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Astros Affiliate Corpus Christi Hooks Unveil New Logos, Uniforms

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The Texas League’s Corpus Christi Hooks, the Double-A affiliates of the Astros, have a new logo and uniform set. This is their first logo update since the team started play back in 2005.

The new look isn’t a radical departure from their previous identity. The bones of what they previously wore are still here. The colors are basically the same. But at the same time, it also feels like a radical departure — everything is more angular, and there’s a greater emphasis on the state of Texas.

There are three new caps, each with its own logo. The home cap is navy, depicting a white outline of the state of Texas with a single hook pointing to a blue star, indicating Corpus Christi’s position in the state. The road cap features a similar logo, except the Texas outline is powder blue, the star indicating Corpus Christi is red, and the one hook has been replaced by two “C”-shaped hooks for Corpus Christi. The alternate cap features a large white star. “Hooks” is spelled out between the points of the star, running clockwise.

Let’s start with that one first — I hate this logo. First of all, the “K” is upside down. According to the press release, this logo is inspired by Lorenzo de Zavala’s flag for the independent Republic of Texas, which similarly spelled out the state’s name in between the points of a five-pointed star, complete with an upside down “A”. Still, I don’t think it works here. When I first saw the Hooks’ attempt at this logo, I thought they had printed the “K” backwards for some reason. Maybe Texans will get it instantly, and my New Englander brain can’t comprehend, but I think this effect does not work on a baseball cap.

I’m not crazy about the two Texas logos, but at the very least they’re much stronger marks than just a regular-ass five-pointed star with “Hooks” spelled around it. Total missed opportunity to do something fun and unique here.

And yeah, I’m fine with the other two caps, although the home cap feels a little drab to me. Could use a splash of red or more powder blue.

The jerseys are fine. I feel like they’re a bit of a downgrade compared to what they wore before. I do like the wordmark used on the home and navy alternates, which I find superior to the one used on the primary logo (more on that in a minute). I do dig the light blue stars that are printed around each sleeve, above the cuff, though the effect is hard to see on the navy alternate.

Honestly, my favorite jersey here is probably the road. It was a good idea to double-stack “Corpus Christi” rather than trying to spell it all out across the front chest, and I dig the thick navy-white-powder sleeve cuff design. Like the home cap, though, I feel like it’s missing something to really make it pop.

The powder-blue alternate is also fine. I don’t really like it when jerseys in regular rotation carry a location’s nickname, mostly because I’ve always thought that these kind of jerseys always work better (and get more attention) as a one-off, special occasion type of thing. Like the road jersey, it also features thick striped sleeve cuffs.

I’m really not liking the “K” in the “Hooks” wordmark, in both its logo and uniform application, though I think it looks better on the latter because you have the stylized “H” and hook motif to distract from it. It looks too close to an “R,” and on the primary logo it has nowhere to hide.

Which is somewhat surprising, considering how busy the primary logo is. Eight stars, one of the cap logos, the team’s full name, windows to evoke the windows beneath the miradores on Corpus Christi’s bayfront, the shape of the mark itself is supposed to be inspired by one of those miradores — it’s a lot to take in. I think the most unnecessary design element here is probably the inclusion of the cap logo. I think they were almost done with everything, before someone said that there was too much negative space between the stars and “Corpus Christi,” so they added one of the cap logos to fill it.

Man, I’ve been pretty negative. To be clear: I don’t think what’s happening here is bad. I just think everything is merely fine. I do think it’s a downgrade from the Hooks’ previous identity, although I totally understand the team’s desire to move on from a 20-year-old look. I just think with a little bit more time in the oven, they could’ve had something really good here. But they don’t.

So that’s my take. What’s yours?

 
  
 
Comments (18)

    Agree that this is fine but a downgrade. CC has had one of the great MiLB wardrobes for a while, partly because of their fauxback look, which is clearly what they’ve embraced here, while adding a dark blue (the fauxs have been strictly red, white, and powder), and changing the main graphics to something less cartoony (they had some silly cartoon hooks, previously, as their main design piece). CC also has a pretty great suite of alts, which I imagine will carry over (bring back the Coastal Bend set, PLEEEEEAAAASE!) so they remain – so far – an overall good looking team. But all of this is a bit of a step down for me simply because of how… overdesigned, maybe? everything is. The previous fauxbacks embraced and old school simplicity that these lack at least on the light blue alt and the road grey.

