Saturday Open Thread

what in the hell does he carry around in there?

Craig Biggio was wearing his Sunshine Kids pin during the exhibition game with the Royals at Minute Maid last night. This means one of two things. Either Biggio did the right thing by ignoring the “ruling” from MLB or MLB did the right thing by allowing Biggio to wear the pin except during regular season games.

I havent found a photo yet, but am still looking

It looks like it’s hammer time for Manny! Geeze!

link

Didn’t we just have some article talking about how Manny likes to take other peoples stuff when he needs a jump in his game?

I will just assume he decided to swipe Big Papi’s pants for the game…

I know everyone’s concentrating on Manny’s pants, but he is also wearing football cleats.

Here’s a link to the cleats: link

I think the best part it the description: “Vaporize the competition with Nike’s lightest shoe to hit the field. The Vapor Jet TD football shoe is a high performance shoe for elite speed players to use on natural and artificial grass surfaces.”

Uh, Manny? Elite speed player? Get these shoes to Jose Reyes and give Manny his baseball cleats back.

[quote comment=”64901″]Uh, Manny? Elite speed player? Get these shoes to Jose Reyes and give Manny his baseball cleats back.[/quote]

Quite the opposite–Manny needs every iota of speed visuals he can muster, even imaginary, a la Bob Uecker’s self-professed trick of knocking his cap off while baserunning or pursuing a fly ball.

I just bought my son stirrups for little league. Cant wait to show them off when the season begins.

What’s the name of the partly blind pitcher that wears his cap crooked? I need his name and can’t come up with it for the life of me.

I probably missed the boat on this long ago, but when did Kobe start wearing #24?

[quote comment=”64921″]Abe Alvarez?[/quote]
yeh that’s him

Hi

I know there is a big campaigne on here for the Mets to “ditch the black” ,and beleave me no one loves to see the Mets in pinstipes ,blue caps more than me, and we should be wearing blue at least 80% of the time ,but black caps etc is as much a part of New York’s baseball history as the blue with the Giants wearing the black caps , so is it really that important to lose the black totally, I would personally be happy to see the black stay in the colour scheme ,as long as we wear blue 80% of the time at home and 50% of the time on the road ,I cant remember the last time I saw the team wear blue caps and undershirts on the road ,must have been pre98 I guess, but one good thing ,at least the team has kept the same unis for 10 years now ,after the constant tinkering of the unis in the 90s , who remembers the 93 and 94 unis where the team changed the Mets script with a underline tail. ,by my count the Mets had 6 differant styles of pinstipe jerseys in the 90s ,and 2 differant snow white styles.

cheers
Les

hi

Smells of a Adidas counterstrike to me , Nike have been chasing the Germany contract recently which has been Adidas since forever and would be a major embarrisment if Adidas lost it , so I can see this as being a move in which if Nike back off Germany, Adidas will back off Brasil.

Les

[quote comment=”64884″]i gotta be honest, if i played in the pros, i’d porbably have my pants that baggy as well. I mean, baseball pants arent the most comfortable things in the world, and when you have to wear them everyday, you wanna be comfortable. Its like a big pair of functioning sweatpants…. it also seems like chewin tobacco (not dip) in his back pocket.[/quote]

I have to agree with you. I’d probably opt for comfort too, especially since if I was making 15 million bones a year.

That’s the one thing that bothered me about having the pants up when I played. It was just too much maintenance. Then you have to find pants that are short with wide enough openings to raise the pants up to your knees. It’s a preference thing, and I don’t think ALL players should go high. Big guys just don’t look right. I’ve also been opposed to wearing mid-high spikes with high pants. Gotta go with the low tops.

My biggest pet peeve about socks in the major leagues is just the lack of uniformity. It surprises me because of the strict regulations the league has on uniforms. You can in any game see a combination of low pants, high solid color socks, high stirrups, and the fake stirrups that Maddux and Smoltz prefer. The inconsistency bothers me

[quote comment=”64901″]I know everyone’s concentrating on Manny’s pants, but he is also wearing football cleats.

Here’s a link to the cleats: link

I think the best part it the description: “Vaporize the competition with Nike’s lightest shoe to hit the field. The Vapor Jet TD football shoe is a high performance shoe for elite speed players to use on natural and artificial grass surfaces.”

Uh, Manny? Elite speed player? Get these shoes to Jose Reyes and give Manny his baseball cleats back.[/quote]

Clearly Manny is just trying to offset the wind resistance created by his MC Hammer-pants.

Cruyff rocked the link.

CBF is a gold digger, nothing like DFB loyalty to fellow Adidas so it’s just a question of $$$ if Adi has any spare bucks left from last year RBK and NBA buyout. Puma takeover is a joke, more focused on how to rip off more 1/3 world countries so they can afford Italy for one more WC campain in their lousy 10 min soaked jerseys. + don’t underestimate the historical link between Adidas, IOC and FIFA (Brasil Havelange, German Swiss Blatter, etc), wich works more like a secret society.

Great column yesterday. There was a question in the comments regarding the A’s white shoes. Until they moved west, the A’s were my favorite team. I remember this link cover. Dig the stirrups? How ’bout the green laces in the shoes?

Found a story about the Reds possibly going to a “fake” stitching. They are using it for jerseys that fans can have customized on the spot, but the story says “the Reds plan to use it for players”. Yikes!

link

And one more thing…

That comment about the “Ditch the Black” campaign reminded me about the state of the Ditch the Black website. It still shows an error message.

I was just wondering what the situation is with that.

Interesting article about UNH switching to Nike, on the flip-side a number of University of Southern California students have created a group in hopes of riding the the university of its ties with Nike. Citing unfair labor practices in Nike factories. Article here:

link

Good idea, I have some doubt that it will cause any widespread changes.

in response to number 35, i know this is high school, but at my hs we had a hall of fame kind of thing that they would put the all state and all area players pictures on. one of the players in the early 90’s had 12 on the front of his jersey, and 15 on the sleeves. it was really weird, but nobody seemed to have an explanation of it.

[quote comment=”64976″]When I awoke it made me wonder if any players have ever gone on the field with a number on the sleeve that did not match the number on his chest or back. Does anyone know?[/quote]

growing up in st louis, i only got to see football cardinal home games in the preseason due to blackout rules in the regular season. there was a time or two where i would see the cheap ass maroon jersey/white iron on number on some scrub where the poor sap would have different numbers on his arms versus his chest and back. seems like it was just a case of transposed numbers like 89/98, something like that. i only saw it once or twice. my guess is that it was some kid who was invited to camp a day or so before the game and the equipment manager just threw something together.

Bluffton University link yesterday. The article shows the five memorialized jersey number banners in the outfield, five crosses along the fence, and the black jerseys they’re wearing this year.

Does anyone have the link to the normal world vs Nikeworld article?

So it’s official, the Final Four floor is infinitely better than the floors used in the Elite 8. Light floor, lighter wood contrast inside the 3 point line, same darker wood in the lane, green by the free throw lines, black fading into green along the sidelines. Great Final Four writing under the baskets, and the Final Four logo at midcourt. Nice!

Sorry for the Triple post but link it is. I should do my research before I comment.

I just got the new issue of ESPN the Magazine, with Ryan Howard link. Two things struck me:

1) I love how his helmet is absolutely pristine. In a day and age where everybody’s link looks like link, Howard’s polished red helmet was nice to see. (Of course, the pine-tar thing was OK when link did it, but most guys just look like link now.

2) Howard’s name is on his bat, but there’s no trademark. Did ESPN airbrush it off? I can’t imagine why, because as the logo haters will point out, there are Majestic and Under Armour logos visible in the pic. I guess the trademark could be on the other side, but I’ve never seen a bat stamped that way (other than in the late ’80s, when some Louisville Sluggers had “LOUISVILLE” stamped on the underside).

Trot Nixon was wearing #33 during Spring Training for the Indians, but he is wearing #70 in the Civil Rights game tonight.

I’m sitting here flipping back and forth between my Ohio St Buckeyes and my Cleveland Indians, and I can’t help but think the jerseys in the Civil Rights Game look familiar. They seem to remind of the generic uniforms that you would find in the old baseball game from the original Nintendo, before they licenced games with MLB. St Louis’ uniforms really remind me of this with the very plain uniform design and stupid hat logo.

And on a side note, I caught a glimps of a St Louis batboy and he was wearing a Memphis Cardinals uniform and a batting helmet with a full face guard. Is this something new MLB is implementing this year for batboys or is this just a case of someone trying to be a little too safe?

re: the Final Four court. I think the floors have looked good throughout the tournament. I do wonder why they made them all look the same this year. I don’t remember that being the case in the past, although I could be wrong.
Again, the court today looks great, with one exception. The have the scorer’s table there, which in the past has had the normal mesage board type display (light up, but not electronic). It’s now electronic, with only the names of the two schools participating instead of all four in the Final Four, amongst other changes. That, by itself, looks great. However, with the black surrounding the court, there is a big reflection, and you can hardly see the “NCAA” that’s written on the court. It’s a little disconcerting with the NCAA logo (times 2), “Ohio State” “Final Four”, and “Georgetown” all showing clearly, but upside down.

[quote comment=”65050″]I just got the new issue of ESPN the Magazine, with Ryan Howard link. Two things struck me:

1) I love how his helmet is absolutely pristine. In a day and age where everybody’s link looks like link, Howard’s polished red helmet was nice to see. (Of course, the pine-tar thing was OK when link did it, but most guys just look like link now.

2) Howard’s name is on his bat, but there’s no trademark. Did ESPN airbrush it off? I can’t imagine why, because as the logo haters will point out, there are Majestic and Under Armour logos visible in the pic. I guess the trademark could be on the other side, but I’ve never seen a bat stamped that way (other than in the late ’80s, when some Louisville Sluggers had “LOUISVILLE” stamped on the underside).[/quote]

What about current players having pinetar on their helmets make them look less classy then when old school guys did it??? No difference at all. You’re just being picky.

can we please see some more UCLA cheerleaders? thanks.

Chris, I have been thinking the same thing about UCLA’s uniforms. It seems like in year’s past, they wore either shiner uniforms or a lighter shade of blue.

Does anyone know if Florida wins, will Ohio State wear a red System of Dress, or their red uniforms they wore all year? I was just thinking about how we’ve only seen them in their whites, and the only team we saw 2 Systems of Dress from was the Syracuse Complainers.

Here is a photo from the UCLA Florida game.

That looks like the normal UCLA blue to me. Like I said before the fact that it looks darker is probably just due to the way CBS is broadcasting the game.

[quote comment=”65050″]I just got the new issue of ESPN the Magazine, with Ryan Howard link. Two things struck me:

1) I love how his helmet is absolutely pristine. In a day and age where everybody’s link looks like link, Howard’s polished red helmet was nice to see. (Of course, the pine-tar thing was OK when link did it, but most guys just look like link now.

2) Howard’s name is on his bat, but there’s no trademark. Did ESPN airbrush it off? I can’t imagine why, because as the logo haters will point out, there are Majestic and Under Armour logos visible in the pic. I guess the trademark could be on the other side, but I’ve never seen a bat stamped that way (other than in the late ’80s, when some Louisville Sluggers had “LOUISVILLE” stamped on the underside).[/quote]

(For #2) It seems that there is some writing in the glare on the bat. If you look close enough at the picture, there is some gold under Howard’s name, but it is impossible to make out with the way ESPN has the lighting in that photo. Intentional?

what was the link where you could design cutom baseball and football jerseys on nike? it was posted here a while back

[quote comment=”65086″][quote comment=”65084″][quote comment=”65072″][quote comment=”65050″]I just got the new issue of ESPN the Magazine, with Ryan Howard link. Two things struck me:

1) I love how his helmet is absolutely pristine. In a day and age where everybody’s link looks like link, Howard’s polished red helmet was nice to see. (Of course, the pine-tar thing was OK when link did it, but most guys just look like link now.

2) Howard’s name is on his bat, but there’s no trademark. Did ESPN airbrush it off? I can’t imagine why, because as the logo haters will point out, there are Majestic and Under Armour logos visible in the pic. I guess the trademark could be on the other side, but I’ve never seen a bat stamped that way (other than in the late ’80s, when some Louisville Sluggers had “LOUISVILLE” stamped on the underside).[/quote]

What about current players having pinetar on their helmets make them look less classy then when old school guys did it??? No difference at all. You’re just being picky.[/quote]

Sure I’m being picky. That’s the point of this blog. I could have made my point clearer, though. Basically, I’d rather see a shiny new helmet than one smeared with pine tar (especially obscuring the team logo). I’m willing to turn a blind eye to George Brett doing it, because he was George Brett (I’m a Royals fan and therefore 100% biased). It seems to me that there’s more players doing it today, and it’s a trend I’m not particularly crazy about. (One of many.)[/quote]
So then it’s OK for me, as a Red Sox fan, to say I’m fine with Manny’s pants but hate how Eric Gagne’s pants look?[/quote]

Yes. Then, if Gagne gets traded to Boston tomorrow, his pants will look good and Ronnie Belliard’s pants will suck. And so on.

CIVIL RIGHTS GAME UNIS

These were pathetic efforts by both teams – particularly the Cards. The fonts were way too modern and basic, and I have seen much better throwback efforts from even AA teams.

