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Uni Watch Profiles: Jay Kaplan

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For most of the baseball world, Dock Ellis is “that guy who threw a no-hitter on acid.” Here at Uni Watch, he’s “that guy who wore curlers” (more on that here). But to Jay Kaplan, Ellis is a lot more.

Kaplan (who I learned about from reader Matthew Ronay) is the man behind “Ellis, D.: The Dock Ellis Experience,” a group of 15 amazing poured resin paintings based on Ellis’s life, many of them featuring some awesome uni-related content. It’s a really interesting project for a variety of reasons, not the least of which is this: If you start with one of the paintings and then click on it, you get a bunch of thumbnails showing Kaplan’s source material and visual references. It’s like getting a peek inside his creative process.

Kaplan was already planning a trip to NYC when I contacted him last month, so I got to interview him in person instead of over the phone. Even better, he brought several of the paintings with him, and they’re even more impressive in person than they are on the web, full of depth and saturation and texture. It also becomes much more apparent that the paintings’ dimensions are the same proportions as a baseball card.

Those photos were taken on June 6th, shortly after Jay and I spent some time chatting over a few beers in my back yard. Here’s what we talked about.

Uni Watch: Let’s start with you. How old are you, and where do you live?

Jay Kaplan: I’m 35, and I live in Sudbury, Massachusetts. But I’ve only been there for a year. Before that I lived here in Brooklyn for 14 years.

UW: Why’d you move?

JK: We have two kids, and it was getting tricky. I was getting sidetracked from doing my art. So now I’m, like, in the woods.

UW: Do you make a living as an artist?

JK: I’ve done so many different things to make a living — art’s been one of them.

UW: I know you grew up in Port Washington [Long Island]. Were you a sports fan growing up?

JK: Yeah. And I still am.

UW: Did you play sports?

JK: I played Little League and played baseball up through my junior year in high school. And I played soccer and a little hockey. Some basketball, but I wasn’t very good.

UW: Were you interested in art back then as well?

JK: I played music, and yeah, I did some art. We had a lot of art in our house. My great-grandmother was an interior designer, so she had bought a lot of stuff, and my parents hung work, like, salon-style, so there was art everywhere. And my grandfather was a painter.

UW: And did your interests in art and sports ever overlap, like they have with this Dock Ellis project?

JK: Here and there. When I was about 12, I took an oil painting class and I made a painting of Denis Potvin. I was a big Islanders fan, and that was right in their heyday.

UW: Have you done other sports-oriented art projects as an adult, prior to the Dock Ellis work?

JK: I did a silly thing. I really got into art in college. In high school, I’d been into writing, but then in college I took an elective — a welding elective. It was actually an African-American Studies welding class. And in that class I made a giant sculpture of Patrick Ewing. So that one and the Potvin painting were probably my two sports pieces.

UW: What led you to do that?

JK: At the time, I was so into just the act of welding, and I didn’t really know much about art, so I’d just weld anything that popped into my head. And I was really into the Knicks at the time. It’s at my parents’ house now, along with a lot of my work. The Ewing is a source of embarrassment for me now. A lot of my friends really like it, but I don’t know if they’re just making fun of me.

UW: Okay, so tell me about your fascination with Dock Ellis, and how that fascination led to this project.

JK: I was doing a lot of self-referential art”¦

UW: How do you mean?

JK: I used to do these performance pieces and photograph them. I made a piñata in my own likeness, and I hung it from a tree and had someone take pictures of me beating it while wearing the same clothes as the piñata, with red paper on the inside. Another time, I ate a box of crayons. And I took a Krazy Glue dropper and basically had a drop of Krazy Glue about to go into my eye.

UW: Was it actually, like, real Krazy Glue?

JK: It was, yeah.

UW: Did it go into your eye?

JK: No. I just kept it right there for the shot. Another time I filled a bottle of Glass Plus with blue Gatorade, went to a supermarket, and placed it on the shelf. Then I took it off the shelf and chugged it. So I’d done all these pieces with me in them, and I was looking for something with more of a narrative, a story. And I remembered this urban legend that someone had taken LSD and pitched a no-hitter. Then I did some research and learned that there was so much more to Dock.

UW: When was this that you began this process?

JK: Probably two and a half years ago. I’d started making these paintings using resin. I started with abstract stuff, geometric shapes. Then I went to the next logical place, naked women. And that’s when I decided to do the narrative. It took me a year to do the whole series.

UW: You said that you learned there was so much more to Dock Ellis than just “the guy who pitched a no-hitter while doing LSD.” Such as..?

JK: He was almost a black activist. He was outspoken, he had this lively personality. He was a character. He was controversial.

UW: The poured resin seems so particularly well-suited to someone who was tripping on acid, and also for the colors and design style of that time period. Was that one reason you thought he’d be a good match for this medium?

JK: Yeah, definitely. It all seemed to fit together so well. [You can see a slideshow documenting the making of this painting here. — PL]

UW: Have you done LSD yourself?

JK: Um”¦ I, uh ”¦ No comment.

UW: Did you do LSD specifically as “research” for this project, in the course of making the art?

JK: No.

UW: You’ve got some great uniform depictions in there. When I saw the Reggie Jackson painting, with that Oakland A’s uniform, that’s when I knew I had to get in touch with you. And hey, did you know that those early-’70s Pirates pullovers were the first pullovers ever worn in major league baseball?

JK: No.

UW: Yeah. Whether you realized it or not, you were documenting a really transformative period in baseball — striped waistbands replacing belts, pullovers replacing button-fronts, polyester replacing flannel. Were you aware of any of that?

JK: Not really, no. But I did do a lot of research to make it somewhat accurate to the era. I was hoping to capture the ’70s, when he pitched.

UW: What sort of research?

JK: Just looking at tons of pictures. There’s so much on the web now.

UW: Did you collect baseball cards as a kid, and did you go back and look at them?

JK: I did, yeah.

UW: I’m a little older than you, and I got interested in baseball around 1971, ’72, so I grew up watching precisely this period we’re talking about. Like, I remember watching Dock Ellis pitch. But you grew up after this period. So as you were doing all this research, were thinking, “Damn, I wish I’d been around to see that”?

JK: I have a lot of ’70s nostalgia in me, because the house I grew up in was really tricked out ’70s-style. So I sort of feel like I was there for it.

UW: You also have a piece showing Ellis in his curlers. When did you learn about that episode?

JK: There this great book, Dock Ellis in the Country of Baseball”¦

UW: Right.

JK: So I read about it there, and in other articles about him. I just thought it was an interesting thing to do, to wear curlers on the field. And he even used that to show racial bias, because the commissioner said, “You can’t do that, can’t wear curlers,” but he let white ballplayers wear wigs or hairpieces.

UW: I love how, if you click on one of the paintings, you get all those smaller images. Are those the source images?

JK: Those are some of the inspiration behind each painting. Sometimes I feel like maybe it gives away too much. But at the same time, I don’t know — if you just see the paintings, you might not get as much of the story.

UW: So it’s sort of like footnotes.

JK: Yeah.

UW: And for the painting called Side Show, the source images are mostly these mustachioed ballplayers. What was that all about?

JK: Well, he pitched the no-hitter against the Padres. So the main image was based on the original San Diego Chicken, which was a radio gimmick. I wanted to draw a parallel between the chicken, which was a side show to the game, and a mustache, which I think of as a side show to a face. And mustaches were so prevalent back in that period.

UW: Right, because the A’s started that whole thing. And of course they also started the Technicolor-uniform trend.

JK: Yeah, I was so excited to do that Reggie Jackson piece, just to match that green and that yellow. I knew that in the resin, it would really pop.

UW: You nailed it, too.

JK: You probably can’t tell from the image on the web, but I actually did his glasses frames in inlaid metal, to accentuate them.

UW: Yeah, I noticed you used some unusual media, like Ping Pong balls. What’s that about?

JK: The Ping Pong balls were from this story when Dock fell from grace and drugs kind of overtook him later in his career. He finally went to rehab, and he was in such a bad state that he would actually sniff Ping Pong balls to try to get high.

UW: Really? What did he think he was gonna get out of that?

JK: I don’t know, but when I drilled holes in them and filled them with resin to make the eyeballs for that painting, they were really stinky. I think they’re made out of some kind of crazy plastic.

UW: No no no, they’re made out of reed or something, aren’t they? Definitely something organic.

JK: Really? Huh. [Actually, Jay was right: They’re made of celluloid, which is a thermoplastic. — PL]

UW: Anyway, so you did that not just because it was visually appropriate, but you were referencing an incident from his life.

JK: Yeah, I just took all this information about him and processed it through my head and tried to come up with images to go with them, and tried to make it work. But it didn’t have to be super-precise or literal.

UW: Let’s get back to the Reggie Jackson piece for a second. Why did you include him?

JK: Dock had a little history with Reggie in, I think, the ’76 All-Star Game [actually 1971 — PL]. At mid-season he had a really good record. Like he was 11-0 or something, and Vida Blue was having a great year too, and Dock said, “They’ll never start two black pitchers, two brothers in this All-Star Game.” And it became a big thing in the press, and it turned out that they both did start. And during that game, Reggie Jackson hit that famous home run off of Dock, the moonshot that hit the light tower in Detroit.

UW: But Reggie wasn’t wearing that green jersey in that game — he was wearing a vest.

JK [sheepishly]: There might be a few, uh, holes in the story.

UW: Well, that’s OK — artistic license and all. Didn’t mean to be such a stickler. I was just sayin’.

JK: Yeah, my audience is an art world audience. They’d never know the difference. Anyway, Reggie stood there watching the home run, which infuriated Dock.

UW: Nowadays, it happens practically every game. I mean, Manny Ramirez does it twice a week. I guess Reggie was kind of a pioneer there.

JK: But it really pissed off Dock.

UW: Which is kind of interesting. Because culturally speaking, the whole “standing and admiring your home run” thing is part of a demonstrative or hot dog-ish approach to sports that’s very black, very much part of the black approach to sports. And the people who don’t like it and criticize it are almost invariably white fans and white media people. So it’s interesting that Dock Ellis, being a very racially aware athlete, frowned upon something that was, in essence, very black.

JK: I don’t think he judged people based on color. He loved Pete Rose, for example. I think he just didn’t like being shown up, by anyone.

UW: Yeah, but what I mean is, you and I say, “showing him up,” but a lot of black fans and athletes would say, “That’s not showing anyone up — that’s just my style, that’s being an entertainer,” blah-blah-blah. And what white fans call “classy,” black fans often consider just “boring.” I’m not coming down on either side; I’m just saying the same thing can be perceived differently by different groups. It definitely speaks to a cultural gap.

JK: Yeah.

UW: Anyway, that soured him on Reggie?

JK: Definitely. At one point a bunch of major leaguers were going to do a tour of Viet Nam, and Dock didn’t wanna go because Reggie was going. The next time he faced Reggie again [which was several years later, because Ellis didn’t pitch in the American League until 1976 — PL], he hit him in the face. Intentionally. Broke his glasses and I think broke his jaw.

UW: And that was years after! Wow, note to self: Don’t cross Dock Ellis.

JK: Exactly.

UW: Have these pieces been shown in a gallery yet?

JK: No, I’m trying to find a place for them now. I’ve got some hopefuls. I’m feeling positive about it.

UW: Assuming you find a gallery, will you show the source images, the backstory, the way you have on the web?

JK: I don’t think I would, unless I maybe did it in the catalog.

UW: So it’s a very different kind of exhibition on the web than it would be in person. I mean, obviously, duh, everything’s different on the web, but what I mean is that the quantitative amount of material you’d be showing would be different.

JK: Yeah. At one point I wanted to get video of the no-hitter, and I contact all these different people, but it turns out that game wasn’t televised. There was some home video that someone shot from the stands — Bob Costas showed some of it on his show one time — and I tried to get that, but I couldn’t. The Hall of Fame sent me some other footage of Dock pitching, and I thought of doing something with that, but I decided not to.

UW: In the course of this project, did you make any attempts to contact Dock himself?

JK: I didn’t. I thought about it, but I wanted it to be based on just the story. Like I said before, at first I kind of treated it like an urban legend. I didn’t want to get too close to it.

UW: Did you contact Donald Hall, who wrote Dock Ellis in the Country of Baseball?

JK: No.

UW: If this project eventually ends up in a gallery and gets some media, it’s certainly conceivable that Dock Ellis could become aware of its existence. If he were to come into a gallery, or even just visit your web site, what do you think he’d make of all this?

JK: I don’t know. It’s an interesting question, because I spent so much time thinking about him. I was completely absorbed by him — it’s like he’s become a big part of my life somehow. I’d hope he would like it. I know he has a good sense of humor. I read something where he was signing baseballs with some sort of LSD reference. I’d hope he wouldn’t be offended, and that he’d be happy that someone was glorifying his life and accomplishments.

UW: Let’s say you get a gallery, and they do a big opening reception. Would you want Dock to attend the opening?

JK: That would be great, yeah — I’d be into that. He’s actually a drug counselor now, in California, and one of the galleries I’m looking at is in L.A., so yeah, that would be cool.

UW: I know artists hate to be asked this type of question, but do you have a favorite piece among the 15?

JK: I like Kool-Aid and Kools. It’s so iconic, and the idea is so clear to me. It sort of expresses this contradiction that was a big part of Dock’s personality, that he could be angry and loving. Dock smoked Kools, and Kool-Aid can be spiked with acid, so it all kind of fit together.

[That was all the questions I had, so I turned off the tape recorder. But we kept on chatting and drinking, and at some point the talk turned back to sports, so I turned the tape back on. — PL]

JK: Lately I’ve gotten into NASCAR.

UW: Interesting. Do you know any other artists who are into it?

JK: Actually, I’ve got two friends who started their careers based on their interest in NASCAR.

UW: How so?

JK: They were both interested in the aesthetics of it. This one guy, my friend Nathan, he did a lot work that almost looked like the way the patches are everywhere [on the jumpsuits]. And this girl Kristin Baker, she was into the way a car looks when it’s crashed, and her paintings were abstract, but they kind of had this crashing vibe. This was back in the ’90s — I think they’ve both gotten away from it now.

UW: Have you ever thought of a NASCAR-related project?

JK: There’s this one driver, Travis Kvapil, who drives the No. 28 car. For a while he didn’t have a sponsor, so he just put “11 million” on the hood of the car, because that’s what it would cost to sponsor him.

UW: Sort of like “Your Ad Here.”

JK: Exactly. So I saw that, and I thought that would be great if I, as an artist, could sponsor that car and just do some artwork on that car.

UW: So let’s say you’re a gazillionaire and you go ahead and do this. What would you put on the car?

JK: Maybe some kind of op-art thing that’s forms a vibrating pattern, so other drivers get mesmerized and crash when they’re coming up behind you. Or you could just do a minimalist thing, or just something ridiculous, like popcorn all over the car. And at the end of the race, the drivers always mention the sponsor — like, “Yeah, this Office Depot car really came through for me today.” So it would be incredible to hear them say, “This Jay Kaplan art car was was just great.” It would be a great juxtaposition between corporate America and art.

UW: Have you ever discussed this idea with anyone?

JK: I did work for Jeff Koons at one point”¦

UW: Well, he certainly has enough money to do it.

JK: Definitely. And it was so great when he put a float of his rabbit sculpture in the Macy’s Thanksgiving parade. I still know him and his wife, so I mentioned the idea to his wife. I e-mailed her about it, thinking maybe she’d tell him and he’d do it.

UW: Any response?

JK [laughing]: No response.

UW: Are you aware of the recent taxi art project here in New York?

JK: No.

UW: It started last year, I think. Lots of New York cabs got outfitted with these big floral decals. It’s not quite the same thing as what you’re talking about, but it was an interesting project.

JK: Was it cool?

UW: I didn’t like the designs, frankly, but I really liked the idea of using taxis as a means of creating public art, especially since so many taxis also carry advertising.

==========

And that’s where we left it. Jay hasn’t yet found a gallery for the full 15-painting set, but he’ll be showing four of the pieces, along with some non-Dock artwork, in this group show, which will have an opening reception this Saturday from 6pm-10pm. He’ll be on hand, and I’ll be swinging by as well.

