Kepner: MLB is making another fashion flop with new uniforms

Twenty years ago, after taking the lead in a crucial playoff game for the Minnesota Twins, Juan Rincón described the feeling with a baseball malaprop of all time: “Nobody wants to get in my pants right now.”

These days, it seems like no one wants to wear baseball pants. Major Leaguers reported during spring training this week that they can no longer adjust their pants and that their new style of jerseys – designed by Nike, manufactured by Fanatics – do not meet big league standards.

If The Athletics Stephen J. Nesbitt wrote that league players “criticized the jerseys' poor fit, cheap appearance, inconsistent quality, and small lettering.”

Sigh. Major League Baseball can't do anything about it, and it's getting worse.

In 2019, they organized one for the spooky 'Players Weekend' all white versus all black uniform series that evoked “Spy vs. Spy” from the old Mad Magazine. The following year, as part of a ten-year deal with Nike worth more than $1 billionthey had Nike put its logo on the front of each shirt.

Then came the 'City Connect' kits, in case you ever wondered what your favorite player would look like as a blueberry, a cloud or a license plate. The All-Star game, always one cavalcade of colors with players wearing their regular uniforms became a three-hour advertisement for generic Nike jerseys.

Now this.

Baseball's relationship with Nike is similar to the “Seinfeld” episode where George tries to be friends with Elaine's cool boyfriend. He wears his hat backwards and goes rock climbing, unable to hide his crush. He desperately wants to be a guy, but he's still a Costanza.

That doesn't mean baseball has to be stuffy. Last season's rule changes have made the product more dynamic and attractive. Numerous other initiatives – the annual Little League Classic, the DREAM Series, the “MLB The Show” video game and the comprehensive, easy-to-use MLB app – are also helping to grow the game.

But baseball doesn't seem to understand its own visual appeal. Let the other leagues make their jerseys cheaper with ads. Baseball should be above that, but the latest collective bargaining agreement allows teams to sell advertising space on uniforms. So now the Atlanta Braves are wearing a sleeve patch depicting a yellow bag of concrete mix, the Toronto Blue Jays are coming at you with a neon green square in front of a bench, and the Houston Astros have a gaudy patch for Oxy – the energy producernot the medicine.

Then Rob Manfred became commissioner in 2015, he said he had no interest in allowing advertisements on jerseys. That changed, of course, and Manfred was at least honest about the turnaround in 2022: “It is a revenue source that is so big that it is really impossible for a sport to ignore in the long term. I think that's the truth.”

Of course it's a business. But just because you can make money selling something doesn't mean you should. Several teams will not sell the naming rights to their ballparks because continuity and tradition are more valuable. It's still Dodger Stadium, not Guggenheim Field. It's still Yankee Stadium, not Starr Insurance Park.

Manfred's approach to the All-Star uniforms reflected the belief that Nike can do no wrong.

“I never thought that a baseball team wearing different jerseys during a game would be a particularly attractive look for us,” he said in 2022. “I understand people may have different views on that subject, but it's part of a larger program designed to market the game in a non-traditional way.”

Fine, but why would you obscure the identity of your players? The All-Star Game is supposed to be a showcase, and a regular-season uniform provides an easy clue: “Oh yeah, he's that guy from the Marlins who's doing so well…” If everyone looks the same, you miss that connection.

Manfred reiterated his confidence in Nike during the Grapefruit League media day on Thursday.

“I think you know in baseball with any new initiative there's going to be negative feedback. First and most importantly, these are Nike jerseys,” said Manfred. “We have entered into this partnership with Nike. Who they are and what kind of products they produce, everything they've done for us so far has been absolutely 100 percent successful across the board.

“The jerseys are different. They are designed as performance clothing, as opposed to what is traditionally worn. So they will be different. But they have been tested more extensively than any jersey in any sport. Feedback from last year's All-Star Game was unanimously positive from the players. I think if people wear them for a while they will become very popular.”

The 2024 uniforms feature a significantly smaller font for the player's name. Of course, this will only make it harder to know who we're looking at. How is that possibly a good thing?

“Look at the last names, buddy,” Angels reliever Carlos Estévez said. 'I'm 6 feet tall. This seems small to me.”

Last year vs. this year's replica jersey offering from the fine folks at MLB, Nike & Fanatics. Last year on the left and this year on the right.

I have a lot to say, so bear with me.

Let's rip the band-aid off right away with this year's new jersey offering pic.twitter.com/3IShhlj0nL

— Bobby Mullins (@TheBobbyMullins) February 11, 2024

Hey, maybe the players — many of whom have Nike sponsorship deals — will change their minds once they play a few games. Maybe over time the jerseys won't look like the replica you buy if you're trying to save money but still want to look somewhat authentic.

But the underlying concept remains. Baseball, led by Nike, is trying to force all these stylistic changes instead of just letting them happen organically. Think about the uniform trends of the past decades, and how they reflected the times:

In the 1970s, color televisions made for bright, flashy uniforms. By the late 1980s and early 1990s, things were more conservative: button-down sweaters, belts, white at home, gray on the road, a nostalgic turn that was also reflected in the retro wave.

Four expansion teams joined the MLB in the 1990s, and two, the Florida Marlins and Arizona Diamondbacks, would soon win a World Series while wearing sleeveless jerseys in Game 7. All expansion teams wore black – with a combination of purple and/ or green-blue. – and black became the popular color, adopted by the Mets, Blue Jays, Royals, A's and others.

In the 2010s, teams increasingly opted for alternate jerseys, which often became their de facto primary look. Four straight seasons ended with the World Series winner wearing a colored jersey: the 2016 Cubs, the 2017 Astros, the 2018 Red Sox and the 2019 Nationals.

Fortunately the pants were still white or gray. Then City Connect came along and now we see the White Sox, Pirates, Mariners, Reds, Rangers and Orioles in black pants. The Astros and Cubs have all-navy blue outfits and the Diamondbacks sometimes wear all-yellow. We're returning to the worst of the 70s.

Some teams have made sharp updates to classic looks. Over the past decade, the Orioles, Brewers, Blue Jays, Padres, Astros and Rangers have streamlined the vintage styles of their glory years, honoring their traditions in a fashion-forward way.

But when competition gets involved, it's too much, too fast – an assault on the eyes for a sport that can and should be a visual delight.

(Top photo of Giants pitcher Juan Sanchez: AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin)