Good morning, Uni Watchers. Today marks the 23rd Anniversary of the terrorist attacks of 9/11/2001. I’ll have a few additional thoughts about that in my closing, but first, on to happier things…
Longtime UW reader/contributor/author/stalwart Leo Strawn, Jr. returns today with the second in a new series he’s calling “The Good, the Bad and the Oddly” focusing on, well, good, bad and odd baseball uniforms and caps he’s encountered over the years. I think you’ll all really enjoy this one! If you missed Volume 1, click here.
Sit back and enjoy — here’s Leo:
by Leo Strawn, Jr.
I’m Leo…welcome to my world!
As you know if you read Volume 1, I’ve been cleaning out my sports photo files and have been running across some pics that I thought I’d share, along with a question or two for readers. I want to thank everyone who contributed answers and additional info in the comments of v1. Keep it coming!
First, a couple of notes on Volume 1. In the comments, Brett Greenleaf stated that this photo, which is much clearer than the one I had, was from the 1913 Giants/White Sox tour of Japan, Oz and Egypt.
Another reader, Tom Burns, commented on the Angels halo-less caps that I posted photos of from 1961 spring training, saying, “The LA Angels first ever game was April 11. 1961 in Baltimore. Film of the game shows that their caps did not have halos. Angels won the game 7-2. The halos were added shortly thereafter.” I found two links to confirm that statement. There are a few good shots of the caps from 5:00-5:15 in this video. The video on this link is not as clear, but the caps worn in that game in Baltimore definitely do not have a halo. LA didn’t play again until the 15th at Fenway. I looked, but haven’t been able to find any other 1961 Angels telecasts, just radio broadcasts. If anyone comes across any other 1961 halo-less cap photos or info regarding exactly when LA began wearing the halos, please share!
Also, I did a follow-up on the Wingo card pic from Volume 1. I initially thought the jersey was missing the “REDS” inside the wishbone C, but it is indeed there, as a few eagle-eyed readers saw. After that, I stated in the follow-up article that I thought it might have been due to red dye fading on the uniform. Scott M.X. Turner left a comment about film that was used in those days and how it affected colors. This came on the heels of a discussion I had with Tim Brulia and Bill Schaefer from Gridiron Uniform Database just a few days earlier about the very same subject. Haven’t had a chance to dive into this rabbit hole, but I definitely will. It will have to be a deep dive with a lot of research, so it will probably be quite a ways down the road before I can justify an article or what might end up as a series of articles.
To give you an indication of what this film did to colors in black & white, the following is a quick comparison of orthochromatic (which filtered blue, on the left) and panchromatic films and how each rendered the color RAF roundel you see in the middle of these two photos of Hawker Tornado fighter aircraft. Notice how much darker the yellow is than the blue in the first photo.
So, more on that when I can dig down deep enough. But, for now, without further ado, on to the good, the bad and…
Did you know Johnny Bench wasn’t the only Reds catcher who could hold 7 baseballs in one hand? This is Bench in his 1967 uniform (pinstripes!), wearing his familiar #5, holding seven horsehides. Ernie Lombardi, seen here in his 1936 Reds home uniform, could hold seven, also.
And, speaking of Bench, did you know he wore #53 for the Reds before he wore #5? This was during 1967 spring training, before he made his MLB debut on August 28, after being called up from Buffalo that season. He struck out twice in his inauspicious debut, hitting in the 7 spot and going 0-3 v the Phils.
I know everyone here is already familiar with the Big Red Machine uniforms, and this next photo doesn’t really show his uniform anyway, but I have to post one more of JB. This is probably my favorite photo of the greatest catcher of all time. How do you say “I dare you” without a word? (Photo from the 1972 MLB ASG.)
While we’re talking about zippers, the shirts worn under the Cubs’ 1941-42 zippered home uniform vests look like old school football shoulder pads to me. This photo is from 1941. Note that Okkonen only shows long sleeves on these undershirts and doesn’t show them paired with these road vests in either season.
The Marx brothers played some baseball, but evidently, Groucho couldn’t earn a spot on his favorite team, the Giants. Could it be because he smoked cigars instead of Camels?
But, like the undershirts in the 1941 Cubs photo earlier in this article, there are (understandably) some omissions. Thanks to the internet, they’re much easier for us to find than they were for Marc scanning newspaper articles on a microfiche reader.
For some reason, he didn’t include the A’s coaches caps in his database. Here are two shots of Joe DiMaggio from 1968, the second with Reggie Jackson, Rick Monday and Sal Bando. (The two I’m not certain of might be John Donaldson and Dick Green. Anyone know for sure?)
