MLB Playoff Uniform/Jersey Tracking Returns for 2024

For more than a decade and a half, reader Alex Rocklein has been creating MLB Playoff Uniform (Jersey) tracking, covering the jerseys worn for every MLB playoff team in every game. Some of you may not be familiar with this, as they had only run on the weekends during my time as Weekend/Deputy Editor. Now that I’ve moved into the role of Editor, the Tracking will run every weekday from now until the end of the World Series.

I wanted to (re)introduce you guys to the man behind the tracking, so I’m pleased to present a short Q & A I had with Alex, who definitely GetsIt™. Enjoy!

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Uni Watch: Welcome back Alex! Can you tell us a little bit about yourself?

Alex Rocklein: I’m a graphic designer and art director living in the greater Houston area with my wife and daughter. Originally from just north of Boston, I remain loyal to the Bruins, Patriots, and Celtics. My favorite hockey player growing up was Don Sweeney mainly because he lived in my neighborhood. I’m a Yankees fan when it comes to baseball. I know, I know. That’s a story for another day.

UW: Were you uniform-obsessed or logo-obsessed as a child?

AR: My love of sports intersected with my love for art at a young age. I became obsessed with logos and would spend hours designing my own or drawing all the existing ones.

UW: You wouldn’t happen to have any “refrigerator art” as we like to call it?

AR: In fact, I do!

UW: Awesome! I love these. I had a whole bunch of refrigerator art that ended up getting tossed years ago after I cleaned out my parents’ attic. I’m kicking myself now that I didn’t save any of it.

So design has always been in your blood! Do you have any professional training or is this just a hobby/obsession?

AR: I studied graphic design in college, where I created and branded a fictional baseball team for my senior thesis. Since 2011, I’ve been working at Vistaprint. One of the highlights of my time there was contributing to the Boston Celtics’ jersey ad project, a surreal experience despite my mixed feelings about jersey ads. While I don’t love the idea of them, it was fun to see something I had a hand in come to life. I still love designing logos and uniform concepts in my free time. I collect jerseys of all sorts and own over 180.

UW: That’s great. Let’s talk about your MLB Playoff Uni Tracking. I believe you first started doing this around 2010? I remember running your tracking more than a decade ago.

AR: 2010 is where the postseason uniform tracker started. Looking at these now make me cringe.

2010:

2011:

UW: I don’t know. I liked those original versions! But you quickly moved to a different template after that, yes?

AR: This is where the format changed to what it essentially has been ever since. It went from a horizontal layout (which I believed I was using as a wallpaper on my computer) to the vertical approach.

2013:

UW: A couple years ago, the playoff format changed: Now we have 12 teams — six in each league — making the playoffs. The league also changed the format to have four Wild Card series’ in a Best-of-Three format. So you had to remake the Tracker again.

AR: We’ve come a long way since 2010. The playoff format has changed multiple times since I started so I’ve needed to make layout changes to fit everything. But I still refuse to include the jersey ads.

2022:

2023:

UW: Look at all the alternate jerseys the past two seasons! Fortunately, in the first four Wild Card games of 2024, we had only one softball jersey. We’ll see if that changes after today.

Thanks Alex! And now, let’s look at the first MLB Playoff Uniform Tracker for 2024. As I mention in the introduction, this will appear as a sub-lede in every early morning weekday article from now until the end of the World Series.

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