Welcome to the 2025 MLB Uniform Preview series for the American League East.
This will be part of a much larger 2025 MLB Uniform Preview which will include not only all the uniform news and updates for all 30 teams, but it will also include the multitude of changes which have taken place to uniforms overall. While Nike has addressed a good number of issues raised after last season’s disastrous debut of their new uniform template and material, a few issues won’t be addressed until after the 2025 season concludes. Other big uniform news — like the return to teams wearing their regular uniforms in the All-Star game — will all be included in the full MLB Preview, which will be released on Thursday, MLB’s true Opening Day.
The American League East consists of the Baltimore Orioles, Boston Red Sox, New York Yankees, Tampa Bay Rays and Toronto Blue Jays. Several teams in this division will have uniform changes for the 2025 season.
Baltimore Orioles
The Baltimore Orioles “Core Four” uniforms for 2025 include their white home and road gray uniforms, seen above (the white uni is from Spring Training, the gray uniform is seen in 2024). In addition to the white and gray, the Orioles also have an alternate orange jersey, as well as an alternate black jersey. The birds also have a City Connect uniform, which debuted in 2023. That uniform was originally paired with black pants, but the Orioles were one of several teams to “mix and match” different pants with their CCs, going with white pants with their CC for most of last season.
With just a few exceptions, the Orioles wore their CC’s for home Friday night games.
While the club is basically running back their “4 + 1” uniform set for 2025, the Orioles will have one major uniform addition for this season: a set of new orange pants. That exclusive was later confirmed by the team. The plan is to (sometimes) pair the new orange pants with the alternate orange jersey.
The team will debut the new look on April 12th.
The new look will be reminiscent of the 1971-72 Orioles, who wore orange pants and jerseys just a few times. It was a look they replicated once in 2010 for a throwback game.
It will be interesting to see if the O’s decide to pair their new orange pants with other uniform elements — would they wear them with white or black jerseys? Since the team has mixed/matched black and white pants with their CC, would they consider pairing the CC jersey with the new orange pants? So many possibilities…
While not uniform related, the Orioles have also — once again — adjusted the depth of their left field wall.
Baltimore has changed the depth of the wall a couple times, and this latest move is an attempt to make the distance from home plate fair for both hitters and pitchers.
Boston Red Sox
The Red Sox have a boatload of uniform changes for 2025. For their Core Four, in addition to the classic home and road uniforms (seen above from 2024), the Red Sox will keep their alternate red jerseys for one of their alternates. For several years, the Red Sox had an alternate blue jersey which they wore for road games. But they have now dropped the blue jersey from their rotation.
What’s replacing it as their second alternate? In an MLB first, the Red Sox have now designated their blue/yellow City Connect — the first ever CC introduced back in 2021 — as a new alternate.
Why did the Sox decide to promote their CC to alternate status? It might have something to do with their incredible winning percentage when the team wears them.
The BoSox will be receiving a new City Connect uniform for 2025. Early reports of the team having a “green” City Connect have basically been confirmed, and the new CC will very likely be based on the “Green Monster.” As of this writing, the Red Sox have not announced a date the new CC’s will be unveiled.
While most MLB teams must abide by the “4 + 1” rule, a very few teams have been granted special exemptions from the rule. One of these are the Boston Red Sox, who will have an additional alternate — one they have worn on Patriots Day — which simply reads “BOSTON” across their white jersey. The Sox will wear this again in 2025 on Patriots Day.
So the Red Sox’ “Core Four” (actually five) are the home white, road gray, alternate red, “BOSTON Strong,” and the uniform formerly designated as their City Connect. And of course, we can expect a new CC for 2025 to be unveiled later this year.
New York Yankees
The New York Yankees entire Core Four — in fact their entire “4 + 1” uniform protocol — can be seen above.
If you’ve followed Major League Baseball at all, you’re likely aware that the Yankees wear their classic pinstripes at home and road grays for every away game. There have been minor digressions over the years, but these were almost entirely either for special league-wide promotions (Players Weekend for example or special throwback uniforms). They pride themselves on having only two uniforms. When MLB tried to impose their “Turn Ahead The Clock” uniforms league-wide in 1999, the Yanks declined to participate, saying at the time something to the effect of “We’re already wearing our TATC uniforms.” They have never had a dark colored alternate jersey. And just last year, we learned the team won’t have a City Connect uniform. Ever.
In fact, in what constitutes MAJOR uniform news for the Yankees, last season the team made changes to their road uniform, dropping the white outlining on the chest lettering and back number, along with decorative trim on the sleeve cuffs. They had worn that style road uniform since 1973.
Folks were divided on the changes, with some feeling an already plain uniform was made even plainer, while others appreciated the beautiful simplicity.
While it wasn’t initially known why the Yankees would make such a dramatic uniform change, it turns out that Aaron Judge pushed for the change.
The Yankees have no announced uniform changes for 2025, although in a sign that the apocalyse is nigh the Yankees are slowly entering the 21st century, they have now dropped their long-standing facial hair prohibition, and will now permit players to wear “well groomed beards.”
Tampa Bay Rays
If you’re curious as to why the Tampa Bay Rays primary uniforms (depicted above, photos from 2024) don’t show a home white and road gray uniform, that’s because the Rays are one of only two MLB team (the Mariners are the other) who do not have a gray road jersey — a “victim” of MLB’s Core Four restrictions. The team did have a gray jersey, but it was dropped to keep the Rays to four jerseys.
Their other two alternates are a light blue jersey as well as a Devil Rays throw/fauxback. While the light blue tops were worn randomly, the Devil Rays uniform was primarily worn on home Friday games. It’s expected that protocol will continue for 2025.
The Rays also received their first City Connect uniform last season, and boy oh boy was it terrible.
Like a few other teams, the Rays used “stealth” lettering for both their wordmark and uniform numbers, rendering them basically unreadable from any distance over five feet.
Unfortunately, the Rays will have this CC for at least the next two seasons (assuming they “keep” them for three seasons as was Nike’s original plan when they began the CC program in 2021).
While the Rays have no announced uniform changes, mother nature has made their tenuous stadium location even more treacherous. Back when Hurricane Milton basically destroyed the Trop last fall, I speculated at the time the stadium might not be ready for play in 2025. Sadly, I was correct, and the Rays will play their 2025 home games at George Steinbrenner Field, which is home to the Yankees for their spring training games. The Yankees made Steinbrenner Field available for the Rays back in November of last year, and because the Trop won’t be fixed in time for the 2025 season, the Rays will play in a minor league ballpark this season.
Toronto Blue Jays
The Toronto Blue Jays have no announced uniform changes for 2025, and will keep their home white and road gray uniforms as their primaries. To complete their Core Four, the Jays also have a royal blue jersey, which is worn both at home and on the road. For their second alternate, the Blue Jays have a full powder blue fauxback uniform, which the team wears for home games.
And to complete their “4 + 1” the Blue Jays last season introduced their first City Connect uniform, and much like the Tampa Bay Rays, falls victim to legibility issues.
As readers know, I’m a big fan of players who choose to go high-cuffed, showing off their hosiery, but even their special City Connect socks can’t help this uniform look any better. Last season, the team wore their CCs primarily on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays.
Although their Core Four is full-up, the Blue Jays are another team who get special dispensation to wear a third alternate jersey during the season. On July 1st (which is “Canada Day”), the Blue Jays become the Red Jays, busting out special red caps and jerseys for Canadian Independence Day. They even go so far as to create a special set of white pants with red stripes just for the occasion.
The Blue Jays will be home (as they always are) on 7/1, and will once again sport the special Canada Day uniforms.
Finally, here’s an infographic created by Susan Freeman showing the AL East uniforms (cap, jersey, pants) by their official colors. The top line shows cap colors, middle is the jersey, and bottom is the pants. If the pants have a stripe, that is included as well. All “4 + 1” (Core Four plus City Connect) are shown.
You can use this explainer to see the specific breakdown of the cap/jersey/pants.
This article will be updated as any additional uniform news for AL East teams occurs.
Unless I have totally missed something, I have never seen the Orioles roundel that you have in the Uniform Preview pic at the top of the article.
You must have missed something. It has been floating around, but not used often.
That is not an official logo. I believe it’s a patch design that shows up on secondary sites.