Uni Watch News Ticker: New York’s sanitation workers are getting new uniforms (with thanks to Neil Berger). ”¦ The Arkansas Travelers, double-A affiliate of the Angels, are changing from blue caps to red after winning the first-half division title (with thanks to John Evans). ”¦ Reprinted from yesterday’s comments: Novak Djokovic, an Adidas-sponsored athlete, wore Nike sneakers at Wimbledon and whited-out the swooshes. Details here. ”¦ While looking for something else, I came across this photo Ted Williams and Dom DiMaggio. Note the connective strap on Ted’s stirrup. ”¦ Also came across this shot. Look closely and you’ll see that the ump is wearing his cap backwards, even though it has a abbreviated brim. Not sure I’ve ever seen that before. ”¦ Super-detailed guide to spotting fake NFL “authentics” here (nice find by Drew Wagner). ”¦ Good photos here, here, and hereof the Tigers’ one-year tiger-head style from 1927 (with thanks to Doug Mooney). ”¦ Early Astros prototype? Marc Swanson isn’t saying. ”¦ Thinnest stirrups ever? ”¦ Slow news day in Denver. ”¦ Chris Flinn reports that baseball-snagging guru Zack Hample snared a few BP balls at Shea a few days ago and was surprised to discover to find that they were All-Star Game balls. (As an aside, I had no idea there was a “baseball-snagging guru” out there, but the guy actually has a blog devoted to the topic — cool.) ”¦ “Many UFC fighters have started wearing tape wraps around their gloves to match the corner they’re assigned (blue corner has blue tape, red corner has red tape),” reports Mike Miller. “Probably helps the judges tell the fighters apart for scoring.” ”¦ Good gallery of USA Olympic basketball jereys here (with thanks to Erkki Corpuz). ”¦ Did you know the MLB logo was designed by DC Comics artist Jim Sherman? That’s what this page claims (with thanks to Dave Sikula). ”¦ Pesky Pirates patch problem persist for Jack Wilson. He must really love that one undershirt (with thanks to Bill Blevins). ”¦ Kudos to the U. of Minnesota, who’ve told Victoria’s Secret not to include them in Vicky’s pink collegiate product line. Details here (and nobody’s happier about this than Minnesota resident and scourge of all things pink Minna H.). ”¦ Mariners and Padres will be wearing 1978 throwbacks tomorrow night. ”¦ Nice photo gallery here of Cal football uni history — a history to which these are now being added. ”¦ I’m an architectural intern in Philadelphia and each summer there is a softball league comprised of architecture firms, contractors, and real estate firms,” writes Eddie Layton. “In general the league is very laid back and unorganized, although a few teams do have a semblance of uniforms or others (like ours) just try to all wear the same color T-shirt. This past week, however, we played a firm that had some pretty classic uniforms. I’ve attached a couple of pictures that my fiance took while we were playing.” … Reprinted from last night’s comments: Why did Bruce Boisclair (one of the least baseball-y names ever, by the way) pose for a photo with an aluminum bat?

 
  
 
Comments (221)

    “JK: Definitely. At one point a bunch of major leaguers were going to do a tour of Viet Nam, and Dock didn’t wanna go because Reggie was going. The next time he faced Reggie again [which was several years later, because Ellis didn’t pitch in the American League until 1977 – PL], he hit him in the face. Intentionally. Broke his glasses and I think broke his jaw.”

    Actually, the Dock Ellis beaning of Reggie Jackson occurred in 1976, Jackson’s lone season with the Orioles. Ellis’ AL career link.

    “Ellis, D.” – brilliant!

    The poured resin artwork is amazing. Nice job, Jay.

    Why do I get the feeling that those All-Star game balls being used for BP at Shea will be sold by MLB as “Officially Used All-Star game balls?”

    I’ll almost guarantee that someone at the U of Minnesota observed (cuz they’re a pretty marketing savvy bunch), “Hey, this fooball team could suck again this year. The last thing we need is people showing up at games in pink as some soft of comment about how MUCH we suck, and that maybe our new uniforms should have been from Victoria’s Secret.”

    Was at the DET Tiger / STL Cardinal game last night. 2.5 hour rain delay, game got over at 1am. Ouch. Anyways, STL SS Ryan had really nice striped stirups on which made him stick out among his teammates. Looked good, except that he had 2-3 buttons undone, and had a flat brimmed hat. Which I kept yelling at him to fix…

    Another uni note from the game, during the rain delay Todd Jones came out of the clubhouse with a Ordonez uni on and pretended to hit a home run from a fake pitch and actually rounded the bases on the tarp. It was pretty cool. The stadium played along and played the home run music and graphics for him. He also slid into home plate getting completely soaked.

    [quote] I’m an architectural intern in Philadelphia and each summer there is a softball league comprised of architecture firms, contractors, and real estate firms,” writes Eddie Layton. “In general the league is very laid back and unorganized, although a few teams do have a semblance of uniforms or others (like ours) just try to all wear the same color T-shirt. This past week, however, we played a firm that had some pretty classic uniforms. I’ve attached a couple of pictures that my fiance took while we were playing.”[/quote]

    Nice softball unis. I think the solid black shorts look better than the white or black with white stripe shorts.

    Fresno St. starting pitcher Justin Wilson didn’t have a button on the top of his cap last night — just the little metal stem sticking up. I couldn’t find a good picture of it in a quick search this a.m…

    [quote]STL SS Ryan had really nice striped stirups on which made him stick out among his teammates. Looked good, except that he had 2-3 buttons undone, and had a flat brimmed hat. Which I kept yelling at him to fix…[/quote]

    and? did he?

    [quote comment=”277274″][quote] I’m an architectural intern in Philadelphia and each summer there is a softball league comprised of architecture firms, contractors, and real estate firms,” writes Eddie Layton. “In general the league is very laid back and unorganized, although a few teams do have a semblance of uniforms or others (like ours) just try to all wear the same color T-shirt. This past week, however, we played a firm that had some pretty classic uniforms. I’ve attached a couple of pictures that my fiance took while we were playing.”[/quote]

    Nice softball unis. I think the solid black shorts look better than the white or black with white stripe shorts.[/quote]

    I congratulate their thoroughness—getting matching socks and all—but they look more like soccer unis.

    [quote comment=”277276″][quote]STL SS Ryan had really nice striped stirups on which made him stick out among his teammates. Looked good, except that he had 2-3 buttons undone, and had a flat brimmed hat. Which I kept yelling at him to fix…[/quote]

    and? did he?[/quote]

    Of course not, he should have heard me, the third base coach heard me. So I told him to tell Ryan to fix his hat.

    Paul, I hate it when people nitpick on this site, but at one point (starting with “JK: Right, because the A’s started…” I believe) you got your “JK”‘s and “UW”‘s mixed up. I only point this out because I got confused, and thought others might as well.

    [quote comment=”277271″]Why do I get the feeling that those All-Star game balls being used for BP at Shea will be sold by MLB as “Officially Used All-Star game balls?”[/quote]

    Because Steiner Sports needs to make even more money!

    From the “Small World” files, and not that anybody here gives a rat’s ass, either, but I think I went to day camp with today’s interview subject back in the 80’s . . . And if it’s the same guy, he’s selling himself short as an athlete (at least back in the day) . .

    Once again, UniWatch bringing everyone back together again . . very weird

    [quote comment=”277283″]do those soccer kits softball unis say link?[/quote]

    That’s what I read, and that, my friends, IS awesome.

    [quote comment=”277269″]”JK: Definitely. At one point a bunch of major leaguers were going to do a tour of Viet Nam, and Dock didn’t wanna go because Reggie was going. The next time he faced Reggie again [which was several years later, because Ellis didn’t pitch in the American League until 1977 – PL], he hit him in the face. Intentionally. Broke his glasses and I think broke his jaw.”

    Actually, the Dock Ellis beaning of Reggie Jackson occurred in 1976, Jackson’s lone season with the Orioles. Ellis’ AL career link.[/quote]

    Correct. Typo on my part. Now fixed. Thanks!

    Peter Max painted a car for Dale Earnhardt back in 2000:
    link
    I don’t recall any other drivers crashing because of it, but there must have been some giggling fits out on the track.

    [quote comment=”277280″]Paul, I hate it when people nitpick on this site, but at one point (starting with “JK: Right, because the A’s started…” I believe) you got your “JK”‘s and “UW”‘s mixed up. I only point this out because I got confused, and thought others might as well.[/quote]

    Not nitpicky at all — thanks for the correction! Now fixed.

    “do those soccer kits softball unis say team awesome?”

    Yes they do, and the socks have “awesome” going down the side…

    And yes they do look a little more like soccer unis than softball, but I give it to them for pulling it off.

    and it was terrible to play on – grounders were taking hops all over the place… lucky no one took one in the mouth or groin…

    Thank goodness the Sox went away from the style in the ticker (Paciorek). Who thought it was a good design to have pants numbers, again?

    Oh no, did you see the new Cal football helmets? They’re going with the center stripe, which is bad enough, except that the stripe will start out really fat in the back and come to a point…basically like UNLV or the Denver Broncos and the opposite of Louisville. I HATE center stripes that taper. What a terrible trend. I was hoping it would die off, but it seems to be growing. Terrible look.

    [quote comment=”277271″]Why do I get the feeling that those All-Star game balls being used for BP at Shea will be sold by MLB as “Officially Used All-Star game balls?”[/quote]
    Ah, why do I get the feeling that MLB-hating is the latest hobby of uni-watchers?! Not sure if ranks up there with Nike-bashing, logo creep and throwbacks not being 100% accurate! But give it time!!!!

    First all the blue/pink cancer stuff, now these stars and stripes hats. I actually think the hats are a neat idea, just like the pink/blue, when done on special occasions, it’s OK by me.

    I also think it’s unfair to criticize MLB on the pricing of the hats being higher than the normal cap. If you look back at any other special, event cap (ASG, American Flag, World Series, Opening Day, etc, etc) those caps almost always retail more than the normal 5950. This is a different cap completely as it’s a. a different color and b. has the flag logo incorporated within the logo. Why shouldn’t it retail for more?

    I have plenty of beef with MLB. I don’t like interleague play, I don’t think the ASG should determine home field advantage in the world series, there should be a salary floor so that you don’t have teams like the Pirates not spending money and being uncompetitive, I think the postseason games start way too late and they should bring SOME day games back in the mix, I think the DH should be abolished, etc, etc, etc.

    That being said, but merchandise and pricing and…God forbid, donating portions of proceeds to charity aren’t at the top of that list.

    [quote comment=”277292″]Oh no, did you see the new Cal football helmets? They’re going with the center stripe, which is bad enough, except that the stripe will start out really fat in the back and come to a point…basically like UNLV or the Denver Broncos and the opposite of Louisville. I HATE center stripes that taper. What a terrible trend. I was hoping it would die off, but it seems to be growing. Terrible look.[/quote]
    John, I agree. I hate the tapering helmet stripe. The worst I’ve seen (although the ones you mentioned are pretty bad) is Southern Miss – its like an intertwined tapering stripe. just awful…

    link

    Cal’s helmets are just a bad idea.

    [quote comment=”277293″][quote comment=”277271″]Why do I get the feeling that those All-Star game balls being used for BP at Shea will be sold by MLB as “Officially Used All-Star game balls?”[/quote]
    Ah, why do I get the feeling that MLB-hating is the latest hobby of uni-watchers?! Not sure if ranks up there with Nike-bashing, logo creep and throwbacks not being 100% accurate! But give it time!!!!

    First all the blue/pink cancer stuff, now these stars and stripes hats. I actually think the hats are a neat idea, just like the pink/blue, when done on special occasions, it’s OK by me.

    I also think it’s unfair to criticize MLB on the pricing of the hats being higher than the normal cap. If you look back at any other special, event cap (ASG, American Flag, World Series, Opening Day, etc, etc) those caps almost always retail more than the normal 5950. This is a different cap completely as it’s a. a different color and b. has the flag logo incorporated within the logo. Why shouldn’t it retail for more?

    I have plenty of beef with MLB. I don’t like interleague play, I don’t think the ASG should determine home field advantage in the world series, there should be a salary floor so that you don’t have teams like the Pirates not spending money and being uncompetitive, I think the postseason games start way too late and they should bring SOME day games back in the mix, I think the DH should be abolished, etc, etc, etc.

    That being said, but merchandise and pricing and…God forbid, donating portions of proceeds to charity aren’t at the top of that list.[/quote]

    I think it’s talked about more right now because it’s the only major sport playing at the moment…

    [quote comment=”277293″][quote comment=”277271″]Why do I get the feeling that those All-Star game balls being used for BP at Shea will be sold by MLB as “Officially Used All-Star game balls?”[/quote]
    Ah, why do I get the feeling that MLB-hating is the latest hobby of uni-watchers?! Not sure if ranks up there with Nike-bashing, logo creep and throwbacks not being 100% accurate! But give it time!!!!

    First all the blue/pink cancer stuff, now these stars and stripes hats. I actually think the hats are a neat idea, just like the pink/blue, when done on special occasions, it’s OK by me.

    I also think it’s unfair to criticize MLB on the pricing of the hats being higher than the normal cap. If you look back at any other special, event cap (ASG, American Flag, World Series, Opening Day, etc, etc) those caps almost always retail more than the normal 5950. This is a different cap completely as it’s a. a different color and b. has the flag logo incorporated within the logo. Why shouldn’t it retail for more?

    I have plenty of beef with MLB. I don’t like interleague play, I don’t think the ASG should determine home field advantage in the world series, there should be a salary floor so that you don’t have teams like the Pirates not spending money and being uncompetitive, I think the postseason games start way too late and they should bring SOME day games back in the mix, I think the DH should be abolished, etc, etc, etc.

    That being said, but merchandise and pricing and…God forbid, donating portions of proceeds to charity aren’t at the top of that list.[/quote]

    dougie…

    excellent points all (especially on interplague) and the recent mlb-bashing…of which i think im guilty as well (at least as far as the throwbacks go)…

    but i DO think the point about the ‘official ASG ball’ ending up at steiner or eBay is valid…

    the bigger question, of course, is WHY they’re even using said balls at this point in the season…does anyone know if this is standard practice or if this is just some flukey deal?

    [quote comment=”277294″][quote comment=”277292″]Oh no, did you see the new Cal football helmets? They’re going with the center stripe, which is bad enough, except that the stripe will start out really fat in the back and come to a point…basically like UNLV or the Denver Broncos and the opposite of Louisville. I HATE center stripes that taper. What a terrible trend. I was hoping it would die off, but it seems to be growing. Terrible look.[/quote]
    John, I agree. I hate the tapering helmet stripe. The worst I’ve seen (although the ones you mentioned are pretty bad) is Southern Miss – its like an intertwined tapering stripe. just awful…

    link

    Cal’s helmets are just a bad idea.[/quote]

    That’s Nike, out to eradicate all stripes from all uniforms for all time.
    Stripes = adidas…bad.
    Phil Knight must (you know) a little bit (in his, y’know) whenever he sees the Niners’ Montana era (and before) jersey sleeves and socks…not to mention the NBA warmups this past season. God, I bet those gave him coniptions.

    kind of a weird request here, but can anyone tell me where to find the official uniform templates (home, away, alts) of the round rock express?

    [quote comment=”277279″][quote comment=”277276″][quote]STL SS Ryan had really nice striped stirups on which made him stick out among his teammates. Looked good, except that he had 2-3 buttons undone, and had a flat brimmed hat. Which I kept yelling at him to fix…[/quote]

    and? did he?[/quote]

    Of course not, he should have heard me, the third base coach heard me. So I told him to tell Ryan to fix his hat.[/quote]

    Not the exact game, but this is what Ryan looked like last night, stirups, unbuttoned, and flat brimmed. Same as last night, except for the hand up his butt.

    Question: if you decide to wear stirups in MLB, are there options you can wear, or is there only one kind that is allowed. Like, can you wear different kinds in different games, just as long as everyone wears the same? Or does the team have one style and that’s it.

    Not to nitpick either, Paul, but Mr. Layton’s fiancée took the pictures.

    Unless, of course, he lives in California or Massachusetts. Not that there’s anything wrong with that! :o)

    [quote comment=”277298″]kind of a weird request here, but can anyone tell me where to find the official uniform templates (home, away, alts) of the round rock express?[/quote]

    Try emailing Avery Holton, the Director of Communications for the Express. You can get Avery’s email address from link.

    [quote comment=”277296″][quote comment=”277293″][quote comment=”277271″]Why do I get the feeling that those All-Star game balls being used for BP at Shea will be sold by MLB as “Officially Used All-Star game balls?”[/quote]
    Ah, why do I get the feeling that MLB-hating is the latest hobby of uni-watchers?! Not sure if ranks up there with Nike-bashing, logo creep and throwbacks not being 100% accurate! But give it time!!!!

    First all the blue/pink cancer stuff, now these stars and stripes hats. I actually think the hats are a neat idea, just like the pink/blue, when done on special occasions, it’s OK by me.