    All that said: all the good design in the world can’t make a jersey of this quality look good. These poor minor leaguers are potentially on their way to the big show, they’ve been told they are a step away from stardom, and they’re being outfitted in what look like giveaway running tops from a community 5K fun run.

    Guess my previous comment didn’t take. Anyway I’ve reevaluated my thoughts. The white and navy sets are upgrades for sure, the logo with the star and HOOKS around it is a nice alt. The new primary logo is better than what they had. The new CC hooks in Texas is also better than what they had but not necessary and is a downgrade from the single hook Texas logo, which is a direct port over from their fauxback look previously which this entire set is based on, and was a great set. This look modernizes that retro vibe and it’s a lateral move. I LOVED their fauxbacks but the navy and white sets are much better than the previous primary looks so the tweaks are welcomed. The powder and grey sets suffer from novelty wordmark issues. Too complicated and crowded and not enough thought toward legibility (the grey set in particular is illegible, and I can’t stand when teams add extra words real tiny like they did on the powder set). Would love to see the powders have matching pants, but hey.

    The Hooks have always had a great wardrobe though. The primaries were a little bit cartoony, but that was the style for quite a while, but their alts have often been top notch. Kudos to them for recognizing that they had a good thing with the fauxbacks and leaning into it.

    That said, the quality of these unis from a materials and construction standpoint is just atrocious. What a waste of a designer’s talents to have their work come to life in this rinky dink junk execution.

    Correction, the powder doesn’t have words above SPARKLING CITY, it’s stars. I still don’t like it. It gives it a cluttered look on top of the fact the font is quite thin and the letters too many to work as a white directly on powder blue application.

    I appreciate that it’s a departure from recent dominant trends in MiLB branding. There’s no heavy-outlined mascot with a snarl, no angled-baseline lettering with loose kerning … this has by comparison a big-league feel. I don’t love most of the execution here, but I give credit for the intent to break the industry’s current mold. As long as the team retains its Blue Ghosts special-event identity, the new branding is Fine. A low B from me.

    The road cap logo and the “Hooks” wordmark are great. If they would have just stuck to these two I think you could build a great uniform set and identity.

    The primary logo is way too complicated and looks like they tried to cram as many details in there as possible. The home cap logo doesn’t add anything the road cap logo doesn’t already address. My issue with the star logo isn’t that the K is backward, but rather I always see “Shook” rather than “Hooks”.

    My problems, summarized:
    1) Sorry all I see is “Chooks.”
    2) The Texas state outline makes it too busy and looks like a BP cap.
    3) The “home” cap looks like the flight path of an airplane with a pilot that got lost.
    4) The “road” cap logo makes no sense either physically (why is the top hook only partially visible?) or storytelling wise (go to Corpus Christi…or Oklahoma; you choose)
    5) Have the Tennessee Titans filed a cease and desist letter against the “alternate” cap and jersey?

    Massive downgrade from the previous set.

    My first response was “What’s a Yooks?”

    There are elements of a good rebrand here (the Texas outline logos), but there’s just too much extra stuff that muddles the overall look.

    This is a riff on their throwback alts that they’ve had for years. Everything they pulled directly from those is basically what works. Everything problematic is what’s new.

    It looks like the designers ran completely amok when simplicity would have served them better. Totally overwrought, too fussy.

    At least a B+. I get a Texas Rangers vibe…But in these days of MiLB Trash Pandas, Sod Poodles, Rubber Ducks..it ain’t a bad look

    At least a B+. I get a Texas Rangers vibe…But in these days of MiLB Trash Pandas, Sod Poodles, Rubber Ducks..it ain’t a bad look

    As a Corpus Christi resident who attends Hooks’ games I HATE the new logos and uniforms. The previous double C hooks were great. I won’t be buying the new look.

    Dump the home cap logo and just use the road cap logo on both caps. I don’t really like either one, but I don’t understand the need for two very similar logos.

    I would guess that the upside K is a possible hidden, maybe initially unintentional reference to the backwards K used in the scorebook to represent struck out looking. If that’s the case, not terrible. As a Texan, I can appreciate the Zavala connection but really don’t like the look of it on the cap. Overall, not a fan of the redesign.

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