Hey Susan! Just a quick note for your infographic; the trim for the Jays’ powder blue uniforms is navy/white/navy; no red. I do love the simplicity of these designs though, even if they’re not entirely comprehensive (i.e. the O’s wearing white OR orange pants with their orange jersey). Something about them is very satisfying haha
Ha ha, I have the O’s in that combo in my master file – we did not want to complicate things here. I included it because it was in the MLB Style Guide. However you have some teams that do all kinds of pieced together elements – so how would you ever document it all – how would you say this cap on Mondays…? Plus I have not figured what to do (If anything) with different hat combos. I have them annotated in text in my file.
BIG thanks on the Blue Jays powder blue striping! I never got into all the “other” teams before now other than a first glance “Oh, that’s nice” level. So this has been a lot to “calculate” into the simplified reference. I appreciate any necessary edits by the people who “know” their team.
I know it won’t happen, and would upset traditionalists, but MLB should require numbers on the front of the jersey, or if not there, then on the front pocket area of the pants.
I’m as traditional as it gets, but I agree. A jersey just looks incomplete without a front number.
Numbers in baseball are nearly completely superfluous at this point.
If you’re you’re at the game the players are listed on the scoreboard by position (at least in all the modern stadiums) and if you’re watching at home they readily identify the players with regularity (and not like you can see all the players and their numbers at the same time).
Seems silly to force teams to put numbers on the front if they choose not to. What purpose would it serve?
Players don’t stay in the same position throughout the entire game. Fielders back up each other. Runners need to be identified so one of them doesn’t pass up the other on the base paths. And let’s not forget the chaos that ensues in an extended rundown.
Manfred and Nike want you to believe that numbers are superfluous so they can justify the nonsense of every player wearing the same number, or wearing stealth numbers on a CC or Players Weekend jersey. Don’t believe them.
Numbers matter.
Contrasting numbers really matter.
They seemed to manage before 1929 when the Indians and Yankees added numbers to their jerseys to sell scorecards and programs. The Athletics didn’t add numbers until 1939.
I suspect, in my life, I have watched at least 1500 games at various levels both in person and on TV and I can’t think of a single instance where the number a player was wearing factored into any game or play that occurred. Or that helped me to understand any aspect of the game as it was played. YMMV.
If you were watching a game on TV or listening to the radio, numbers mattered to the announcers who used them to quickly and easily identify players.
A 1920s broadcast on the radio probably sounded as awkward as the time I had to announce a numberless indoor soccer exhibition game. It’s possible to call a game like that, but it doesn’t sound as good.
Numbers may not matter to *you* directly, but they matter to scorers, announcers, and a lot of other people.
I hear what you are saying. That perhaps teh numbers help the announcers identify the players while the game is going on. Maybe. I’ve never heard a radio announcer refer to a player by number, unless it was for emphasis, “Big number 26, Boog Powell strides to the plate…” I’ve never heard a MLB radio announcer say,” Number 13 makes the grab at the warning track.”
Why aren’t numbers listed in a MLB box score? Every other number that seems to matter is.
Soccer is a completely different sport, where players are often bunched up during play. Numbers can be helpful since it is a dynamic sport where all the players move all over the field and it’s possible for a midfielder to be ahead of a forward – or a back to be even with a midfielder.
But if the inning starts and you know who is in LF, and the ball is hit to the leftfielder, how does the number help the announcer determine who made the play?
You know where all the players are at any given time.
If the ball is hit to the centerfield and the CF is backed up by the left fielder – again you know exactly who they are because they were in those positions when the play started.
In a run down – maybe numbers might help with figuring out who makes the final tag – but if you’re watching the play (and you know who is in each position) then you know who each throw is going to.
Announcers don’t say the numbers because we’re taught not to. You use them to identify the player quickly in your head, then you just say the name. Saves time and it sounds better.
Guessing numbers don’t appear in box scores for a similar reason. It saves space. They’ve already shrunk the print on box scores (I know because I saved a paper from 1976 and the stats page is a lot easier to read) so the less you have on there the better.
By the way, numbers matter to the officials as well. Even in baseball, the umps might have to figure out whom to to toss in a bench clearing brawl. I don’t envy them if a big fight breaks out on April 15th ..
“if you’re watching at home they readily identify the players with regularity”
And how do you think the announcers identify the players? Hint: they’re not microchipped like puppies.