But, based on the following photos, players wore white caps, too, at least in 1967. This pic was taken while the A’s were still located in KC. It doesn’t show up in the database.
Neither does this white home cap, worn during a game at Municipal Stadium in Kansas City on June 6, 1967. Also in the photo is another thing Okkonen missed, numbers on the sleeves of Detroit’s road uniforms.
To be fair, it’s possible that the bat in Okkonen’s graphics would have covered the number on the right sleeve, but not all of the players’ numbers were on that sleeve. Oddly, some were on the left, instead, as seen in this photo of the same game. And, it’s tough to tell from this pic, but it is possible some didn’t even have numbered sleeves, which was the only way they were depicted in the database.
Although the news piece attached to this photo doesn’t mention caps, it does say the unis sported “black and gold letters” and that the “black in the stockings is broken with three gold stripes.”
Okkonen shows that “Cubs” script with white on the interior of the “C” and gold outline around all of the letters, but the news article said nothing about white in the letters and there doesn’t appear to be any outline around “Cubs” in either of these photos. Notice how the pinstripes run directly into the black lettering.
Marc also showed this uniform with a blue cap, though this particular cap was used both seasons with this uniform, only. If this uniform’s colors were black and gold on white, then why a blue cap? I assume he was basing this on the red, white and blue color scheme on all the other uniforms from those seasons, but the lettering and socks on this uniform are black and gold; no red or blue at all.
So, I did a quick colorization based on how I think the uniform looked with two versions of the cap.
I would say the way the lettering is colored in the database isn’t correct. I would also say the cap was more likely black, but the cap color is just a guess. What do you think?
That’s all for now. More at a later date. Stay tuned…
Cheers!
Readers? What say you?
Baltimore @ LA, December 6, 1958. link
Ten years before I was born, so I missed it.
Nine days before I was born so I missed it. :)
I was four months old, so my recollection of it is a little fuzzy.
Exactly 2 months before I was born.
responding to the Johnny Mize photo… as great as Okkonen’s work is, much more detailed work can be seen here: link
Forgot all about that site. Thanks!
To be fair to Okkonen on the Tigers sleeve numbers while they aren’t shown in the year to year part of the original book (I had both editions) IIRC he does mention them in the team writeup and explained as you mentioned that it was a limitation of the model he used. He did that for all of the MLB teams at the time save the Marlins and Rockies who were only in the second edition for two years (he might have done a one pager but it was minimal nonethless).
I have both editions as well and i remember him mentioning the Tigers sleeve numbers and the A;s white hats
I have the first edition. I have gotten in the habit of just using the site out of convenience.
Will dust the book off and look for that info, thanks Patrick and Derek!
Lions-Cowboys at Texas Stadium, MNF, 1972
Could pass for a Cowboys intrasquad scrimmage!
You got it Rich, and the Lions are wearing a one-year style jersey. The white stripes on the sleeves were worn only in 1972, they only wore them for three regular season games and wore the all grey stripes in the other games they played in their blue jerseys. Even when they wore the white stripe jerseys, some players also had the three grey stripe ones in the same game.
Hope you will have a peaceful day today, Phil. May we never forget.
Best wishes Phil (always, of course, not just today) and here’s hoping for a peaceful day for you. Didn’t know you had friends and family who died. So sorry to hear that.
Peace, PH.
Thinking about you, your friends and family today, Phil.
A note to readers: I have no control over when articles will be published, so I’m not trying to be heartless by not mentioning 9.11 prior to or after the article. I didn’t know it would run today when I wrote it. In retrospect, I should have written an addendum last night when Phil told me it would run today so he could add it.
To Phil: Finally read further comments and your closing words. Sorry to read about your losses from that day, Phil. I didn’t know about that either. Condolences.
Leo: your great article was a welcome relief on a day of grief.
Thanks!
The rarest photos of the A’s in their vest jerseys are when they wore yellow undershirts/sleeves. The team photo in Topps 68 set (must have been taken in 67 or earlier) shows the team in yellow sleeves: link
As a kid I saw them in Chicago wearing the “sea-mist” light green vests with yellow sleeves. And the bat-boys the White Sox provided the A’s wore powder blue Sox road uniforms!
Never Forget. Blessings to all.
Speaking of A’s uniforms. the Dressed to the Nines has always shown in 87 and 88 the A’s wearing a white pullk over alt and green pull over alt. There is absolutely no record, no photo, or mention these jerseys ever existed, Even in MLB Collectors thats a definitive uniform website, they even question their existance. Just my 2 cents worth.
I also echo Never Forget. Blessings to all.
Will look into that.
Thanks You sir, Go Bills !