The Cleveland Buckeyes and St. Louis Stars wore much more stylish and detailed unis, on their worst day.

If you are gonna make such a big deal about having a “Civil Rights” game, then go to a reputable uniform manufacterer and get some decent unis made. Otherwise, just play in your regular unis and honor the day with posters, etc.

As I understand it, there are actually rental companies that rent throwback and/or Negroe League uniforms to minor league teams during the regular season for their respective throwback games, saving the teams the cost of making their own. They would have every conceivable size. with about 100 sets of each throwback/Negroe League team, and the minor league team and coaches would then dress out in the rental unis, and after the game the company would move on and use the same unis next week in another city. That would be much better than the CHEAPY EFFORT seen by MLB today.

I do believe that’s a lot of “I do believe”s. :D

a takeover of Puma by adidas would be “keeping it in the family.” Puma was founded by Adi’s brother, Rudolf Dassler, and is still a German company (albeit the #2).

Manny’s shoes were mentioned at the start of spring training. They have the regular football plate on them. I also recall Ortiz wearing Nike football cleats (maybe the Blade?). Which football players wear baseball cleats/plates? I’ve never seen that except in HS.

[quote comment=”65078″]Chris, I have been thinking the same thing about UCLA’s uniforms. It seems like in year’s past, they wore either shiner uniforms or a lighter shade of blue.

Does anyone know if Florida wins, will Ohio State wear a red System of Dress, or their red uniforms they wore all year? I was just thinking about how we’ve only seen them in their whites, and the only team we saw 2 Systems of Dress from was the Syracuse Complainers.[/quote]

UofA wore a white and a blue one. Two losses. thanks for reminding me.

i generally buy NB a half size up because of that.

[quote comment=”64893″]From the “Drat!” department, the St. Louis Cardinals have apparently rescinded their “dress code” for minor-leaguers in their system. Cards’ farmhands used to have to link of their stirrup socks; but sadly, this is link.

Sigh…[/quote]

Those of you who get the Bloomberg financial magazine need to check out last month’s issue. There’s a story about the Cardinals’ development camp in the Dominican Republic, and all the players have their pant legs pulled up like the dress code used to have it. (The stirrups are those fake drawn-on ones, though.)

Minna, walk in them…they’ll probably wear in…

Oh, and the System of Dress unis have been mothballed by the Gators for a while know. Local retail places that stock them sold out their initial stock, but they’ve been moving slowly since everyone figured out that they weren’t being worn. I do like the black ones though. Maybe they’ll re-launch them for next season (which would be nice since they wouldn’t be saddled with generic Nike-world unis).

BTW, did anyone catch the “skills contest” on ESPN this afternoon (which was held the other day?). The guy from ‘Cuse was walking next to one of Oregon’s 6 foot guards, and even with the 6″ height difference, the hem of their shorts were the same distance from the floor. weird image.

[quote comment=”65118″]#81

I just got one of the new 5950’s (ATL) and if you dont like them looking like a box on your head do what the pros do and wear your hat in the shower and it will mold to your head instantly.[/quote]

Nice, thanks for the suggestion.

I just got one of the new 5950’s (ATL) and if you dont like them looking like a box on your head do what the pros do and wear your hat in the shower and it will mold to your head instantly.

Good tip butI Thought the new hats where not serpose to shrink ,so I thought molding them would be impossable now. Also how do the sizes run giving are they the same as the old wool cap?

Les

[quote comment=”64952″][quote comment=”64884″]i gotta be honest, if i played in the pros, i’d porbably have my pants that baggy as well. I mean, baseball pants arent the most comfortable things in the world, and when you have to wear them everyday, you wanna be comfortable. Its like a big pair of functioning sweatpants…. it also seems like chewin tobacco (not dip) in his back pocket.[/quote]

I have to agree with you. I’d probably opt for comfort too, especially since if I was making 15 million bones a year.

That’s the one thing that bothered me about having the pants up when I played. It was just too much maintenance. Then you have to find pants that are short with wide enough openings to raise the pants up to your knees. It’s a preference thing, and I don’t think ALL players should go high. Big guys just don’t look right. I’ve also been opposed to wearing mid-high spikes with high pants. Gotta go with the low tops.
[/quote]

Can’t let you discriminate against the big guys! I’m 6’7″ 230… I did a fantasy camp a few years back, and I insisted on going the high socks route. I love the way the pics came out, even if theye were full blue socks, and not stirrups.

Frankly, I think the “shorter” pants negate some of my height, and make it less obvious that I’m a head and a half taller than everyone else on the team.