By watching the game. It’s not like they have substitutions on the fly in baseball.
If there is a substitution, it is announced both in game live and by the announcers. By Name. Not number.
I don’t know this for a fact, but when a manager brings a change to the umpire – do they do it by name? Or number? Or both? I suspect it’s by name.
Look at any baseball box score…Are there numbers listed? No. Because they don’t matter. They are listed in basketball, football, and hockey because in those sports numbers do actually matter.
For honorary stuff (retirements, memorial patches) numbers are used but more as a short hand for said player. Still players who played before the issuance of numbers have still been honored by their teams (see Cobb in Detroit). Baseball teams also find ways to honor those who matter to the franchise but didn’t wear numbers (See Bob Uecker this season).
Would buy the Yankees arrogant b.s. if they didn’t slap a tacky Starr Insurance patch on the sleeve of their sacred uniforms.
100% agree with this. Can’t let tradition stand in the way of a few extra dollars.
Plus so much of their “tradition” is derived from angry George Steinbrenner memos from 1977 anyway. Like no beards and playing “New York New York” after losses.
If the Yankees would have refused to wear the 2019 Players Weekend unis, and refused to wear an ad patch, they would be my favorite team.
As a 50 year Red Sox fan, the Yankees have the best uniforms! Traditional with no yellow or green. The, CC program is horrific with the Rays and Jays being a perfect example. As for the Red Sox, I can’t watch them in yellow. If a team must have four uniforms, Boston should stick to team colors. With that said the navy top was much better than the red. If the most wear red return to the navy piping or try white.
I hope the O’s only wear the orange pants with an orange top. Anything else wouldn’t look good. Also as far as the solid orange uni, I think it would look much better with the home cap with the white front!
Minus the CC, Toronto has nice uniforms!
Tampa’s powder blue top needs the team name rather than the sun or whatever it is!
The Yankees should’ve left the white outline on the road uniform it looked more modern that way. If they wanted to wear the plane version it would’ve been better as an alternate. The beard ban should’ve been kept. These players make too much money to complain about shaving. Al least they don’t wear solid jerseys and ugly city connects.
Seemed somewhat hypocritical to me, that Yankee players couldn’t have beards or extensive facial hair while at the same time allowing them to wear jewelry and arm sleeve and neck tattoos.
The “hair” ban was put in place by a conservative reactionary at a time when longer hairstyles, afros, sideburns, mustaches, and beards were being worn by both players and society in general – especially those who were pushing for societal change.
It never served any real purpose.
Uni watch (if it hasn’t done so already) should create a linkable or pin-able post that lays out all of its memes.
Stealth numbers
BFBS
Chain stitching
JRR
Headspoon
etc.
BFBS is the first entry in the long-published Uni Watch glossary.
link
Chain Stitching and Headspoon are in there, too.
Stealth Numbers…well, that’s kind of self-explanatory.
Click on the “About” link at the top of the page and it’s the last item in the drop-down menu.
Thank you. And thank you for pointing out where to find it.
Nice to see “Fight Strap” on the list.
I own an authenticate CCM Brent Sutter Islanders Jersey. Recently, when they (finally) put him in the team Hall of Fame, I attended the game. Through sheer dumb luck, I got to meet Mr. Sutter and take a picture. As he was leaving, one of his attendants asked me if I wanted him to sign my jersey. Yes. Of course, but I didn’t have him sign it on one of the numbers. Instead, I asked him to sign the fight strap. Which he graciously obliged.
where is that O’s logo from?
Tampa Bay is really in need of a uni overhaul. The white home uni is the only good thing they have going. The blue road unis have an almost invisible wordmark. It would be better in a contrasting color. The powder blue uni looks silly with just the sunburst on it, no wordmark or team name at all. When was the last time that happened? Their CC uni is just terrible, 99% of us agree. The fauxback Devil Rays was actually pretty good.
This first time I’ve heard hate on the Rays CC… You see merch being worn everywhere in St.Petersburg, Tampa, Clearwater etc … I think its awesome and the other comment saying 99% doesn’t like it couldn’t be further from the truth. Its one of the best CC and their has even been articles on this very site stating it as well…
No to CC and yes to beards? They might almost turn me into a Yankee fan. But no. Go Mets!