    I also think it’s unfair to criticize MLB on the pricing of the hats being higher than the normal cap. If you look back at any other special, event cap (ASG, American Flag, World Series, Opening Day, etc, etc) those caps almost always retail more than the normal 5950. This is a different cap completely as it’s a. a different color and b. has the flag logo incorporated within the logo. Why shouldn’t it retail for more?

    I have plenty of beef with MLB. I don’t like interleague play, I don’t think the ASG should determine home field advantage in the world series, there should be a salary floor so that you don’t have teams like the Pirates not spending money and being uncompetitive, I think the postseason games start way too late and they should bring SOME day games back in the mix, I think the DH should be abolished, etc, etc, etc.

    That being said, but merchandise and pricing and…God forbid, donating portions of proceeds to charity aren’t at the top of that list.[/quote]

    dougie…

    excellent points all (especially on interplague) and the recent mlb-bashing…of which i think im guilty as well (at least as far as the throwbacks go)…

    but i DO think the point about the ‘official ASG ball’ ending up at steiner or eBay is valid…

    the bigger question, of course, is WHY they’re even using said balls at this point in the season…does anyone know if this is standard practice or if this is just some flukey deal?[/quote]
    Fair enough, the ASG baseballs is odd, but could it be an honest mistake by someone at Rawlings? I recently took the Camden Yards tour and they talked about how there is a clubhouse guy that rubs the balls up with a special mud. Perhaps that person at Shea opened a case of game balls from Rawlings and noticed they were ASG balls and that’s why they ended up in BP. Perhaps Rawlings sent them to the wrong NY ballpark? I think these are valid questions/points that need to be considered before we all just get cynical.

    As with ebay and steiner, buyer beware.

    [quote comment=”277294″][quote comment=”277292″]Oh no, did you see the new Cal football helmets? They’re going with the center stripe, which is bad enough, except that the stripe will start out really fat in the back and come to a point…basically like UNLV or the Denver Broncos and the opposite of Louisville. I HATE center stripes that taper. What a terrible trend. I was hoping it would die off, but it seems to be growing. Terrible look.[/quote]
    John, I agree. I hate the tapering helmet stripe. The worst I’ve seen (although the ones you mentioned are pretty bad) is Southern Miss – its like an intertwined tapering stripe. just awful…

    link

    Cal’s helmets are just a bad idea.[/quote]

    Agreed, especially since they had such a good looking helmet to begin with.

    “If it ain’t broke…”

    [quote comment=”277303″]u of minnesota does have some pink stuff already link

    …and if that team is a bad as it was last year, you could see a lot of that pink stuff in the stands. God, they were awful.

    Truly, if it weren’t for needing to field teams in all the major sports to share Big Ten revenue, Minnesota and the University of North Dakota should exchange conferences. From the looks of things, they’d both finish around .500.

    [quote comment=”277303″]u of minnesota does have some pink stuff already link

    And I’m guessing this wish they didn’t. But I’d venture this also would be their thinking, “At least it’s not from Victoria’s Secret, for god’s sake.”

    [quote comment=”277305″][quote comment=”277303″]u of minnesota does have some pink stuff already link

    …and if that team is a bad as it was last year, you could see a lot of that pink stuff in the stands. God, they were awful.

    Truly, if it weren’t for needing to field teams in all the major sports to share Big Ten revenue, Minnesota and the University of North Dakota should exchange conferences. From the looks of things, they’d both finish around .500.[/quote]

    I meant in football.

    Why did Boiscalir pose with the aluminum bat? Because he NEEDED it! He hit a grand total of 10 homers in a very short career.

    Those all star balls are going to become a problem. Hitters use the seams to decipher the spin on the ball and thus the pitch, and the seams on these balls are much to simialar to the cream color of the ball’s leather. I have a feeling that if this is not changed this years all star game will be a very low scoring game.

    UW: Which is kind of interesting. Because culturally speaking, the whole “standing and admiring your home run” thing is part of a demonstrative or hot dog-ish approach to sports that’s very black, very much part of the black approach to sports. And the people who don’t like it and criticize it are almost invariably white fans and white media people. So it’s interesting that Dock Ellis, being a very racially aware athlete, frowned upon something that was, in essence, very black.

    Pretty racist categorization there Paul.

    [quote comment=”277293″][quote comment=”277271″]Why do I get the feeling that those All-Star game balls being used for BP at Shea will be sold by MLB as “Officially Used All-Star game balls?”[/quote]
    Ah, why do I get the feeling that MLB-hating is the latest hobby of uni-watchers?! Not sure if ranks up there with Nike-bashing, logo creep and throwbacks not being 100% accurate! But give it time!!!!

    First all the blue/pink cancer stuff, now these stars and stripes hats. I actually think the hats are a neat idea, just like the pink/blue, when done on special occasions, it’s OK by me.

    I also think it’s unfair to criticize MLB on the pricing of the hats being higher than the normal cap. If you look back at any other special, event cap (ASG, American Flag, World Series, Opening Day, etc, etc) those caps almost always retail more than the normal 5950. This is a different cap completely as it’s a. a different color and b. has the flag logo incorporated within the logo. Why shouldn’t it retail for more?

    I have plenty of beef with MLB. I don’t like interleague play, I don’t think the ASG should determine home field advantage in the world series, there should be a salary floor so that you don’t have teams like the Pirates not spending money and being uncompetitive, I think the postseason games start way too late and they should bring SOME day games back in the mix, I think the DH should be abolished, etc, etc, etc.

    That being said, but merchandise and pricing and…God forbid, donating portions of proceeds to charity aren’t at the top of that list.[/quote]

    Wouldn’t POSSIBLY bilking the public rank a little higher in importance that having someone bat for the pitcher? Point is, unless you’re willing to say MLB does everything just right, why would your beefs be any more worth stating (as you did) than anyone else bringing up more current concerns?

    Sure, assuming the ASG ball fraud is very much jumping to a negative conclusion, but dismissing those who are turned off by MLB’s completely inappropriate response to questions regarding their charitable commitments is just off base.

    NFL 2008-09 UNIFORM QUESTION:

    Will this year’s jerseys feature the new NFL shield logo at the neck? Will it still be that goofy-looking NFL Equipment shield or will it go back to the better-looking shield-alone style like in the 1990s?

    I want to purchase an authentic this year, but won’t do it if the jerseys offered at NFL.com, JerseyJoe, etc. still have the NFL Equipment/old logo shield at the neck (assuming the game-worn jerseys will have the new logo).

    ANY HELP IS GREATLY APPRECIATED.

    [quote comment=”277311″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs[/quote]
    Van Lingle Mungo

    [quote comment=”277293″][quote comment=”277271″]Why do I get the feeling that those All-Star game balls being used for BP at Shea will be sold by MLB as “Officially Used All-Star game balls?”[/quote]
    Ah, why do I get the feeling that MLB-hating is the latest hobby of uni-watchers?! Not sure if ranks up there with Nike-bashing, logo creep and throwbacks not being 100% accurate! But give it time!!!!

    First all the blue/pink cancer stuff, now these stars and stripes hats. I actually think the hats are a neat idea, just like the pink/blue, when done on special occasions, it’s OK by me.

    I also think it’s unfair to criticize MLB on the pricing of the hats being higher than the normal cap. If you look back at any other special, event cap (ASG, American Flag, World Series, Opening Day, etc, etc) those caps almost always retail more than the normal 5950. This is a different cap completely as it’s a. a different color and b. has the flag logo incorporated within the logo. Why shouldn’t it retail for more?

    I have plenty of beef with MLB. I don’t like interleague play, I don’t think the ASG should determine home field advantage in the world series, there should be a salary floor so that you don’t have teams like the Pirates not spending money and being uncompetitive, I think the postseason games start way too late and they should bring SOME day games back in the mix, I think the DH should be abolished, etc, etc, etc.

    That being said, but merchandise and pricing and…God forbid, donating portions of proceeds to charity aren’t at the top of that list.[/quote]

    Only speaking for myself, I would never begrudge any of these sports leagues from trying to market themselves and make money, but as the episode with the Vet caps showed, it’s the disconnect that MLB has that is a problem.

    Paul’s question about fans thinking it’s a money grab highlights the idea among fans that MLB is just out to make money on every little thing. If they keep doing the same thing, be indignant about any questions about their intentions, and then refuse to address criticism, then they should expect people to call them out for it. It’s entirely possible people have become too cynical, but there’s a lot of cause for it.

    [quote comment=”277310″]UW: Which is kind of interesting. Because culturally speaking, the whole “standing and admiring your home run” thing is part of a demonstrative or hot dog-ish approach to sports that’s very black, very much part of the black approach to sports. And the people who don’t like it and criticize it are almost invariably white fans and white media people. So it’s interesting that Dock Ellis, being a very racially aware athlete, frowned upon something that was, in essence, very black.

    Pretty racist categorization there Paul.[/quote]
    Yeah, I’m sure Bob Gibson would have kicked a little ass had a batter, black or white, admired a home run hit off him. I don’t think that happened much because they knew they’d get one right at the ear the next time up!

    [quote comment=”277314″][quote comment=”277311″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs[/quote]
    Van Lingle Mungo[/quote]

    Bobby Bonds

    …or Garth Iorg

    [quote comment=”277316″][quote comment=”277310″]UW: Which is kind of interesting. Because culturally speaking, the whole “standing and admiring your home run” thing is part of a demonstrative or hot dog-ish approach to sports that’s very black, very much part of the black approach to sports. And the people who don’t like it and criticize it are almost invariably white fans and white media people. So it’s interesting that Dock Ellis, being a very racially aware athlete, frowned upon something that was, in essence, very black.

    Pretty racist categorization there Paul.[/quote]
    Yeah, I’m sure Bob Gibson would have kicked a little ass had a batter, black or white, admired a home run hit off him. I don’t think that happened much because they knew they’d get one right at the ear the next time up![/quote]

    reggie jackson showed up a pitcher?

    [quote comment=”277317″][quote comment=”277314″][quote comment=”277311″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs[/quote]
    Van Lingle Mungo[/quote]

    Bobby Bonds

    …or Garth Iorg[/quote]

    Worst?

    Gordon Windhorn, Jr.
    (Oh, Gordon, don’t forget, squash match at 2:30. Cheerio.)

    [quote comment=”277288″]”do those soccer kits softball unis say team awesome?”

    Yes they do, and the socks have “awesome” going down the side…

    And yes they do look a little more like soccer unis than softball, but I give it to them for pulling it off.[/quote]

    Thanks for the pictures Eddie, but is that you in the green shirt batting? Keep those hands together on the bat handle, son!

    There’s this one driver, Travis Kvapil, who drives the No. 28 car. For a while he didn’t have a sponsor, so he just put “11 million” on the link, because that’s what it would cost to sponsor him.

    I don’t know much about Nascar, but this tidbit was intriguing. Is there a trademark (TM) symbol next to “million”? So the guy put his own temporary logo on the car and trademarked it?

    [quote comment=”277312″][quote comment=”277293″][quote comment=”277271″]Why do I get the feeling that those All-Star game balls being used for BP at Shea will be sold by MLB as “Officially Used All-Star game balls?”[/quote]
    Ah, why do I get the feeling that MLB-hating is the latest hobby of uni-watchers?! Not sure if ranks up there with Nike-bashing, logo creep and throwbacks not being 100% accurate! But give it time!!!!

    First all the blue/pink cancer stuff, now these stars and stripes hats. I actually think the hats are a neat idea, just like the pink/blue, when done on special occasions, it’s OK by me.

    I also think it’s unfair to criticize MLB on the pricing of the hats being higher than the normal cap. If you look back at any other special, event cap (ASG, American Flag, World Series, Opening Day, etc, etc) those caps almost always retail more than the normal 5950. This is a different cap completely as it’s a. a different color and b. has the flag logo incorporated within the logo. Why shouldn’t it retail for more?

    I have plenty of beef with MLB. I don’t like interleague play, I don’t think the ASG should determine home field advantage in the world series, there should be a salary floor so that you don’t have teams like the Pirates not spending money and being uncompetitive, I think the postseason games start way too late and they should bring SOME day games back in the mix, I think the DH should be abolished, etc, etc, etc.

    That being said, but merchandise and pricing and…God forbid, donating portions of proceeds to charity aren’t at the top of that list.[/quote]

    Wouldn’t POSSIBLY bilking the public rank a little higher in importance that having someone bat for the pitcher? Point is, unless you’re willing to say MLB does everything just right, why would your beefs be any more worth stating (as you did) than anyone else bringing up more current concerns?

    Sure, assuming the ASG ball fraud is very much jumping to a negative conclusion, but dismissing those who are turned off by MLB’s completely inappropriate response to questions regarding their charitable commitments is just off base.[/quote]
    Well, if you don’t want to be “bilked” don’t buy the hats or other merchandise. As for my beefs, if you notice for the most part, they have to do with the on-the-field product of the game of baseball, the integrity of the game, etc. My point was there are bigger fish to fry.

    [quote comment=”277319″][quote comment=”277317″][quote comment=”277314″][quote comment=”277311″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs[/quote]
    Van Lingle Mungo[/quote]

    Bobby Bonds

    …or Garth Iorg[/quote]

    Worst?

    Gordon Windhorn, Jr.
    (Oh, Gordon, don’t forget, squash match at 2:30. Cheerio.)[/quote]
    I can’t decide whether J.J. Putz is one of the best or one of the worst.

    [quote comment=”277310″]Lukas: the whole “standing and admiring your home run” thing is part of a demonstrative or hot dog-ish approach to sports that’s very black, very much part of the black approach to sports…So it’s interesting that Dock Ellis, being a very racially aware athlete, frowned upon something that was, in essence, very black.[/quote]

    was said (in a different way earlier) but i don’t think dock cared whether reggie was black, white, blue or green…nobody shows up a pitcher

    …beers kickin’ in when you said that?

    [quote comment=”277314″][quote comment=”277311″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs[/quote]
    Van Lingle Mungo[/quote]
    Buddy Biancalana

    Hmmm…according to Baseball Almanac web site, on this day in 1916, the Indians added numbers to the backs of their unis to match the scoreboard, and Jack Graney became the first player in the 20th century to come to bat wearing a number.

    LI Phil, don’t ask where my seats were…or something.

    I wasn’t there.

    Mom made me go to vacation bible school.

    [quote comment=”277324″][quote comment=”277314″][quote comment=”277311″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs[/quote]
    Van Lingle Mungo[/quote]
    Buddy Biancalana[/quote]
    Biff Pocaroba
    Juan Tyrone Eichelberger

    You know, something just dawned on me about the new Cal uni’s. Take a look at that pants stripe, does it remind you of anything?

    link

    Here’s a hint:
    link

    A 2-3 foot swoosh is pretty unsubtle, even for Nike. What’s next? A uni literally covered head to toe in swooshes?

    [quote comment=”277324″][quote comment=”277314″][quote comment=”277311″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs[/quote]
    Van Lingle Mungo[/quote]
    Buddy Biancalana[/quote]

    John Boccabella
    Biff Pocoroba

    [quote comment=”277329″][quote comment=”277324″][quote comment=”277314″][quote comment=”277311″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs[/quote]
    Van Lingle Mungo[/quote]
    Buddy Biancalana[/quote]

    John Boccabella
    Biff Pocoroba[/quote]

    Boof Bonser

    [quote comment=”277331″][quote comment=”277329″][quote comment=”277324″][quote comment=”277314″][quote comment=”277311″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs[/quote]
    Van Lingle Mungo[/quote]
    Buddy Biancalana[/quote]

    John Boccabella
    Biff Pocoroba[/quote]

    Boof Bonser[/quote]

    Bull Durham

    [quote comment=”277309″]Those all star balls are going to become a problem. Hitters use the seams to decipher the spin on the ball and thus the pitch, and the seams on these balls are much to simialar to the cream color of the ball’s leather. I have a feeling that if this is not changed this years all star game will be a very low scoring game.[/quote]

    Wouldn’t that be a PERFECT reason why the balls are showing up now? Test them in a “harmless” setting (BP) to see if the can be picked up in game conditions (big park, fans in stands).

    Looking forward to the Rays in Jacksonville Redcaps unis.

    link

    Appears to be basic red and gray, with Northwestern style stripe stirrups and nice piping.

    Home they and the Pirates (Crawfords) to it as well as KC and SF did last weekend.

    [quote comment=”277314″][quote comment=”277311″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs[/quote]
    Van Lingle Mungo[/quote]
    link

    link

    link

    link

    One can go on all day… heck, I didn’t even mention link of the 1908 World Champion link!

