with Patriot Day. The former’s the Boston Marathon, the latter’s September 11.

    Just my 2 cents, but the uniform the Cubs wore yesterday (and they looked great from the stands, btw – except for Rizzo who went low-cuffed), was the only one that was unique during the decade. I’d have chosen that style to wear as well. In my opinion, the Cubs probably wanted to have the unis be unique and since the ’94 unis had the anniversary patch, they went with that. Lot of valid reasons for them to choose that year. Who cares about the strike? It really shouldn’t have been included in the discussions about the uni choice.

    As for them wearing the blue softball jersey – they’ve already worn a road jersey at home during this promotion (the ’78 blue pins)….maybe they didn’t want to do that again.

    Baseball design question:

    Both Cubs and Orioles jerseys from yesterday featured elastic cuffs which are sewn onto the bottom of the sleeve. While this feature was standard during the double knit era, its since faded from use. Today only the Phillies, Yankees, and White Sox utilize this cuff type. Some teams like the Brewers and Blue Jays replicate this look but with striping sewn on the outside of the sleeve.

    Is it a comfort issue or fashion issue? More billowy sleeves would seem to line up with roomier modern uniforms. Also the non-elastic cuffs would give players greater freedom of movement.

    Any thoughts on the matter?

    Good question! When I broke in as a uni-watcher (mid ’70s) I accepted the elastic trim as an article of faith, and soutache trim sightings were rare, indeed. No team in pullovers used soutache on the outer seams of the pants or near the ends of the sleeves, the only places where it would have made sense. To my eyes, it seems strictly a fashion issue. Color and decoration have migrated from the players’ extremities to the torso.

    Do contributors of inconsistencies ever think about why there may be a problem?

    Example is the Cubs photo with two seemingly different colored caps. One is in the sun and the other is not. Pretty simple. I agree there is a slight difference in colors over the years most likely from the cotton to polyester switch.

    Another, not really inconsistency, is the Johnnie Walker etching. That was an empty bottle. Walker does promotions all the time for etched bottles. I’m sure they just etch whatever the person types or writes (maybe it’s an inside joke but likely not). They don’t care. It is not like this was a whole line of bottles with grammatical errors.

    h/t Bleacher Report:

    A banner is already hanging in downtown Cleveland with a pretty nifty “LOVE” wordmark:

    link

    The Richmond Flying Squirrels have an Eastern League opponent’s logo in each of the urinals of all the men’s rooms… For Akron, it’s still the Aeros, not the RubberDucks, so you have to figure they’ve been there awhile!

    I have two Cuba jerseys. I think they’re retail authentics; can’t find matching photos online anywhere (didn’t dig too hard either). Bought them at the hotel gift shop I stayed at in Santa Maria Cuba.

    Perhaps they decided to throw back to ’94 because that was the first time since 1908 they could say no other team won more World Series titles than them for that season.

    Chelsea players to wear black armbands in tribute to Richard Attenborough. The actor and film director was a lifelong supporter and a former director at Chelsea and helped the club to stay at Stamford Bridge in the 1980s when the stadium was a target for property developers who had bought shares at the club.

    link

    Re: the Johnnie Walker pic. Where’d that come from? The Green Label has been discontinued and is much better than any of their other products – even the $200 Blue Label that someone gave me a few years back.

    That’s not a green bottle, it’s a pale blue bottle which is what JW Blue comes in. Due to it being empty (and a gift, I guess), my assumption is the owner’s keeping it around for bragging rights. Which, if you’re going to invest that kind of money on a vatted malt, you’re far far better off going with a Taketsuru 17 or, better yet, 21 y/o.

    As for JW Green, I never got the love lots of people gave it. I always found it pretty unremarkable, especially given the quality and distinctiveness of some of the malt whiskys featured most prominently in it. That people are paying $100 and up to procure a bottle of it nowadays is downright laughable to me.

    As much Johnnie black and red as I drank (in a past life), I never had the pleasure of sampling a JW blue. Was going to get a bottle to celebrate my (now ex) wife becoming a VP in her company. She got the promotion, but we never did get the JW blue…

    Clarification: the middle is defintely the Blue which, the inscription aside, looks like a more full version of the one in my cabinet. The box to the left looks to be for JW Green. I like that one as it’s a good deal more stout than the other JWs, past a Balvenie but not as far as a Laphroaig.

    Also, NOB on the Ted Williams jersey. Not sure what year the Sox went NOB on their roads, but I’m pretty sure it wasn’t during the Splinter’s time. It’s also the wrong font (Sawks used, and still use, the McAuliffe font). That’s just a standard block.

    The Red Sox started putting NOB on the road in 1990, when they went back to two layers and their usual McAuliffe font on the road. In the ’80s they had a plain single-layer varsity block number font on the road. It was so plain that it made their spiffy sock design stand out that much more.

    Blues held Paul Stastny introduction press conference at his old St. Louis area high school Chaminade and had him wear the Senator knockoffs they wore:

    link

    link

    I feel like I read something about new Blues jerseys on here within the past few weeks, but the Google Custom Search is pretty horrendous, so I’ll post the link from today’s official unveiling.

    link

    Definitely an improvement over what they’d worn since ’07-08, but otherwise pretty similar to the version worn prior to that. And I’m in the camp of white > color for home games.

    I think that road white is excellent. It may look like their pre edge look at first glance, but they’ve eliminated navy from their socks, and broadened up the light blue and yellow sock and sleeve striping. The crest,lettering/numbering look perfectly sized. The navy doesn’t even come across as offensive. Best of all there’s no more RBK.

    It would be easy to get fixed on hating the navy, which really needs to go (ala the Islanders and Oilers), but it’s still a great looking uniform.

    Growing up in SoCal~ Whittier is basically next door to Sante Fe Springs ( we/La Serna were in the same league as the other school in that city Sante Fe high ) and everyone has always admired St.Paul’s sword helmets ~the best part being that they’ve been that way forever. ..lool

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