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The Red Sox announced a month ago that they’d be wearing a memorial patch this season for former pitcher Tim Wakefield, who died of brain cancer last October. As you can see above, they’ve now revealed the patch design and location — a heart-shaped “49” that will be worn on the sleeve.
Because Boston players wear an advertisement for an insurance company on their front-facing sleeve, the Wakefield patch will appear on the rear-facing sleeve — sometimes on the right (as shown above) and sometimes on the left (sorry this next photo is so low-res):
The patch will make its on-field debut when the Red Sox open their season in Seattle on March 28. When they have their home opener in Boston on April 9, all fans will receive a pin based on the patch design:
This is the second new heart-shaped memorial patch of the 2024 MLB season. The other one will be worn by the Padres, who are adding a heart-shaped “PS” chest patch for owner Peter Seidler.
(My thanks to our own Anthony Emerson, who was the first to let me know about the patch unveiling.)
Lots of Important Uni Watch News Updates
I have a bunch of news updates to share with you folks, beginning with…
1. This Week
My birthday is this Thursday — the day after tomorrow. One of my closest friends has the same birthday (we’re both turning 60), so we’re co-hosting a big party that night. I will definitely not be in any shape to deal with Uni Watch on Friday, so Phil will be running the ship that day.
That leads me to…
2. Next Week
You probably don’t remember this, but when I announced my upcoming departure from Uni Watch a few months back, the announcement included this passage: “E and I are planning a trip for the last week in March. In a perfect world, we’d do this trip after I had already left Uni Watch. But for a variety of reasons, that’s the only week that works for this particular trip.”
That trip is now upon us. So in addition to running the site this Friday, Phil will also be in charge next week. I’ll leave a few posts in the hopper for him to publish, but I definitely won’t be covering breaking news or anything like that.
The trip, incidentally, is to Hawaii — the big island. E has family there, so she’s been there many times, but it will be my first time. It’s the only U.S. state I haven’t visited, so I’m looking forward to finally checking that 50th box.
Although I won’t be doing any blog work while I’m away, there is one thing I’ll be working on, which leads us to…
3. The MLB Season Preview
My annual MLB Season Preview will be published on Substack next Tuesday or Wednesday. My original plan was to have it mostly written by the time we left for Hawaii. But between vacation planning, birthday party planning, Uni Watch anniversary tour planning (more on that in a sec), and other things that have been keeping me busy lately, it now seems likely that I’ll be working on this piece during our flight and maybe during our first day or so in the Aloha-ville. I will definitely make sure you all know once it’s been published.
4. Uni Watch Anniversary Tour News
I think you all know this by now, but just in case: The full anniversary/farewell tour is officially a go! Thanks so much to everyone who made this possible by contributing to my travel fund.
I’m happy to announce that we now have a venue for the Los Angeles party May 21: We’ll be gathering at 7pm at Tony P’s Dockside Grill. The tour’s other dates, cities, and venues are listed here.
And now that the tour venues are settled, that leads us to…
5. The Anniversary Tour T-Shirt
Since I’m doing a tour, membership card designer Scott M.X. Turner and I figured there ought to be a tour T-shirt, just like rock bands have. Here are the front and back designs, along with mock-ups of how the shirt looks in grey, black, and white:
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Pretty sweet, right? These shirts are available now — here’s where you can order the grey, black, and white versions. For each color, there are six different options (basic, comfort, tri-blend, women’s, etc.), so be sure to find the style you prefer. Because this shirt has printing on both the front and the back, the prices are a bit higher, but I hope you’ll agree that it’s worth it for such a cool design.
We will have a separate Purp Walk shirt, which is being designed as we speak. Stay tuned.
Can of the Day
We don’t often see a horizontal can design, but I really like this one.
Not sure which island you’re heading to, but if you’re on Oahu and find yourself up on the North Shore, don’t miss out on Ted’s Bakery!
La Mariana Sailing Club is a must-visit, too. One of the oldest tiki bars in the country! The drinks are meh (the Mai Tai is all you really need, but they also have some Hawaiian beers on tap) – you aren’t really there for the drinks, you’re there for the vibes! That said, the chicken wings are great.
Buzz’s Steakhouse in Kailua is also mid-century classic slice of yesteryear. They don’t make places like Buzz’s anymore. The prime rib great!
The Mai Tai Bar at the Royal Hawaiian is a staple, it’s where the Hawaiian Mai Tai originated from (when it was brought to Hawaii by Trader Vic, they added pineapple for the tourists!) – right on Waikiki Beach, great view of Diamondhead, you can’t go wrong.
And, of course, Leonard’s Bakery. Gotta get a malasada!
Big island. I’ve now added that to the text.
When I went to the Big Island, we rented a car and drove around the periphery. It was fun feeling the temperature drop as we went from sea level high into the mountains, then down through the rain forests. So much to see. And very cool that you have hit all 50 states. I hit 40 a while ago but have stagnated for a couple years. One day…
(Preemptive) congrats on ticking off your 50th state!