    [quote comment=”277328″]You know, something just dawned on me about the new Cal uni’s. Take a look at that pants stripe, does it remind you of anything?

    link

    Here’s a hint:
    link

    A 2-3 foot swoosh is pretty unsubtle, even for Nike. What’s next? A uni literally covered head to toe in swooshes?[/quote]
    I think that’s a bit of a stretch. I found the striping on the redesigned Broncos uni to look more like swooshes. I also remember there being people that thought Nike snuck a swoosh inside the Bronco’s nostril. link It really looks that way, but I don’t know if Nike actually designed the logo.

    As for the new Cal unis, in general, I don’t like yellow jerseys and this case is no different. Don’t mind having yellow pants to go with the blue jerseys. I don’t like the bear claw logo and I especially don’t like the helmet stripe. I always have thought helmet striping should be consistant from front to back.

    Other than that, the uniform isn’t that bad. Not a great improvement, but not an abomination either. I guess it could have been a lot worse.

    Dock Ellis fans may want to know that he is awaiting a liver transplant as he is suffering from cirrhosis of the liver. A May 13, 2008 LA Times article by Helene Elliott provides the full story.

    [quote comment=”277316″][quote comment=”277310″]UW: Which is kind of interesting. Because culturally speaking, the whole “standing and admiring your home run” thing is part of a demonstrative or hot dog-ish approach to sports that’s very black, very much part of the black approach to sports. And the people who don’t like it and criticize it are almost invariably white fans and white media people. So it’s interesting that Dock Ellis, being a very racially aware athlete, frowned upon something that was, in essence, very black.

    Pretty racist categorization there Paul.[/quote]
    Yeah, I’m sure Bob Gibson would have kicked a little ass had a batter, black or white, admired a home run hit off him. I don’t think that happened much because they knew they’d get one right at the ear the next time up![/quote]

    There are plenty of exceptions on both sides — I’m not saying it’s a rule or a 100% thing. But I think it’s pretty clear that phrases and sentiments like “respect the uniform,” “the way the game’s supposed to be played,” “scrappy,” “hard-nosed,” and so on are usually — not always, but USUALLY — associated with white fans, white media, and white players. And terms like “hot dog,” “showboat,” “Cadillac-ing,” “showing him up,” etc. are usually — not always, but USUALLY — invoked by white fans and media referring to black and Latino players.

    I’m not saying any of these assessments are wrong; I’m just saying that there’s a cultural gap and that it’s worth being aware of it. It’s particularly worth remembering that many of our perceptions of sports were shaped by in our youth by white broadcasters, and the broadcast media is still overwhelmingly white, so we watch the games largely thru a white cultural filter. Now, my own tastes regarding sports might be described as “very white” — I don’t like showboat-y players, I hate how hip-hop culture has affected the sports aesthetics (like the “Let’s untuck our jerseys as soon as the game ends” thing). So I’m not condemning any of the opinions themselves. I’m just acknowledging how some of those opinions may be shaped by cultural factors.

    Best baseball name and perhaps greatest name of the 20th century…Von Hayes

    [quote comment=”277321″][quote comment=”277312″][quote comment=”277293″][quote comment=”277271″]Why do I get the feeling that those All-Star game balls being used for BP at Shea will be sold by MLB as “Officially Used All-Star game balls?”[/quote]
    Ah, why do I get the feeling that MLB-hating is the latest hobby of uni-watchers?! Not sure if ranks up there with Nike-bashing, logo creep and throwbacks not being 100% accurate! But give it time!!!!

    First all the blue/pink cancer stuff, now these stars and stripes hats. I actually think the hats are a neat idea, just like the pink/blue, when done on special occasions, it’s OK by me.

    I also think it’s unfair to criticize MLB on the pricing of the hats being higher than the normal cap. If you look back at any other special, event cap (ASG, American Flag, World Series, Opening Day, etc, etc) those caps almost always retail more than the normal 5950. This is a different cap completely as it’s a. a different color and b. has the flag logo incorporated within the logo. Why shouldn’t it retail for more?

    I have plenty of beef with MLB. I don’t like interleague play, I don’t think the ASG should determine home field advantage in the world series, there should be a salary floor so that you don’t have teams like the Pirates not spending money and being uncompetitive, I think the postseason games start way too late and they should bring SOME day games back in the mix, I think the DH should be abolished, etc, etc, etc.

    That being said, but merchandise and pricing and…God forbid, donating portions of proceeds to charity aren’t at the top of that list.[/quote]

    Wouldn’t POSSIBLY bilking the public rank a little higher in importance that having someone bat for the pitcher? Point is, unless you’re willing to say MLB does everything just right, why would your beefs be any more worth stating (as you did) than anyone else bringing up more current concerns?

    Sure, assuming the ASG ball fraud is very much jumping to a negative conclusion, but dismissing those who are turned off by MLB’s completely inappropriate response to questions regarding their charitable commitments is just off base.[/quote]
    Well, if you don’t want to be “bilked” don’t buy the hats or other merchandise. As for my beefs, if you notice for the most part, they have to do with the on-the-field product of the game of baseball, the integrity of the game, etc. My point was there are bigger fish to fry.[/quote]

    Congratulations on being named the “Official Fish To Fry Picker”.

    [quote comment=”277334″]Looking forward to the Rays in Jacksonville Redcaps unis.

    link

    Appears to be basic red and gray, with Northwestern style stripe stirrups and nice piping.

    Home they and the Pirates (Crawfords) to it as well as KC and SF did last weekend.[/quote]

    Anyone read what it says on their chests? Two letters (I think) followed by “RED CAPS”.

    “JK” or “J.F.” as in “Jacksonville, Florida”, maybe?

    [quote comment=”277332″][quote comment=”277331″][quote comment=”277329″][quote comment=”277324″][quote comment=”277314″][quote comment=”277311″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs[/quote]
    Van Lingle Mungo[/quote]
    Buddy Biancalana[/quote]

    John Boccabella
    Biff Pocoroba[/quote]

    Boof Bonser[/quote]

    Bull Durham[/quote]

    Heinie Manush

    link

    [quote comment=”277339″]Best baseball name and perhaps greatest name of the 20th century…Von Hayes[/quote]

    Best baseball name, though fictional: C.J. Columbus. Kid could mash.

    [quote comment=”277340″][quote comment=”277321″][quote comment=”277312″][quote comment=”277293″][quote comment=”277271″]Why do I get the feeling that those All-Star game balls being used for BP at Shea will be sold by MLB as “Officially Used All-Star game balls?”[/quote]
    Ah, why do I get the feeling that MLB-hating is the latest hobby of uni-watchers?! Not sure if ranks up there with Nike-bashing, logo creep and throwbacks not being 100% accurate! But give it time!!!!

    First all the blue/pink cancer stuff, now these stars and stripes hats. I actually think the hats are a neat idea, just like the pink/blue, when done on special occasions, it’s OK by me.

    I also think it’s unfair to criticize MLB on the pricing of the hats being higher than the normal cap. If you look back at any other special, event cap (ASG, American Flag, World Series, Opening Day, etc, etc) those caps almost always retail more than the normal 5950. This is a different cap completely as it’s a. a different color and b. has the flag logo incorporated within the logo. Why shouldn’t it retail for more?

    I have plenty of beef with MLB. I don’t like interleague play, I don’t think the ASG should determine home field advantage in the world series, there should be a salary floor so that you don’t have teams like the Pirates not spending money and being uncompetitive, I think the postseason games start way too late and they should bring SOME day games back in the mix, I think the DH should be abolished, etc, etc, etc.

    That being said, but merchandise and pricing and…God forbid, donating portions of proceeds to charity aren’t at the top of that list.[/quote]

    Wouldn’t POSSIBLY bilking the public rank a little higher in importance that having someone bat for the pitcher? Point is, unless you’re willing to say MLB does everything just right, why would your beefs be any more worth stating (as you did) than anyone else bringing up more current concerns?

    Sure, assuming the ASG ball fraud is very much jumping to a negative conclusion, but dismissing those who are turned off by MLB’s completely inappropriate response to questions regarding their charitable commitments is just off base.[/quote]
    Well, if you don’t want to be “bilked” don’t buy the hats or other merchandise. As for my beefs, if you notice for the most part, they have to do with the on-the-field product of the game of baseball, the integrity of the game, etc. My point was there are bigger fish to fry.[/quote]

    Congratulations on being named the “Official Fish To Fry Picker”.[/quote]
    Your sarcasm is noted, but I’ll stand by my points, and I would hope some would agree with me, that achieving competitive balance in MLB is more important a $3 difference between a regular game hat and a stars and stripes version! Not exactly going to show up in a “Fleecing of America” news segment! (Unlike, say, the federal government mailing out notices that your stimulus check will arrive soon…. just send the freakin’ check will ya! but I digress)

    [quote comment=”277341″][quote comment=”277334″]Looking forward to the Rays in Jacksonville Redcaps unis.

    link

    Appears to be basic red and gray, with Northwestern style stripe stirrups and nice piping.

    Home they and the Pirates (Crawfords) to it as well as KC and SF did last weekend.[/quote]

    Anyone read what it says on their chests? Two letters (I think) followed by “RED CAPS”.

    “JK” or “J.F.” as in “Jacksonville, Florida”, maybe?[/quote]

    Here’s road uniform, and larger scan of other photo. Appears to be “JX”.

    link

    Those 1996 USA Olympic basketball team jerseys are just terrible. Looks like a team that plays for a fast-food restaurant with that USA logo type. Actually, kinda looks like a soda can. link

    [quote comment=”277345″][quote comment=”277341″][quote comment=”277334″]Looking forward to the Rays in Jacksonville Redcaps unis.

    link

    Appears to be basic red and gray, with Northwestern style stripe stirrups and nice piping.

    Home they and the Pirates (Crawfords) to it as well as KC and SF did last weekend.[/quote]

    Anyone read what it says on their chests? Two letters (I think) followed by “RED CAPS”.

    “JK” or “J.F.” as in “Jacksonville, Florida”, maybe?[/quote]

    Here’s road uniform, and larger scan of other photo. Appears to be “JX”.

    link

    and the hat…
    link

    [quote comment=”277339″]Best baseball name and perhaps greatest name of the 20th century…Von Hayes[/quote]
    Last one from me (I promise . . .)

    Razor Shines

    [quote comment=”277348″]looks like “JAX REDCAPS” to me[/quote]

    Yes, does look like there’s a third letter there, doesn’t it.

    [quote comment=”277293″]Ah, why do I get the feeling that MLB-hating is the latest hobby of uni-watchers?![/quote]

    Criticism does not equal “hating.”

    I love the sport, respect those who run it, but I still take issue with some of the things they do.

    Better to just call his paranoid contention MLB will sell phony “game used” balls for what it is – nonsense.

    [quote comment=”277349″][quote comment=”277339″]Best baseball name and perhaps greatest name of the 20th century…Von Hayes[/quote]
    Last one from me (I promise . . .)

    Razor Shines[/quote]

    (I mentioned this one a couple days back)

    Stubby Clapp

    My first take on the Cal uni’s was that they look pretty sharp…but after giving them a second look, don’t really like them in general. The bear claw decal is nice though…I’m glad they’re finally incorporating it into their uni’s.
    Ditch the yellow jerseys though.

    [quote comment=”277352″][quote comment=”277349″][quote comment=”277339″]Best baseball name and perhaps greatest name of the 20th century…Von Hayes[/quote]
    Last one from me (I promise . . .)

    Razor Shines[/quote]

    (I mentioned this one a couple days back)

    Stubby Clapp[/quote]

    Nippy Jones

    [quote comment=”277338″][quote comment=”277316″][quote comment=”277310″]UW: Which is kind of interesting. Because culturally speaking, the whole “standing and admiring your home run” thing is part of a demonstrative or hot dog-ish approach to sports that’s very black, very much part of the black approach to sports. And the people who don’t like it and criticize it are almost invariably white fans and white media people. So it’s interesting that Dock Ellis, being a very racially aware athlete, frowned upon something that was, in essence, very black.

    Pretty racist categorization there Paul.[/quote]
    Yeah, I’m sure Bob Gibson would have kicked a little ass had a batter, black or white, admired a home run hit off him. I don’t think that happened much because they knew they’d get one right at the ear the next time up![/quote]

    There are plenty of exceptions on both sides — I’m not saying it’s a rule or a 100% thing. But I think it’s pretty clear that phrases and sentiments like “respect the uniform,” “the way the game’s supposed to be played,” “scrappy,” “hard-nosed,” and so on are usually — not always, but USUALLY — associated with white fans, white media, and white players. And terms like “hot dog,” “showboat,” “Cadillac-ing,” “showing him up,” etc. are usually — not always, but USUALLY — invoked by white fans and media referring to black and Latino players.

    I’m not saying any of these assessments are wrong; I’m just saying that there’s a cultural gap and that it’s worth being aware of it. It’s particularly worth remembering that many of our perceptions of sports were shaped by in our youth by white broadcasters, and the broadcast media is still overwhelmingly white, so we watch the games largely thru a white cultural filter. Now, my own tastes regarding sports might be described as “very white” — I don’t like showboat-y players, I hate how hip-hop culture has affected the sports aesthetics (like the “Let’s untuck our jerseys as soon as the game ends” thing). So I’m not condemning any of the opinions themselves. I’m just acknowledging how some of those opinions may be shaped by cultural factors.[/quote]

    I agree with your sentiments about the game today. I also applaude you for saying it. There is way too much political correctness these days. There are cultural differences between different groups of people and that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

    Travis Kvapil’s “11 million” hood decal was actually in reference to there being approximately 11 million people in the US who call themselves NASCAR fans. The basic idea behind it was “If you put your company here, 11 million people will see it every week.”

    Kvapil put “11 million” on the car to show how many people watch races:

    “We had the idea to put 11 million on the hood of the car, and what we’re trying to represent and illustrate is the average number of viewers watching the races the first part of the season on Fox,” Kvapil said.

    His team is not necessarily promoting Fox. Instead, it’s promoting the fact that it doesn’t have a sponsor and that potential backers are missing out on the 11 million fans who could be seeing their logos on his car each week.

    link

    [quote comment=”277329″][quote comment=”277324″][quote comment=”277314″][quote comment=”277311″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs[/quote]
    Van Lingle Mungo[/quote]
    Buddy Biancalana[/quote]

    John Boccabella
    Biff Pocoroba[/quote]

    Glad you brought up Boccabella, whose name greatness stems from the fact that it took the Expo’s PA announcer 40 seconds to say his name. The other thing is that when Boccabella was catching for the Expos, their other catcher’s name was as good, if not better.
    Wait for it… Boots Day.

    [quote]There are plenty of exceptions on both sides – I’m not saying it’s a rule or a 100% thing. But I think it’s pretty clear that phrases and sentiments like “respect the uniform,” “the way the game’s supposed to be played,” “scrappy,” “hard-nosed,” and so on are usually – not always, but USUALLY – associated with white fans, white media, and white players. And terms like “hot dog,” “showboat,” “Cadillac-ing,” “showing him up,” etc. are usually – not always, but USUALLY – invoked by white fans and media referring to black and Latino players.

    I’m not saying any of these assessments are wrong; I’m just saying that there’s a cultural gap and that it’s worth being aware of it. It’s particularly worth remembering that many of our perceptions of sports were shaped by in our youth by white broadcasters, and the broadcast media is still overwhelmingly white, so we watch the games largely thru a white cultural filter. Now, my own tastes regarding sports might be described as “very white” – I don’t like showboat-y players, I hate how hip-hop culture has affected the sports aesthetics (like the “Let’s untuck our jerseys as soon as the game ends” thing). So I’m not condemning any of the opinions themselves. I’m just acknowledging how some of those opinions may be shaped by cultural factors.[/quote]

    sweeping generalizations beget stereotypes…or is it the other way around…

    example: tony gwynn…great hitter, nerd…colin powell…great general, republican

    i have heard these two gentlemen repeatedly referred to by the minority community in less than glowing words…usually something along the lines of “uncle tom”…so it’s not a “black” thing per se…but an ‘if you don’t agree with me, and you look like me…well…imo dis you for not acting like me’ (actually, quite a team-first sentiment)

    i don’t think racism or nationalism or any other -ism you want to throw out there has any bearing on personality…and i think in today’s world individualism and “look at me” are where it’s at…it is the post-mtv generation run amok…

    i know my lawn is crowded, so i’ll vacate the soapbox but…

    i still believe there is a right way and a wrong way to play the game…and it should be about team first, not individual achievements…to wit, and last example

    i got in a HUGE argument with a good buddy way back when mcsteroid broke maris’ HR mark…the way all the cubs were congratulating him and shaking his hand and shit…and sosa giving him a big bear hug…WTF???

    you’re trying in win a damn game and you just made a circus out of a guy taking your pitcher deep (i never did like trachsel tho)…

    that was, although not the beginning, certainly a time when i realized that this great game of baseball which i had known and loved as a child, wasn’t about team anymore…it was all about “the one”

    [quote comment=”277356″][quote comment=”277338″][quote comment=”277316″][quote comment=”277310″]UW: Which is kind of interesting. Because culturally speaking, the whole “standing and admiring your home run” thing is part of a demonstrative or hot dog-ish approach to sports that’s very black, very much part of the black approach to sports. And the people who don’t like it and criticize it are almost invariably white fans and white media people. So it’s interesting that Dock Ellis, being a very racially aware athlete, frowned upon something that was, in essence, very black.

    Pretty racist categorization there Paul.[/quote]
    Yeah, I’m sure Bob Gibson would have kicked a little ass had a batter, black or white, admired a home run hit off him. I don’t think that happened much because they knew they’d get one right at the ear the next time up![/quote]

    There are plenty of exceptions on both sides — I’m not saying it’s a rule or a 100% thing. But I think it’s pretty clear that phrases and sentiments like “respect the uniform,” “the way the game’s supposed to be played,” “scrappy,” “hard-nosed,” and so on are usually — not always, but USUALLY — associated with white fans, white media, and white players. And terms like “hot dog,” “showboat,” “Cadillac-ing,” “showing him up,” etc. are usually — not always, but USUALLY — invoked by white fans and media referring to black and Latino players.

    I’m not saying any of these assessments are wrong; I’m just saying that there’s a cultural gap and that it’s worth being aware of it. It’s particularly worth remembering that many of our perceptions of sports were shaped by in our youth by white broadcasters, and the broadcast media is still overwhelmingly white, so we watch the games largely thru a white cultural filter. Now, my own tastes regarding sports might be described as “very white” — I don’t like showboat-y players, I hate how hip-hop culture has affected the sports aesthetics (like the “Let’s untuck our jerseys as soon as the game ends” thing). So I’m not condemning any of the opinions themselves. I’m just acknowledging how some of those opinions may be shaped by cultural factors.[/quote]

    I agree with your sentiments about the game today. I also applaude you for saying it. There is way too much political correctness these days. There are cultural differences between different groups of people and that isn’t necessarily a bad thing.[/quote]

    Absolutely. But, just as the cultures should celebrate their positives, they need to start being honest about, and correcting, their negatives. And that, to me, is where “political correctness” does us no good it all. It prevents honest discussion of facts and the taking of responsibilty for our actions, either as individudals or as a cultural segment of society.

    Other Baseball Names:

    Rusty Kuntz
    Mark Lemongello
    Joe Zdeb
    Dickie Thon
    Mackey Sasser
    Dale Sveum
    Sixto Lezcano
    Snuffy Stirnwiess
    Skeeter Barnes
    Milton Bradley
    Urban Shocker
    Chief Bender
    Tilson Brito
    Orestes Destrade
    Bake McBride
    Minnie Minoso
    Heine Groh
    Bump Wills
    Ossie Schreckengost
    Bombo Rivera
    John Wockenfuss
    Billy Joe Robidoux
    Tim Spooneybarger
    Pete LaCock
    Johnny Dickshot
    Howard Johnson
    Phil McCracken

    [quote comment=”277328″]You know, something just dawned on me about the new Cal uni’s. Take a look at that pants stripe, does it remind you of anything?

    link

    Here’s a hint:
    link

    A 2-3 foot swoosh is pretty unsubtle, even for Nike. What’s next? A uni literally covered head to toe in swooshes?[/quote]

    Do you have bad eye sight? That doesn’t look a thing like a swoosh. You’re really reaching or Nike hatred has literally blinded you.

    [quote comment=”277360″]i still believe there is a right way and a wrong way to play the game.[/quote]

    I completely agree — but my right way may not match up with yours. And even if it does, our right way is probably rooted in cultural assumptions and experiences that are different from other people’s.

    My buddy Dave Larzelere of No Mas recently wrote something about Cuban boxers and baseball players that drove this point home really, really well. Highly recommended reading:
    link

    Again, I definitely have strong feelings about the “right way” to do things. But I’m aware that the factors that shaped my feelings on this may be different that the factors that shaped other people’s feelings. We take for granted things like “Manny is a showboat douchebag,” for example, but I suspect the Spanish-language media feels differently. They probably think Manny plays “the right way,” and they may think the stoic European-based attitudes that inform the white cultural aesthetic are boring and pointless. Personally, *I* don’t think that — but it’s good to remember that my way isn’t the only way (especially when there are now so many foreigners playing big league baseball).

    [quote comment=”277355″][quote comment=”277352″][quote comment=”277349″][quote comment=”277339″]Best baseball name and perhaps greatest name of the 20th century…Von Hayes[/quote]
    Last one from me (I promise . . .)

    Razor Shines[/quote]

    (I mentioned this one a couple days back)

    Stubby Clapp[/quote]

    Nippy Jones[/quote]

    Clyde Clay “Pork Chop” Pough

    Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs

    Van Lingle Mungo

    Buddy Biancalana

    John Boccabella
    Biff Pocoroba

    Rusty Kuntz

    [quote comment=”277364″]Forgot one of the best baseball names:

    Wonderful Terrific Monds[/quote]

    [quote comment=”277365″][quote comment=”277360″]i still believe there is a right way and a wrong way to play the game.[/quote]

    I completely agree — but my right way may not match up with yours. And even if it does, our right way is probably rooted in cultural assumptions and experiences that are different from other people’s.

    My buddy Dave Larzelere of No Mas recently wrote something about Cuban boxers and baseball players that drove this point home really, really well. Highly recommended reading:
    link

    Again, I definitely have strong feelings about the “right way” to do things. But I’m aware that the factors that shaped my feelings on this may be different that the factors that shaped other people’s feelings. We take for granted things like “Manny is a showboat douchebag,” for example, but I suspect the Spanish-language media feels differently. They probably think Manny plays “the right way,” and they may think the stoic European-based attitudes that inform the white cultural aesthetic are boring and pointless. Personally, *I* don’t think that — but it’s good to remember that my way isn’t the only way (especially when there are now so many foreigners playing big league baseball).[/quote]

    One big difference today in baseball is that pitchers are not allowed to police showboating. As was mentioned up thread, if anyone stared at a home run off Gibson or Drysdale, or any pitcher of that era, they could expect the next pitch in the ear hole. Today it would start a brawl, and likely result in 6-10 game suspesion.

    [quote comment=”277363″][quote comment=”277328″]You know, something just dawned on me about the new Cal uni’s. Take a look at that pants stripe, does it remind you of anything?

    link

    Here’s a hint:
    link

    A 2-3 foot swoosh is pretty unsubtle, even for Nike. What’s next? A uni literally covered head to toe in swooshes?[/quote]

    Do you have bad eye sight? That doesn’t look a thing like a swoosh. You’re really reaching or Nike hatred has literally blinded you.[/quote]

    (1) I’ll admit it’s a stylized swoosh, but there’s no way that design is a coincidence. Remember who were talking about here-this is the company that had no qualms about plastering a public jogging path in Chicago a couple weeks back without bothering to ask the city’s or anyone else’s permission.

    link

    (2) It’s not hatred, part of me actually has a certain amount of sneaking admiration for the Nike employee who thought that up.

    [quote comment=”277342″][quote comment=”277332″][quote comment=”277331″][quote comment=”277329″][quote comment=”277324″][quote comment=”277314″][quote comment=”277311″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs[/quote]
    Van Lingle Mungo[/quote]
    Buddy Biancalana[/quote]

    John Boccabella
    Biff Pocoroba[/quote]

    Boof Bonser[/quote]

    Bull Durham[/quote]

    Heinie Manush

    link

    ‘Marvellous’ Marv Throneberry and Darryl Strawberry

    You know, “Kek”, its an interesting subject you bring up about those baseballs. I must say, however, that I am quite the sports fan and I don’t and have never had the urge to buy anything “game used.” If someone has the ‘wallet’ to purchase such a silly thing, then let them be “bilked.”

    Jim Rome made this point on his show the other day, when he reported that there is someone selling a Tiger Woods used apple core on eBay…

    “Dude, check it out. Look what I bought!”
    “Its an apple core in a plastic baseball displayer…”
    “No, not just any apple core. This was Tiger Woods’ apple core…not from any tournament either…this is from the US Open!”

    If people buy ANY baseball hat for $30, let ALONE $35, let them be bilked.
    I’m sorry. Thats just ridiculous.

    [quote comment=”277365″][quote comment=”277360″]i still believe there is a right way and a wrong way to play the game.[/quote]

    I completely agree — but my right way may not match up with yours. And even if it does, our right way is probably rooted in cultural assumptions and experiences that are different from other people’s.

    My buddy Dave Larzelere of No Mas recently wrote something about Cuban boxers and baseball players that drove this point home really, really well. Highly recommended reading:
    link

    Again, I definitely have strong feelings about the “right way” to do things. But I’m aware that the factors that shaped my feelings on this may be different that the factors that shaped other people’s feelings. We take for granted things like “Manny is a showboat douchebag,” for example, but I suspect the Spanish-language media feels differently. They probably think Manny plays “the right way,” and they may think the stoic European-based attitudes that inform the white cultural aesthetic are boring and pointless. Personally, *I* don’t think that — but it’s good to remember that my way isn’t the only way (especially when there are now so many foreigners playing big league baseball).[/quote]

    i agree paul, with your sentiments…a funny quip from that weblink:

    [quote]I remember a shtick that the outfielders would do that was a hell of a sight. A fly ball would get lofted and the outfielder in the nearest vicinity would wait to break for it and make a real show of this waiting, put his hand on his chin and feign a yawn, wait till the last possible moment and then break for the ball like a streak of lightning and try to catch it. This maneuver was a real fan favorite, whether he caught it or not. (emphasis added)[/quote]

    …whether he caught it or not

    interesting…and i guess whether his team won or not wasn’t real important either then

    but you’re right…cultural differences aside, my point is that the “right” way to play the game is to ‘win’…it’s not about your numbers or how good YOU looked…derek jeter knows this…he could go 4-5 with a dinger and two trips and if the yanks lose, he’s not happy

    ichiro, otoh…is apparently just the opposite…he’s becoming quite the clubhouse cancer in seattle from everything i hear…because, after all, if he gets HIS 3 hits, it’s all good…not whether the M’s actually have the worst record in all of baseball (although the mets did their damnedest to fix that)

    [quote comment=”277365″][quote comment=”277360″]i still believe there is a right way and a wrong way to play the game.[/quote]

    I completely agree — but my right way may not match up with yours. And even if it does, our right way is probably rooted in cultural assumptions and experiences that are different from other people’s.

    My buddy Dave Larzelere of No Mas recently wrote something about Cuban boxers and baseball players that drove this point home really, really well. Highly recommended reading:
    link

    Again, I definitely have strong feelings about the “right way” to do things. But I’m aware that the factors that shaped my feelings on this may be different that the factors that shaped other people’s feelings. We take for granted things like “Manny is a showboat douchebag,” for example, but I suspect the Spanish-language media feels differently. They probably think Manny plays “the right way,” and they may think the stoic European-based attitudes that inform the white cultural aesthetic are boring and pointless. Personally, *I* don’t think that — but it’s good to remember that my way isn’t the only way (especially when there are now so many foreigners playing big league baseball).[/quote]

    Aren’t American players in Japan expected to fit into–and respect–the way the game is played there? That’s a real question. Is it still that way? It certainly used to be so.

    I guess the way we act always should have something to do with where we’re standing, shouldn’t it?

    Or maybe not. Maybe we all should behave however we want and, if someone criticizes us, we’ll just call them a racist. That way we don’t have to give any thought to what they said, and we get to keep doing what we’re doing. Cool.

    [quote comment=”277320″][quote comment=”277288″]”do those soccer kits softball unis say team awesome?”

    Yes they do, and the socks have “awesome” going down the side…

    And yes they do look a little more like soccer unis than softball, but I give it to them for pulling it off.[/quote]

    Thanks for the pictures Eddie, but is that you in the green shirt batting? Keep those hands together on the bat handle, son!

    There’s this one driver, Travis Kvapil, who drives the No. 28 car. For a while he didn’t have a sponsor, so he just put “11 million” on the link, because that’s what it would cost to sponsor him.

    I don’t know much about Nascar, but this tidbit was intriguing. Is there a trademark (TM) symbol next to “million”? So the guy put his own temporary logo on the car and trademarked it?[/quote]
    No…that’s a hood pin opening. The hood pins are used to keep it from flying open (the hoods don’t use latches like passenger cars do).

    [quote comment=”277371″]You know, “Kek”, its an interesting subject you bring up about those baseballs. I must say, however, that I am quite the sports fan and I don’t and have never had the urge to buy anything “game used.” If someone has the ‘wallet’ to purchase such a silly thing, then let them be “bilked.”

    Jim Rome made this point on his show the other day, when he reported that there is someone selling a Tiger Woods used apple core on eBay…

    “Dude, check it out. Look what I bought!”
    “Its an apple core in a plastic baseball displayer…”
    “No, not just any apple core. This was Tiger Woods’ apple core…not from any tournament either…this is from the US Open!”

    If people buy ANY baseball hat for $30, let ALONE $35, let them be bilked.
    I’m sorry. Thats just ridiculous.[/quote]

    I agree with you regarding people who buy such dreck, but that’s not the point. The point is MLB’s claim that the hats are all about supporting the troops (is that not the emptiest slogan of the decade?)when they’re really all about trying to make a buck, as the mlb guy’s response to brother Lukas’ query seemed to indicate.

    [quote comment=”277363″][quote comment=”277328″]You know, something just dawned on me about the new Cal uni’s. Take a look at that pants stripe, does it remind you of anything?

    link

    Here’s a hint:
    link

    A 2-3 foot swoosh is pretty unsubtle, even for Nike. What’s next? A uni literally covered head to toe in swooshes?[/quote]

    Do you have bad eye sight? That doesn’t look a thing like a swoosh. You’re really reaching or Nike hatred has literally blinded you.[/quote]

    i totally agree
    where do you get a swoosh out of that
    its just a bad design that’s all

    The “Pink” referenced in the Minnesota article is referring to a retail store concept owned by Victorias Secret named “PINK” not the color pink. This concept focuses on bras/panties/casual wear for teens through college age women. The color pink is used but the vast majority the apparel is multi-colored and mirrors “sorority” sportswear with the wordmark PINK replacing the greek letters…Teh Collegiate licensing program is part of teh new assortment at the PINK stores.

    [quote comment=”277378″]The “Pink” referenced in the Minnesota article is referring to a retail store concept owned by Victorias Secret named “PINK” not the color pink. This concept focuses on bras/panties/casual wear for teens through college age women. The color pink is used but the vast majority the apparel is multi-colored and mirrors “sorority” sportswear with the wordmark PINK replacing the greek letters…Teh Collegiate licensing program is part of teh new assortment at the PINK stores.[/quote]

    No shit. Man, are some of you missing the point.

    I was just saying I have some idea how the people at the U think. Never said it made sense. Or was even valid or accurate. Well, it concerned the lousy team and ALSO the stupid Midwestern Christian Ethnic that frets like some Victorian biddy around all atither in our collective state consciousness.

    It was never about whether or not there’s pink merchandise out there already…it was about their bundlized undies (an apt metaphor, I think).

    [quote comment=”277379″][quote comment=”277378″]The “Pink” referenced in the Minnesota article is referring to a retail store concept owned by Victorias Secret named “PINK” not the color pink. This concept focuses on bras/panties/casual wear for teens through college age women. The color pink is used but the vast majority the apparel is multi-colored and mirrors “sorority” sportswear with the wordmark PINK replacing the greek letters…Teh Collegiate licensing program is part of teh new assortment at the PINK stores.[/quote]

    No shit. Man, are some of you missing the point.

    I was just saying I have some idea how the people at the U think. Never said it made sense. Or was even valid or accurate. Well, it concerned the lousy team and ALSO the stupid Midwestern Christian Ethnic that frets like some Victorian biddy around all atither in our collective state consciousness.

    It was never about whether or not there’s pink merchandise out there already…it was about their bundlized undies (an apt metaphor, I think).[/quote]

    It’s like when Secretary James Watt vetoed the Beach Boys for one of the Bicenntenial celebrations because they were too radical.

    James Watt apparently was raised in a church basement until he was 40. That’s the mentality I mean: “Ooo, too racy AND people might use that connection to make fun of our stinky football team.”