As a Canadian I’m always impressed when I hear that, considering I know of very few people who have visited all of our provinces and territories – and we only have 13!
If you get a chance to climb Diamond Head, do it. It’s truly an amazing experience.
Not to rip on a memorial, but such a missed opportunity to not incorporate that trademark grip.
I was thinking the same. A heart is nice but it should have been his knuckleball grip seen from the front.
I don’t know, I’m glad they didn’t overthink it.
Come to think of it, you are totally right…
Have a nice trip to Hawaii and those tour shirts are very good. As is today’s can: Dusts, Cleans. Polishes.
The heart patch is a nice touch for someone obviously beloved by Red Sox fans. Wondering about the precedent it sets, though. The next time a prominent Sox player dies and gets a circle with a number, I’m wondering if folks will think, “well, I guess they didn’t love him like Wake.”
The Red Sox rarely use memorial patches (not even Bobby Doerr received one), and when they do, there’s been no standard. Their last five have all been different designs:
Could be worse than a circle—when Schilling goes, they’re gonna put his 38 inside a poop emoji.
It wasn’t just that Wakefield was beloved. He was honorary chairman of the Red Sox Foundation, whose logo includes a heart. So the heart makes more sense for him.
I grew up on the big island. Hit up Cafe 100, you wont regret it. Verna’s is great too but more of a dive. Also, hit up Ka Lae (South Point) if you get a chance. A very special place.
What will the cats be doing while you are in the Pacific Ocean?
One of my neighbors will be coming over to feed them and spend a bit of quality time with them.
Have a great time in Paradise. The Big Island is awesome. So much to do and see.
Enjoy Hawaii!
Not sure which island you’re heading to, but if you’re on Oahu and find yourself up on the North Shore, don’t miss out on Ted’s Bakery!
La Mariana Sailing Club is a must-visit, too. One of the oldest tiki bars in the country! The drinks are meh (the Mai Tai is all you really need, but they also have some Hawaiian beers on tap) – you aren’t really there for the drinks, you’re there for the vibes! That said, the chicken wings are great.
Buzz’s Steakhouse in Kailua is also mid-century classic slice of yesteryear. They don’t make places like Buzz’s anymore. The prime rib great!
The Mai Tai Bar at the Royal Hawaiian is a staple, it’s where the Hawaiian Mai Tai originated from (when it was brought to Hawaii by Trader Vic, they added pineapple for the tourists!) – right on Waikiki Beach, great view of Diamondhead, you can’t go wrong.
And, of course, Leonard’s Bakery. Gotta get a malasada!
Big island. I’ve now added that to the text.
When I went to the Big Island, we rented a car and drove around the periphery. It was fun feeling the temperature drop as we went from sea level high into the mountains, then down through the rain forests. So much to see. And very cool that you have hit all 50 states. I hit 40 a while ago but have stagnated for a couple years. One day…
(Preemptive) congrats on ticking off your 50th state!
As a Canadian I’m always impressed when I hear that, considering I know of very few people who have visited all of our provinces and territories – and we only have 13!
If you get a chance to climb Diamond Head, do it. It’s truly an amazing experience.
Not to rip on a memorial, but such a missed opportunity to not incorporate that trademark grip.
I was thinking the same. A heart is nice but it should have been his knuckleball grip seen from the front.
I don’t know, I’m glad they didn’t overthink it.
Come to think of it, you are totally right…
Have a nice trip to Hawaii and those tour shirts are very good. As is today’s can: Dusts, Cleans. Polishes.
The heart patch is a nice touch for someone obviously beloved by Red Sox fans. Wondering about the precedent it sets, though. The next time a prominent Sox player dies and gets a circle with a number, I’m wondering if folks will think, “well, I guess they didn’t love him like Wake.”
The Red Sox rarely use memorial patches (not even Bobby Doerr received one), and when they do, there’s been no standard. Their last five have all been different designs:
Jerry Remy, 2022: link
Boston Marathon bombing victims, 2013: link (black armband on road unis: link)
Johnny Pesky, 2012: link (also just a black armband on the road)
Ted Williams, 2002: link
Jean Yawkey, 1992: link
Could be worse than a circle—when Schilling goes, they’re gonna put his 38 inside a poop emoji.
It wasn’t just that Wakefield was beloved. He was honorary chairman of the Red Sox Foundation, whose logo includes a heart. So the heart makes more sense for him.
I grew up on the big island. Hit up Cafe 100, you wont regret it. Verna’s is great too but more of a dive. Also, hit up Ka Lae (South Point) if you get a chance. A very special place.
What will the cats be doing while you are in the Pacific Ocean?
One of my neighbors will be coming over to feed them and spend a bit of quality time with them.
Have a great time in Paradise. The Big Island is awesome. So much to do and see.