    The Eugene Emeralds,a Single-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres, is wearing pink jerseys for most of their Wednesday games this year. I couldn’t find a picture but here is a description from their website:

    “Pink at the Park: Eugene Emeralds Go Pink for Komen Night
    On Wednesdays this season (July 2 and Sept. 3 excluded), Ems players and coaches will wear pink jerseys in support of the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. Fans will have the opportunity to bid in a season-long silent auction to win the jerseys. Winners will receive their jerseys in an August 20 on-field presentation.”

    [quote comment=”277374″]Aren’t American players in Japan expected to fit into–and respect–the way the game is played there? That’s a real question. Is it still that way? It certainly used to be so.[/quote]

    reminds me of a decent baseball movie, you may have seen it

    Uchiyama: I am the Japanese manager for Japanese baseball team that you agreed to play for. It is your duty to learn my ways, not the other way around!
    Jack Elliot: [to Hiroko] Different language, same attitude! Let’s go!

    another brilliant quote:

    Jack Elliot: Japanese way, ‘Shut up and Take it’!
    Hiroko Uchiyama: Jack’s way, ‘ME, ME, ME’! Sometimes acceptance and cooperation are strengths also.

    [quote comment=”277377″][quote comment=”277363″][quote comment=”277328″]You know, something just dawned on me about the new Cal uni’s. Take a look at that pants stripe, does it remind you of anything?

    link

    Here’s a hint:
    link

    A 2-3 foot swoosh is pretty unsubtle, even for Nike. What’s next? A uni literally covered head to toe in swooshes?[/quote]

    Do you have bad eye sight? That doesn’t look a thing like a swoosh. You’re really reaching or Nike hatred has literally blinded you.[/quote]

    i totally agree
    where do you get a swoosh out of that
    its just a bad design that’s all[/quote]

    Hmm…ok. You’re telling me that you see absolutely no similarity whatsoever in those two images? If so, then I respectfully suggest that you look again.

    link

    That’s can’t be accidental. It just can’t.

    [quote comment=”277376″][quote comment=”277371″]You know, “Kek”, its an interesting subject you bring up about those baseballs. I must say, however, that I am quite the sports fan and I don’t and have never had the urge to buy anything “game used.” If someone has the ‘wallet’ to purchase such a silly thing, then let them be “bilked.”

    Jim Rome made this point on his show the other day, when he reported that there is someone selling a Tiger Woods used apple core on eBay…

    “Dude, check it out. Look what I bought!”
    “Its an apple core in a plastic baseball displayer…”
    “No, not just any apple core. This was Tiger Woods’ apple core…not from any tournament either…this is from the US Open!”

    If people buy ANY baseball hat for $30, let ALONE $35, let them be bilked.
    I’m sorry. Thats just ridiculous.[/quote]

    I agree with you regarding people who buy such dreck, but that’s not the point. The point is MLB’s claim that the hats are all about supporting the troops (is that not the emptiest slogan of the decade?)when they’re really all about trying to make a buck, as the mlb guy’s response to brother Lukas’ query seemed to indicate.[/quote]
    Just a general question, and not solely related to this MLB stars and stripes thing: when has anyone ever divulged a percentage when dealing with a product where “portions of the proceeds benefit…”?

    I’ve seen products state “ALL” proceeds will benefit a certain cause or charity. However, I can’t recall ever seeing something like “50% of the proceeds of this product will benefit…”. I’m not saying it’s not done, just that I’ve never seen it. Is there some unwritten rule about handling of non-profits and the press, etc? Might this be the reason the guy from MLB was so irked at Paul’s question?

    Furthermore, what is the acceptable amount? Is there a minimum like with tipping? For instance, with the MLB thing, what would have been an acceptable answer to Paul’s question? I guess where I’m getting at is if they DO answer, it could be damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don’t because you might have people saying “I can’t believe they’re only donating “X”%”.

    A final question, in cases when portions of the proceeds be donated, might a company opt to wait until a fixed period of time passes before they make a said donation? Maybe MLB truly didn’t know because they were going to sell the caps through the end of the season and then donate a lump sum rather than deal with the accounting of a percentage of every piece sold.

    As we all know, the arts and entertainment often imitates life.

    I think that Paul’s comment could be construed as slightly dangerous but I also believe that as a species, we all need to have a much thicker skin.

    The fact that I have proofread this post 2 to 3 times illustrates this point!

    Relating it to sports and unis, the best example that comes to mind is the difference between the players of Hickory High in “Hoosiers” versus the antics of today’s barnstorming type squads, such as the And One tour.

    I grew up in an area that was a real mix of a lower socio-economic minority population with an upper middle class, mainly jewish population.

    I played three sports: football, basketball, and baseball. Football and basketball almost entirely consisted of black students, whether Haitian-Awerican, Jamaican-American or kids whose families had been established withing the US for a longer time. Our style of play was much more And One than Hoosiers, and our older white coaches were NOT fond of it. However, we were very successful.

    “White Men Can’t Jump” came out when I was in school and I really thought it poignant.

    Perhaps the most influential line of that film, spoken by Woody Harrelsons’ character of Billy Hoyle to Sydney, Wesley Snipes character, “You’d rather look good and lose than look bad and win!”

    I hated Bruce Boisclair more than I hate Scott Schoenweiss, more than I hate Aaron Heilman, more than I hated Gary Carter. Boisclair was a stiff who is is posing with a fungo bat. The guy probably just grabbed it was too stupid too know the difference.

    I think the only person I ever hated more than Bruce Boisclair was M. Donald Grant.

    Bruce Boisclair not a good baseball name??? Just hearing that name brings me back to the Mets teams who struggled game in and game out. Much like today’s Mets.

    And wasn’t Boisclair the first Met to wear #4 after Rusty Staub was traded to Detroit?

    [quote comment=”277355″][quote comment=”277352″][quote comment=”277349″][quote comment=”277339″]Best baseball name and perhaps greatest name of the 20th century…Von Hayes[/quote]
    Last one from me (I promise . . .)

    Razor Shines[/quote]

    (I mentioned this one a couple days back)

    Stubby Clapp[/quote]

    Nippy Jones[/quote]

    Paul Blair

    Switch the letters in his first and last names, and you get Ball Player!

    [quote comment=”277388″]I hated Bruce Boisclair more than I hate Scott Schoenweiss, more than I hate Aaron Heilman, more than I hated Gary Carter. Boisclair was a stiff who is is posing with a fungo bat. The guy probably just grabbed it was too stupid too know the difference.

    I think the only person I ever hated more than Bruce Boisclair was M. Donald Grant.[/quote]

    that’s a lot of hate

    [quote comment=”277383″][quote comment=”277377″][quote comment=”277363″][quote comment=”277328″]You know, something just dawned on me about the new Cal uni’s. Take a look at that pants stripe, does it remind you of anything?

    link

    Here’s a hint:
    link

    A 2-3 foot swoosh is pretty unsubtle, even for Nike. What’s next? A uni literally covered head to toe in swooshes?[/quote]

    Do you have bad eye sight? That doesn’t look a thing like a swoosh. You’re really reaching or Nike hatred has literally blinded you.[/quote]

    i totally agree
    where do you get a swoosh out of that
    its just a bad design that’s all[/quote]

    Hmm…ok. You’re telling me that you see absolutely no similarity whatsoever in those two images? If so, then I respectfully suggest that you look again.

    link

    That’s can’t be accidental. It just can’t.[/quote]

    If I look just right, I can see where the curved line could lead you that direction, but as long as we’re going there, maybe they’re just encouraging people to link.

    [quote comment=”277390″][quote comment=”277355″][quote comment=”277352″][quote comment=”277349″][quote comment=”277339″]Best baseball name and perhaps greatest name of the 20th century…Von Hayes[/quote]
    Last one from me (I promise . . .)

    Razor Shines[/quote]

    (I mentioned this one a couple days back)

    Stubby Clapp[/quote]

    Nippy Jones[/quote]

    Paul Blair

    Switch the letters in his first and last names, and you get Ball Player![/quote]

    And how, exactly would you do that?

    Ball Player (10 letters, with a “y”)
    Paul Blair (9 letters, with an “I”)

    [quote comment=”277393″][quote comment=”277390″][quote comment=”277355″][quote comment=”277352″][quote comment=”277349″][quote comment=”277339″]Best baseball name and perhaps greatest name of the 20th century…Von Hayes[/quote]
    Last one from me (I promise . . .)

    Razor Shines[/quote]

    (I mentioned this one a couple days back)

    Stubby Clapp[/quote]

    Nippy Jones[/quote]

    Paul Blair

    Switch the letters in his first and last names, and you get Ball Player![/quote]

    And how, exactly would you do that?

    Ball Player (10 letters, with a “y”)
    Paul Blair (9 letters, with an “I”)[/quote]

    Just got it … about phoenetics and the first LETTERS of the first and last names …

    Don’t forget:

    Tuffy Rhodes!

    [quote comment=”277386″]As we all know, the arts and entertainment often imitates life.

    I think that Paul’s comment could be construed as slightly dangerous but I also believe that as a species, we all need to have a much thicker skin.

    The fact that I have proofread this post 2 to 3 times illustrates this point!

    Relating it to sports and unis, the best example that comes to mind is the difference between the players of Hickory High in “Hoosiers” versus the antics of today’s barnstorming type squads, such as the And One tour.

    I grew up in an area that was a real mix of a lower socio-economic minority population with an upper middle class, mainly jewish population.

    I played three sports: football, basketball, and baseball. Football and basketball almost entirely consisted of black students, whether Haitian-Awerican, Jamaican-American or kids whose families had been established withing the US for a longer time. Our style of play was much more And One than Hoosiers, and our older white coaches were NOT fond of it. However, we were very successful.

    “White Men Can’t Jump” came out when I was in school and I really thought it poignant.

    Perhaps the most influential line of that film, spoken by Woody Harrelsons’ character of Billy Hoyle to Sydney, Wesley Snipes character, “You’d rather look good and lose than look bad and win!”[/quote]
    I get what you’re saying and you’re right on, but I think the And 1 example is slightly off-base. That’s almost a different game melded with entertainment.

    Perhaps a better example would be to compare Hickory High with the style of play of say the old ABA, Pistol Pete or the Showtime Lakers.

    Pistol Pete brings up another double-standard when it comes to race. Older whitefolk will wax nostalgic about his game but would call the same things done by a black player as hotdogging. A lot of Maravich’s mystique was individualistic. Putting “PISTOL” on his jersey, the droppy socks, the behind the back stuff, etc. While it was cool looking, you have to think a lot of it was done to draw attention to himself. I’ve read where his act was tiresome with a lot of his black teammates.

    [quote comment=”277393″][quote comment=”277390″][quote comment=”277355″][quote comment=”277352″][quote comment=”277349″][quote comment=”277339″]Best baseball name and perhaps greatest name of the 20th century…Von Hayes[/quote]
    Last one from me (I promise . . .)

    Razor Shines[/quote]

    (I mentioned this one a couple days back)

    Stubby Clapp[/quote]

    Nippy Jones[/quote]

    Paul Blair

    Switch the letters in his first and last names, and you get Ball Player![/quote]

    And how, exactly would you do that?

    Ball Player (10 letters, with a “y”)
    Paul Blair (9 letters, with an “I”)[/quote]
    Cool. And it’s like a Thursday edition of the NPR Sunday Puzzle with Will Shortz!!!!

    [quote comment=”277383″][quote comment=”277377″][quote comment=”277363″][quote comment=”277328″]You know, something just dawned on me about the new Cal uni’s. Take a look at that pants stripe, does it remind you of anything?

    link

    Here’s a hint:
    link

    A 2-3 foot swoosh is pretty unsubtle, even for Nike. What’s next? A uni literally covered head to toe in swooshes?[/quote]

    Do you have bad eye sight? That doesn’t look a thing like a swoosh. You’re really reaching or Nike hatred has literally blinded you.[/quote]

    i totally agree
    where do you get a swoosh out of that
    its just a bad design that’s all[/quote]

    Hmm…ok. You’re telling me that you see absolutely no similarity whatsoever in those two images? If so, then I respectfully suggest that you look again.

    link

    That’s can’t be accidental. It just can’t.[/quote]

    You are either blind or just trying to start something.

    [quote comment=”277397″][quote comment=”277383″][quote comment=”277377″][quote comment=”277363″][quote comment=”277328″]You know, something just dawned on me about the new Cal uni’s. Take a look at that pants stripe, does it remind you of anything?

    link

    Here’s a hint:
    link

    A 2-3 foot swoosh is pretty unsubtle, even for Nike. What’s next? A uni literally covered head to toe in swooshes?[/quote]

    Do you have bad eye sight? That doesn’t look a thing like a swoosh. You’re really reaching or Nike hatred has literally blinded you.[/quote]

    i totally agree
    where do you get a swoosh out of that
    its just a bad design that’s all[/quote]

    Hmm…ok. You’re telling me that you see absolutely no similarity whatsoever in those two images? If so, then I respectfully suggest that you look again.

    link

    That’s can’t be accidental. It just can’t.[/quote]

    You are either blind or just trying to start something.[/quote]

    even paul lukas wouldn’t say that’s a swoosh

    /although, he’d hate it just the same ;)

    [quote comment=”277385″]So much for the Maria Sharapova tuxedo watch – she is out in the 2nd round.[/quote]

    Really don’t understand the hoopla with the tux thing. Didn’t seem like a big deal to me, a shirt with ruffles on it…… OOOOOO big deal. If someone didn’t say that it’s supposed to look like a tux (which I don’t think it does) I never would have looked twice. Just my opinoin.

    [quote comment=”277380″][quote comment=”277379″][quote comment=”277378″]The “Pink” referenced in the Minnesota article is referring to a retail store concept owned by Victorias Secret named “PINK” not the color pink. This concept focuses on bras/panties/casual wear for teens through college age women. The color pink is used but the vast majority the apparel is multi-colored and mirrors “sorority” sportswear with the wordmark PINK replacing the greek letters…Teh Collegiate licensing program is part of teh new assortment at the PINK stores.[/quote]

    No shit. Man, are some of you missing the point.

    I was just saying I have some idea how the people at the U think. Never said it made sense. Or was even valid or accurate. Well, it concerned the lousy team and ALSO the stupid Midwestern Christian Ethnic that frets like some Victorian biddy around all atither in our collective state consciousness.

    It was never about whether or not there’s pink merchandise out there already…it was about their bundlized undies (an apt metaphor, I think).[/quote]

    It’s like when Secretary James Watt vetoed the Beach Boys for one of the Bicenntenial celebrations because they were too radical.

    James Watt apparently was raised in a church basement until he was 40. That’s the mentality I mean: “Ooo, too racy AND people might use that connection to make fun of our stinky football team.”[/quote]

    Taking a bit of a different approach … do you want to see the looks your 15 year old daughter gets when she’s wearing short shorts with wording (pink or otherwise) on her butt?

    [quote comment=”277385″]So much for the Maria Sharapova tuxedo watch – she is out in the 2nd round.[/quote]

    Oh man! That’s crappy.

    [quote comment=”277338″][quote comment=”277316″][quote comment=”277310″]UW: Which is kind of interesting. Because culturally speaking, the whole “standing and admiring your home run” thing is part of a demonstrative or hot dog-ish approach to sports that’s very black, very much part of the black approach to sports. And the people who don’t like it and criticize it are almost invariably white fans and white media people. So it’s interesting that Dock Ellis, being a very racially aware athlete, frowned upon something that was, in essence, very black.

    Pretty racist categorization there Paul.[/quote]
    Yeah, I’m sure Bob Gibson would have kicked a little ass had a batter, black or white, admired a home run hit off him. I don’t think that happened much because they knew they’d get one right at the ear the next time up![/quote]

    There are plenty of exceptions on both sides — I’m not saying it’s a rule or a 100% thing. But I think it’s pretty clear that phrases and sentiments like “respect the uniform,” “the way the game’s supposed to be played,” “scrappy,” “hard-nosed,” and so on are usually — not always, but USUALLY — associated with white fans, white media, and white players. And terms like “hot dog,” “showboat,” “Cadillac-ing,” “showing him up,” etc. are usually — not always, but USUALLY — invoked by white fans and media referring to black and Latino players.

    I’m not saying any of these assessments are wrong; I’m just saying that there’s a cultural gap and that it’s worth being aware of it. It’s particularly worth remembering that many of our perceptions of sports were shaped by in our youth by white broadcasters, and the broadcast media is still overwhelmingly white, so we watch the games largely thru a white cultural filter. Now, my own tastes regarding sports might be described as “very white” — I don’t like showboat-y players, I hate how hip-hop culture has affected the sports aesthetics (like the “Let’s untuck our jerseys as soon as the game ends” thing). So I’m not condemning any of the opinions themselves. I’m just acknowledging how some of those opinions may be shaped by cultural factors.[/quote]

    Or it could be that you are roughly 20 years older than most of the players of today, so it’s more of a generational gap than cultural one. The phrase hip hop culture implies African American and to be quite honest the percentage of African Americans in MLB is small.

    I remember how a former older co-worker of mine used to be put off by Paul Wilson, Bill Pulsipher and Isringhousen. Not because they all sucked when things were all said and done but because they were Generation X.

    My nephew a 9 year old suburban white kid, loves Jose Reyes and hates David Wright. He thinks Wright is boring.

    [quote comment=”277398″][quote comment=”277397″][quote comment=”277383″][quote comment=”277377″][quote comment=”277363″][quote comment=”277328″]You know, something just dawned on me about the new Cal uni’s. Take a look at that pants stripe, does it remind you of anything?

    link

    Here’s a hint:
    link

    A 2-3 foot swoosh is pretty unsubtle, even for Nike. What’s next? A uni literally covered head to toe in swooshes?[/quote]

    Do you have bad eye sight? That doesn’t look a thing like a swoosh. You’re really reaching or Nike hatred has literally blinded you.[/quote]

    i totally agree
    where do you get a swoosh out of that
    its just a bad design that’s all[/quote]

    Hmm…ok. You’re telling me that you see absolutely no similarity whatsoever in those two images? If so, then I respectfully suggest that you look again.

    link

    That’s can’t be accidental. It just can’t.[/quote]

    You are either blind or just trying to start something.[/quote]

    even paul lukas wouldn’t say that’s a swoosh

    /although, he’d hate it just the same ;)[/quote]

    I think the general point is valid. Everything Nike designs evidently MUST look more like a swoosh…or a band…or other free-form organic shape…but not, absolutely NOT, a stripe of any kind. “We must always, if possible, at least SUGGEST a swoosh, but never suggest a stripe.” Having spent 20-some years as an ad agency art director along the way—and stepping back to look at Nike’s designs overall—their philosophy is really becoming clear to me.

    Well, it’s official…To quote Alice Cooper:

    School’s out for summer
    School’s out forever

    No more pencils
    No more books

    No more teacher’s dirty looks.

    I am now a man of leisure for two months!!!

    Back to the discussions of race and not-so-subliminal branding!

    [quote]Everything Nike designs evidently MUST look more like a swoosh…or a band…or other free-form organic shape…but not, absolutely NOT, a stripe of any kind. “We must always, if possible, at least SUGGEST a swoosh, but never suggest a stripe.” Having spent 20-some years as an ad agency art director along the way–and stepping back to look at Nike’s designs overall–their philosophy is really becoming clear to me.[/quote]

    regardless of what you may PERSONALLY think nike’s marketing strategy is, that is NOT A FUCKING SWOOSH

    and, if indeed your assumption of what their design philosphy may be is even correct(and im not saying i love too many of their designs), why on god’s green earth shouldn’t nike try to think out of the box??? just because you obviously hate phil knight and his bretheren, doesn’t mean that ONLY stripes are good and anything that isn’t a straight line MUST THEREFORE BE A SWOOSH is ridiculous

    oregon state’s sports bra looks like absolute shit…and i don’t think anyone on this board likes it…but i can’t see anyone arguing they’re trying to make it swooshish…swooshey?…swooshist? but yeah…it’s NOT as stripe

    [quote comment=”277404″]Well, it’s official…To quote Alice Cooper:

    School’s out for summer
    School’s out forever

    No more pencils
    No more books

    No more teacher’s dirty looks.

    I am now a man of leisure for two months!!!

    Back to the discussions of race and not-so-subliminal branding![/quote]

    From a business standpoint, Nike isn’t wrong. What intriguing is that because they have become such a monolith, they likely will change the way uniforms look for a generation or more.

    [quote comment=”277405″][quote]Everything Nike designs evidently MUST look more like a swoosh…or a band…or other free-form organic shape…but not, absolutely NOT, a stripe of any kind. “We must always, if possible, at least SUGGEST a swoosh, but never suggest a stripe.” Having spent 20-some years as an ad agency art director along the way–and stepping back to look at Nike’s designs overall–their philosophy is really becoming clear to me.[/quote]

    regardless of what you may PERSONALLY think nike’s marketing strategy is, that is NOT A FUCKING SWOOSH

    and, if indeed your assumption of what their design philosphy may be is even correct(and im not saying i love too many of their designs), why on god’s green earth shouldn’t nike try to think out of the box??? just because you obviously hate phil knight and his bretheren, doesn’t mean that ONLY stripes are good and anything that isn’t a straight line MUST THEREFORE BE A SWOOSH is ridiculous

    oregon state’s sports bra looks like absolute shit…and i don’t think anyone on this board likes it…but i can’t see anyone arguing they’re trying to make it swooshish…swooshey?…swooshist? but yeah…it’s NOT as stripe[/quote]

    Whoa, there. I don’t hate Nike. I have a closet full of their shoes and other gear. I just couldn’t figure why they seemed so determined to be so non-traditional in their uniform designs, that it was some self-styled tre-chic cadre of fashionistas behind it, but now I see what they’re up to, what seems to be their design philosophy. I never said I thought it was a swoosh, cuz I don’t see it, either, but I do know it sure isn’t a traditional stripe.

    [quote comment=”277370″][quote comment=”277342″][quote comment=”277332″][quote comment=”277331″][quote comment=”277329″][quote comment=”277324″][quote comment=”277314″][quote comment=”277311″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs[/quote]
    Van Lingle Mungo[/quote]
    Buddy Biancalana[/quote]

    John Boccabella
    Biff Pocoroba[/quote]

    Boof Bonser[/quote]

    Bull Durham[/quote]

    Heinie Manush

    link

    ‘Marvellous’ Marv Throneberry and Darryl Strawberry[/quote]

    Bob Miller

    [quote comment=”277384″][quote comment=”277376″][quote comment=”277371″]You know, “Kek”, its an interesting subject you bring up about those baseballs. I must say, however, that I am quite the sports fan and I don’t and have never had the urge to buy anything “game used.” If someone has the ‘wallet’ to purchase such a silly thing, then let them be “bilked.”

    Jim Rome made this point on his show the other day, when he reported that there is someone selling a Tiger Woods used apple core on eBay…

    “Dude, check it out. Look what I bought!”
    “Its an apple core in a plastic baseball displayer…”
    “No, not just any apple core. This was Tiger Woods’ apple core…not from any tournament either…this is from the US Open!”

    If people buy ANY baseball hat for $30, let ALONE $35, let them be bilked.
    I’m sorry. Thats just ridiculous.[/quote]

    I agree with you regarding people who buy such dreck, but that’s not the point. The point is MLB’s claim that the hats are all about supporting the troops (is that not the emptiest slogan of the decade?)when they’re really all about trying to make a buck, as the mlb guy’s response to brother Lukas’ query seemed to indicate.[/quote]
    Just a general question, and not solely related to this MLB stars and stripes thing: when has anyone ever divulged a percentage when dealing with a product where “portions of the proceeds benefit…”?

    I’ve seen products state “ALL” proceeds will benefit a certain cause or charity. However, I can’t recall ever seeing something like “50% of the proceeds of this product will benefit…”. I’m not saying it’s not done, just that I’ve never seen it. Is there some unwritten rule about handling of non-profits and the press, etc? Might this be the reason the guy from MLB was so irked at Paul’s question?

    Furthermore, what is the acceptable amount? Is there a minimum like with tipping? For instance, with the MLB thing, what would have been an acceptable answer to Paul’s question? I guess where I’m getting at is if they DO answer, it could be damned-if-you-do, damned-if-you-don’t because you might have people saying “I can’t believe they’re only donating “X”%”.

    A final question, in cases when portions of the proceeds be donated, might a company opt to wait until a fixed period of time passes before they make a said donation? Maybe MLB truly didn’t know because they were going to sell the caps through the end of the season and then donate a lump sum rather than deal with the accounting of a percentage of every piece sold.[/quote]

    Actually, You see it a lot with charity fund raising drives, or at least I have. Pretty much every school fundraiser for example, says 60 cents of every dollar goes to… or some such. It’s very rare I see a fund drive around here that doesn’t say. If you do, a lot of times you can infer. For example, an oil change special in my area- buy the midas care package, and we’ll donate a portion to hungry kids in africa. It’s five bucks more then the standard.

    I suspect it’s the same with the hats. The 5 extra bucks they charge go to the charity, everything else to them.

    Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs

    Van Lingle Mungo

    Buddy Biancalana

    John Boccabella
    Biff Pocoroba

    Boof Bonser

    Bull Durham

    Heinie Manush

    link

    ‘Marvellous’ Marv Throneberry and Darryl Strawberry

    Bob Miller

    Has Candy Moldanado been mentioned yet?

    [quote comment=”277404″]Well, it’s official…To quote Alice Cooper:

    School’s out for summer
    School’s out forever

    No more pencils
    No more books

    No more teacher’s dirty looks.

    I am now a man of leisure for two months!!!

    Back to the discussions of race and not-so-subliminal branding![/quote]

    your school is just getting out?

    [quote comment=”277412″][quote comment=”277404″]Well, it’s official…To quote Alice Cooper:

    School’s out for summer
    School’s out forever

    No more pencils
    No more books

    No more teacher’s dirty looks.

    I am now a man of leisure for two months!!!

    Back to the discussions of race and not-so-subliminal branding![/quote]

    your school is just getting out?[/quote]

    in the northeast, grade and secondary schools generally don’t finish until the 2nd to last week in june

    and matt has to repeat the 8th grade next year

    I saw someone post that same “alt” logo hat for the Timberwolves yesterday.

    Is it just me or do those hats not actually look stitched…

    Eh charge $35 for them, leave the sticker on the brim, and we can call them “hip hop” and get in another discussion tomorrow. :)

    And considering those hats cost like $5 to make, why don’t they just give ALL the proceeds to the Welcome Back Veterans charity, rather than giving us the chance to argue about it! I’m sure they’re not “out” anything.

    The 11 Million on the hood of Travis Kvapil’s car was supposed to represent the number of TV viewers who would see a spopnsor’s add on the hood of the car. A good Nascar sponsorship is actually in the 20-25 million range.

    [quote comment=”277410″]I believe this is a new alternate logo for the Charlotte Bobcats is it not?

    link

    Copy and paste that[/quote]

    [quote comment=”277411″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs

    Van Lingle Mungo

    Buddy Biancalana

    John Boccabella
    Biff Pocoroba

    Boof Bonser

    Bull Durham

    Heinie Manush

    link

    ‘Marvellous’ Marv Throneberry and Darryl Strawberry

    Bob Miller

    Has Candy Moldanado been mentioned yet?[/quote]

    Neither he not Goose Gossage!

    [quote comment=”277417″][quote comment=”277410″]I believe this is a new alternate logo for the Charlotte Bobcats is it not?

    link

    Copy and paste that[/quote][/quote]

    Darn enter button …

    Bobcats …

    link

    link

    I LOVE the originality!

    [quote comment=”277314″][quote comment=”277311″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs[/quote]
    Van Lingle Mungo[/quote]

    Dick Pole

    [quote comment=”277418″][quote comment=”277411″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs

    Van Lingle Mungo

    Buddy Biancalana

    John Boccabella
    Biff Pocoroba

    Boof Bonser

    Bull Durham

    Heinie Manush

    link

    ‘Marvellous’ Marv Throneberry and Darryl Strawberry

    Bob Miller

    Has Candy Moldanado been mentioned yet?[/quote]

    Neither he not Goose Gossage![/quote]

    Bombo Rivera
    Von Joshua
    Chico Carrasquel
    Minnie Minoso

    [quote comment=”277419″][quote comment=”277411″]

    Neither he NOR Goose Gossage![/quote]

    italics off?

    bartholomew bailey…as long as im in this thread

    [quote comment=”277424″]
    Neither he NOR Goose Gossage![/quote]

    italics off?

    bartholomew bailey…as long as im in this thread

    last attempt

    Another entertaining interview with an artist.

    I would love to see an interview with someone responsible for the air-brush work depicted on Topps cards from the ’70’s. I think that would be fascinating.

    [quote comment=”277384″]
    A final question, in cases when portions of the proceeds be donated, might a company opt to wait until a fixed period of time passes before they make a said donation? Maybe MLB truly didn’t know because they were going to sell the caps through the end of the season and then donate a lump sum rather than deal with the accounting of a percentage of every piece sold.[/quote]

    Thats irrelevent, if they wait till the end of the season, they count how much was made and make a lump sum payment of X%. No body expects them to hand over a check for X% of each item sold.

    [quote comment=”277277″]Speaking of pink: link
    I have a general problem with this article. Now, I consider myself SOMEWHAT a traditionalist when it comes to caps. I think, for example, that there are way too many inane fashion caps with the Yankees logo slapped on them. On the other hand though, I own several hats that other UW readers would find stupid. My point is that opinions like that are generally all relative. So, how can the extent of someone’s fandom be judged on what type of team cap they wear? And believe me, I’m a lifelong Yankee fan, and have been an NE Patriots fan since I was 7 (in ’94/’95) so I know all about bandwagon fans, I just don’t think that someone’s cap denotes whether they’re a “true fan” or not.
    And FTR this comes from someone who hates the pink caps/jerseys.

    [quote comment=”277383″][quote comment=”277377″][quote comment=”277363″][quote comment=”277328″]You know, something just dawned on me about the new Cal uni’s. Take a look at that pants stripe, does it remind you of anything?

    link

    Here’s a hint:
    link

    A 2-3 foot swoosh is pretty unsubtle, even for Nike. What’s next? A uni literally covered head to toe in swooshes?[/quote]

    Do you have bad eye sight? That doesn’t look a thing like a swoosh. You’re really reaching or Nike hatred has literally blinded you.[/quote]

    i totally agree
    where do you get a swoosh out of that
    its just a bad design that’s all[/quote]

    Hmm…ok. You’re telling me that you see absolutely no similarity whatsoever in those two images? If so, then I respectfully suggest that you look again.

    link

    That’s can’t be accidental. It just can’t.[/quote]

    Dude, you’re trying WAY too hard.

    [quote comment=”277379″][quote comment=”277378″]The “Pink” referenced in the Minnesota article is referring to a retail store concept owned by Victorias Secret named “PINK” not the color pink. This concept focuses on bras/panties/casual wear for teens through college age women. The color pink is used but the vast majority the apparel is multi-colored and mirrors “sorority” sportswear with the wordmark PINK replacing the greek letters…Teh Collegiate licensing program is part of teh new assortment at the PINK stores.[/quote]

    No shit. Man, are some of you missing the point.

    I was just saying I have some idea how the people at the U think. Never said it made sense. Or was even valid or accurate. Well, it concerned the lousy team and ALSO the stupid Midwestern Christian Ethnic that frets like some Victorian biddy around all atither in our collective state consciousness.[/quote]

    Hey, leave the rest of the Midwest out of it. Wisconsin isn’t trying to get out this deal.

    [quote comment=”277431″]hey redemske

    can you fix the italics that jim broke?[/quote]

    my bad…

    [quote comment=”277390″]
    Paul Blair

    Switch the letters in his first and last names, and you get Ball Player![/quote]

    As a tournament Scrabble player, I’m always anagramming words, and noticed this one right away:

    PAUL O’NEILL + I = LOU PINIELLA

    -Jet

    By the way, just out of my own curiosity, I’ve been showing the “stars and stripes” caps to assorted people (people on other sites, friends, my dad, etc.) and everyone thought they were actually very nice, even my very “uniform traditional” dad, for whatever that’s worth

    [quote comment=”277433″][quote comment=”277431″]hey redemske

    can you fix the italics that jim broke?[/quote]

    my bad…[/quote]

    not you jim…jim WALAITIS

    sorry…there’s like 18 bryan/brian’s too, so that’s why i said “redemske”

    everyone needs a new handle dammit!

    What I found interesting in the response to Paul’s questions about the proceeds of the caps, and the internet chat indidating that some thought the whole thing rather hollow, was the response, “We reject your cynicism.”

    Is that even possible?

    Can someone reject cynicism?

    You can try to overcome, not concern yourself with it, but doesn’t “reject” sound like he’s saying they refuse to accept it’s existense?

    And if so, isn’t that just a tad arrogant?

    Dunno, maybe it’s just me.

    [quote comment=”277436″][quote comment=”277433″][quote comment=”277431″]hey redemske

    can you fix the italics that jim broke?[/quote]

    my bad…[/quote]

    not you jim…jim WALAITIS

    sorry…there’s like 18 bryan/brian’s too, so that’s why i said “redemske”

    everyone needs a new handle dammit![/quote]

    Dammit, Phil! Let him take the fall. Paul always says, don’t play with italics in Da House!

    [quote comment=”277432″][quote comment=”277379″][quote comment=”277378″]The “Pink” referenced in the Minnesota article is referring to a retail store concept owned by Victorias Secret named “PINK” not the color pink. This concept focuses on bras/panties/casual wear for teens through college age women. The color pink is used but the vast majority the apparel is multi-colored and mirrors “sorority” sportswear with the wordmark PINK replacing the greek letters…Teh Collegiate licensing program is part of teh new assortment at the PINK stores.[/quote]

    No shit. Man, are some of you missing the point.

    I was just saying I have some idea how the people at the U think. Never said it made sense. Or was even valid or accurate. Well, it concerned the lousy team and ALSO the stupid Midwestern Christian Ethnic that frets like some Victorian biddy around all atither in our collective state consciousness.[/quote]

    Hey, leave the rest of the Midwest out of it. Wisconsin isn’t trying to get out this deal.[/quote]

    Okay. You’re out. The Madison campus alone proves that attitiude doesn’t exisit in Wisconsin (smiles wistfully, remembering a couple trips to said campus).

    [quote comment=”277405″][quote]Everything Nike designs evidently MUST look more like a swoosh…or a band…or other free-form organic shape…but not, absolutely NOT, a stripe of any kind. “We must always, if possible, at least SUGGEST a swoosh, but never suggest a stripe.” Having spent 20-some years as an ad agency art director along the way–and stepping back to look at Nike’s designs overall–their philosophy is really becoming clear to me.[/quote]

    regardless of what you may PERSONALLY think nike’s marketing strategy is, that is NOT A FUCKING SWOOSH

    and, if indeed your assumption of what their design philosphy may be is even correct(and im not saying i love too many of their designs), why on god’s green earth shouldn’t nike try to think out of the box??? just because you obviously hate phil knight and his bretheren, doesn’t mean that ONLY stripes are good and anything that isn’t a straight line MUST THEREFORE BE A SWOOSH is ridiculous

    oregon state’s sports bra looks like absolute shit…and i don’t think anyone on this board likes it…but i can’t see anyone arguing they’re trying to make it swooshish…swooshey?…swooshist? but yeah…it’s NOT as stripe[/quote]

    Wow. You might want to consider cutting back on your caffeine intake.

    [quote comment=”277391″][quote comment=”277388″]I hated Bruce Boisclair more than I hate Scott Schoenweiss, more than I hate Aaron Heilman, more than I hated Gary Carter. Boisclair was a stiff who is is posing with a fungo bat. The guy probably just grabbed it was too stupid too know the difference.

    I think the only person I ever hated more than Bruce Boisclair was M. Donald Grant.[/quote]

    that’s a lot of hate[/quote]

    Ask any met fan over 40 what they think of M. Donald Grant. You’ll get a similar reaction to asking a Minnesotan what they think of Norm Greene.

    [quote comment=”277430″][quote comment=”277383″][quote comment=”277377″][quote comment=”277363″][quote comment=”277328″]You know, something just dawned on me about the new Cal uni’s. Take a look at that pants stripe, does it remind you of anything?

    link

    Here’s a hint:
    link

    A 2-3 foot swoosh is pretty unsubtle, even for Nike. What’s next? A uni literally covered head to toe in swooshes?[/quote]

    Do you have bad eye sight? That doesn’t look a thing like a swoosh. You’re really reaching or Nike hatred has literally blinded you.[/quote]

    i totally agree
    where do you get a swoosh out of that
    its just a bad design that’s all[/quote]

    Hmm…ok. You’re telling me that you see absolutely no similarity whatsoever in those two images? If so, then I respectfully suggest that you look again.

    link

    That’s can’t be accidental. It just can’t.[/quote]

    Dude, you’re trying WAY too hard.[/quote]

    Maybe so. At any rate, my work here is done… :-)

    [quote]Wow. You might want to consider cutting back on your caffeine intake.[/quote]

    down to a cup a day, but thanks…i really ought to cut back on my deca-durabolin intake tho

    [quote]Ask any met fan over 40 what they think of M. Donald Grant[/quote]

    me: “self, what do you think of MDG?” me to myself: “you mean the douchebag who traded tom terrific and presided over grant’s tomb? he’s a dick”

    /done and done

    [quote comment=”277441″][quote comment=”277391″][quote comment=”277388″]I hated Bruce Boisclair more than I hate Scott Schoenweiss, more than I hate Aaron Heilman, more than I hated Gary Carter. Boisclair was a stiff who is is posing with a fungo bat. The guy probably just grabbed it was too stupid too know the difference.

    I think the only person I ever hated more than Bruce Boisclair was M. Donald Grant.[/quote]

    that’s a lot of hate[/quote]

    Ask any met fan over 40 what they think of M. Donald Grant. You’ll get a similar reaction to asking a Minnesotan what they think of Norm Greene.[/quote]

    Yup, most of us would like to see ol’ Norm with his hair in flames. Keep an extinguisher handy, though; not good to use water to put out a grease fire.

    [quote comment=”277422″][quote comment=”277418″][quote comment=”277411″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs

    Van Lingle Mungo

    Buddy Biancalana

    John Boccabella
    Biff Pocoroba

    Boof Bonser

    Bull Durham

    Heinie Manush

    link

    ‘Marvellous’ Marv Throneberry and Darryl Strawberry

    Bob Miller

    Has Candy Moldanado been mentioned yet?[/quote]

    Neither he not Goose Gossage![/quote]

    Bombo Rivera
    Von Joshua
    Chico Carrasquel
    Minnie Minoso[/quote]

    Milton Bradley (he’s got game!)

    [quote comment=”277399″][quote comment=”277385″]So much for the Maria Sharapova tuxedo watch – she is out in the 2nd round.[/quote]

    Really don’t understand the hoopla with the tux thing. Didn’t seem like a big deal to me, a shirt with ruffles on it…… OOOOOO big deal. If someone didn’t say that it’s supposed to look like a tux (which I don’t think it does) I never would have looked twice. Just my opinoin.[/quote]
    It was the shorts, and not so much the shirt, that was the big deal. Female tennis players usually wear dresses, dontcha know.

    [quote comment=”277447″][quote]Milton Bradley (he’s got game!)[/quote]

    coco crisp (he’s full of choclatey goodness)[/quote]
    Just because (I know, I promised . . .)

    Win Remmerswaal

    [quote comment=”277447″][quote]Milton Bradley (he’s got game!)[/quote]

    coco crisp (he’s full of choclatey goodness)[/quote]

    Racist

    [quote comment=”277446″][quote comment=”277422″][quote comment=”277418″][quote comment=”277411″]Best baseball name ever: Wade Boggs

    Van Lingle Mungo

    Buddy Biancalana

    John Boccabella
    Biff Pocoroba

    Boof Bonser

    Bull Durham

    Heinie Manush

    link

    ‘Marvellous’ Marv Throneberry and Darryl Strawberry

    Bob Miller

    Has Candy Moldanado been mentioned yet?[/quote]

    Neither he not Goose Gossage![/quote]

    Bombo Rivera
    Von Joshua
    Chico Carrasquel
    Minnie Minoso[/quote]

    Milton Bradley (he’s got game!)[/quote]

    I”ve tried to resist, but what the Hell:

    Chili Davis

    Candy Maldonado

    And who else thinks that this guy:

    link

    looks alot like this guy?
    link

    [quote]“Milton Bradley (He’s got game temper issues!)”[/quote]

    Fixed for truthfullness.

    [quote comment=”277451″][quote comment=”277446″]Has Candy Moldanado been mentioned yet?[/quote]I”ve tried to resist, but what the Hell:

    Chili Davis

    Candy Maldonado[/quote]

    candy maldonado?

    [quote comment=”277413″][quote comment=”277412″][quote comment=”277404″]Well, it’s official…To quote Alice Cooper:

    School’s out for summer
    School’s out forever

    No more pencils
    No more books

    No more teacher’s dirty looks.

    I am now a man of leisure for two months!!!

    Back to the discussions of race and not-so-subliminal branding![/quote]

    your school is just getting out?[/quote]

    in the northeast, grade and secondary schools generally don’t finish until the 2nd to last week in june

    and matt has to repeat the 8th grade next year[/quote]

    Five times a day, no less!
    And not just next year, but 27 more!

    Sorry, someone beat me to Candy Maldonado

    I’m “watching” the Cubs and Orioles play on MLB’s Gameday – since when is a strikeout “Brought to you by Baby Ruth.” Damn, I hate that.

    BTW – best baseball name is:

    Mordecai “Three Fingers” Brown – he didn’t pitch the ball, he “twirled” the ball!

    [quote comment=”277457″][quote comment=”277456″]RE: baseball names.

    Sixto Lezcano! A classic!![/quote][/quote]

    Mackey Sasser

    The baserunners could steal TWO bases just on his throws back to the pitcher…

    [quote comment=”277452″][quote]“Milton Bradley (He’s got game temper issues!)”[/quote]

    Fixed for truthfullness. truthfulness[/quote]

    fixed for spelling mistake

    [quote comment=”277457″][quote comment=”277456″]RE: baseball names.

    Sixto Lezcano! A classic!![/quote][/quote]

    Deja Vu all over again –

    Yogi Berra!

    [quote comment=”277457″][quote comment=”277456″]RE: baseball names.

    Sixto Lezcano! A classic!![/quote][/quote]

    Mickey Kluttz

    [quote comment=”277462″]Last one for me, promise:

    Vada Pinson[/quote]

    Don’t know him … ever play again Vida Blue?

    [quote comment=”277462″]Last one for me, promise:

    Vada Pinson[/quote]

    Clue Haywood…Yankees first baseman who led ths league in most Offensive categories

    [quote comment=”277464″]
    Clue Haywood…Yankees first baseman who led ths league in most Offensive categories[/quote]

    well…finish the quote slappy…

    “including nose hair…when this guy sneezes, he looks like a party favor”

    Just got back from Lids where I saw a bunch of these in person: link

    Very ugly. The blue just doesnt look right. Defintely worse in person than on the web!

    I’m all about ugly hats and whatnot, but even these are too much for me.

    [quote comment=”277300″]Not to nitpick either, Paul, but Mr. Layton’s fiancée took the pictures.

    Unless, of course, he lives in California or Massachusetts. Not that there’s anything wrong with that! :o)[/quote]

    Plenty “wrong” with “that”, but that is a discussion for another forum.

    Regarding great baseball names, here are a few:

    Cecil Cooper

    Gorman Thomas

    Odibe McDowell

    Rollie Fingers

    [quote comment=”277468″]OK, folks, enough with the name game. Thanks.[/quote]
    Sorry Paul, I posted before seeing your admonition.

    [quote comment=”277469″]Plenty “wrong” with “that”, but that is a discussion for another forum.
    [/quote]

    what is wrong with that?

    [quote comment=”277381″]The Eugene Emeralds,a Single-A affiliate of the San Diego Padres, is wearing pink jerseys for most of their Wednesday games this year. I couldn’t find a picture but here is a description from their website:

    “Pink at the Park: Eugene Emeralds Go Pink for Komen Night
    On Wednesdays this season (July 2 and Sept. 3 excluded), Ems players and coaches will wear pink jerseys in support of the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. Fans will have the opportunity to bid in a season-long silent auction to win the jerseys. Winners will receive their jerseys in an August 20 on-field presentation.”[/quote]

    It’s too bad they won’t wear them on the road to play the Boise Hawks in their prostrate cancer blue jerseys. Nothing like taking an already hideous color combo of green, orange and yellow and adding a little baby blue.
    link

    That was a fabulous interview. I learned so much about Dock Ellis and Jay’s art. Even though I am his mother I am speaking objectively when I say Jay is a wonderful artist and his paintings are great! I’m looking forward to the gallery opening on 6/28 so I can waatch everyone’s reactions to his paintings.

    [quote comment=”277473″]link

    link[/quote]

    It also looks like the stupid Captain patches are staying. You’d think Madden would be smart enough to program them off throwbacks though.

    I know the NLF brought theses captain patches on to show some kind of leadership to young players, but I’m waiting for someone with a C patch to screw up.

    This info may have been posted already, but I haven’t seen Paul mention it in his posts (other than a quick reference to a secondary logo the other day):

    New unis and secondary logo for MN T-Wolves, along with retooled primary logo, coming in August

    On the Cal uniforms: Check out this gallery I made of all the possible uniform combinations.

    link

    Personally, I like all the ones with blue pants.

    [quote comment=”277475″][quote comment=”277473″]link

    link[/quote]

    It also looks like the stupid Captain patches are staying. You’d think Madden would be smart enough to program them off throwbacks though.

    I know the NLF brought theses captain patches on to show some kind of leadership to young players, but I’m waiting for someone with a C patch to screw up.[/quote]

    That’s what i meant by saying what got added to Madden 09

    [quote comment=”277479″][quote comment=”277475″][quote comment=”277473″]link

    link[/quote]

    It also looks like the stupid Captain patches are staying. You’d think Madden would be smart enough to program them off throwbacks though.

    I know the NLF brought theses captain patches on to show some kind of leadership to young players, but I’m waiting for someone with a C patch to screw up.[/quote]

    That’s what i meant by saying what got added to Madden 09[/quote]

    That’s wrong…Hines Ward is a Nike endorsed guy:
    link

    I just wanted to say that I checked out all of Jay’s Doc Ellis works and I liked them a lot. I hope he gets a gallery to show them all soon.

    The Celtics just drafted Semih Erden out of Turkey. Even the ESPN guys were commenting on how ugly his last uniform was…

    link

    I dont know if anyone already saw but I was at the Indans vs. Giants game tonight and it was Omars first game back in Cleveland since he was traded. It was also probably his last so in order to honor the tribe he wore red spikes with his giants uniforms like the Indians of the late 90s did(cant find a pic tho) I thought that it was a PRETTY COOL tribute.

    [quote comment=”277481″][quote comment=”277479″][quote comment=”277475″][quote comment=”277473″]link

    link[/quote]

    It also looks like the stupid Captain patches are staying. You’d think Madden would be smart enough to program them off throwbacks though.

    I know the NLF brought theses captain patches on to show some kind of leadership to young players, but I’m waiting for someone with a C patch to screw up.[/quote]

    That’s what i meant by saying what got added to Madden 09[/quote]

    That’s wrong…Hines Ward is a Nike endorsed guy:
    link

    Very true but since Reebok is the official outfitter of the NFL, they are the only brand available on Madden, even though Nike cleats and gloves are allowed. nonsense

    Not sure whether this has been discussed…
    CNN has a ‘Styles at Wimbledon’ photo-gallery up. Lots of logos and boring styles of course, but Urszula Radwanska seems to be wearing a swoosh-less top. Based on the skirt, it’s probably from Nike.

    link

    [quote comment=”277405″]“Regardless of what you may PERSONALLY think Nike’s marketing strategy is, that is NOT A FUCKING SWOOSH.

    “And, if indeed your assumption of what their design philosphy may be is even correct(and I’m not saying I love too many of their designs), why on God’s green earth shouldn’t nike try to think out of the box??? Just because you obviously hate Phil Knight and his bretheren, doesn’t mean that ONLY stripes are good and anything that isn’t a straight line MUST THEREFORE BE A SWOOSH is ridiculous.

    “Oregon State’s sports bra looks like absolute shit…and I don’t think anyone on this board likes it…but I can’t see anyone arguing they’re trying to make it swooshish…swooshey?…swooshist? But yeah…it’s NOT as stripe.”[/quote]

    GET OFF MY DAMN LAWN, PHIL!*

    * – Because someone already beat me to the DAMN IT, PHIL! line.

    A correction: The “11 million” on the hood of Travis Kvapil’s car was not how much it would cost to sponsor it. This was a reference to how many people on average watch a Sprint Cup race each week. His car owner-Yates Racing-wanted to show potential sponsors how many people would see their logo if they sponsored their car. So far, no one has signed on for a full season sponsorship of the team.

    “The Western Michigan White caps are going to wear Star Wars uniforms on Saturday.”

    Uh, they are the West Michigan Whitecaps.

    [quote comment=”277484″]I dont know if anyone already saw but I was at the Indans vs. Giants game tonight and it was Omars first game back in Cleveland since he was traded. It was also probably his last so in order to honor the tribe he wore red spikes with his giants uniforms like the Indians of the late 90s did(cant find a pic tho) I thought that it was a PRETTY COOL tribute.[/quote]
    Very cool. I hadn’t noticed that.

Comments are closed.