dsaline97 Posted April 2, 2016 Author Share Posted April 2, 2016 As promised, I have the updated United States Baseball League logo for the 2016 season! It's a little similar to what the Players' Association used in the past, but they have a new logo as well, I just haven't gotten to that yet. The blue half represents the American Division, and the red the National Division. The USBL didn't mention whether or not the logo was modeled after a specific player, but a lot of people are comparing it to Lou Sanderson's high leg kick from the 1950s (okay, it's just Josh Donaldson). The first expansion team will be up tomorrow (Saturday)! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timberwolf Posted April 2, 2016 Share Posted April 2, 2016 Well I'm excited. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JosiahWVU Posted April 2, 2016 Share Posted April 2, 2016 Baseball is my favorite sport and I find that there are not many baseball leagues on these boards. This is awesome love the new logo. Can't wait for the expansion team. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner8ball Posted April 2, 2016 Share Posted April 2, 2016 I'm really liking the new logo. It's an obvious upgrade over the old one and the player silhouette is a great touch. Can't wait for the expansion teams! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsaline97 Posted April 2, 2016 Author Share Posted April 2, 2016 The Philadelphia Liberty are the first of four expansion teams in 2016 and join San Antonio in the National Division. The City of Brotherly Love has been home to a farm club for the Boston Masons since the 1950s--at one point known as the Liberty--and have established themselves as a baseball city. Sonoco Field at Old City is a bit of a compromise between corporate naming rights and baseball traditionalists, hence the long-winded name. The stadium is made from a lot of brick and marble, just like the surrounding buildings of the area. The playing field is average; it doesn’t favor hitters or pitchers terribly much. The Liberty are building around a core of young, talented players, which is obviously the best approach for building a club from scratch. Manager Dennis MacLean emphasizes two things: sabermetrics and a strong pitching staff. He uses defensive shifts as frequently as anyone, is aggressive on the basepaths, and has been hitting his pitcher in the 8-spot, a trend which is becoming increasingly more popular in the USBL. Mudcat Ramos and Diego Ortega have ace-potential, and at ages 26 and 27, they still have time to get there. Bill Gamble, a switch-hitting first baseman, brings a lot of home run power to a fairly small ballpark. While it’s still a little early to tell, he’s shaping up to have the best season on the club. The identity for Philadelphia is similar to what was worn by the minor league club of the same name in the 70s, but more tasteful and less trendy. The dark royal and red are complimented by silver to create a very patriotic color scheme for a patriotic team name. The home whites are worn with a front paneled cap, one of the defining marks of the minor league set. “Philadelphia” is shortened to “Phila” to increase readability for fans away from the city. Lastly, the shield behind the front number is a reference to the Pennsylvania Railroad, which was established and headquartered in Philly. Washington Potomacs < Philadelphia Liberty Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roadrunner8ball Posted April 2, 2016 Share Posted April 2, 2016 Philly looks solid and the logo looks good but I'd drop the gray behind the bell. It creates a dark atmosphere around the logo but if it was white I feel like it would look lighter and the the bell would pop more. One thing I can't get behind is the script font but it might just be that it looks weird with the new school number font on the front of the jersey. The number and the keystone is a good idea in theory but doesn't really work out on the jersey with the Liberty font. But all the elements by themselves are good besides for a few things. It'll be interesting to see what you do for the next 3! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mbannon92 Posted April 2, 2016 Share Posted April 2, 2016 Great to see this thread back in action! I like what you have going on for Philadelphia. The liberty bell is fun but professional looking, and I'm really a fan of the wordmarks. The lowercase serifed font just seems to work for an America-themed team in Philly. I agree with Roadrunner that the keystone behind the front number doesn't quite work, and the contrast is poor on the home and road. I'd get rid of it there and put the keystone-P logo on the sleeve instead. I'd also look into a different number font, either something to match the wordmarks or standard block. Nike + CFL 2015 | 2015-16 NBA Concepts | Complete College Football Redesign Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JosiahWVU Posted April 2, 2016 Share Posted April 2, 2016 Looks great and I agree with the two previous posts. I think if you increase the keystone to contain the numbers it might look better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KittSmith_95 Posted April 2, 2016 Share Posted April 2, 2016 I'd like to see the Keystone-P on a cap myself, but the set looks fantastic. It feels like a great mix of the Phillies and the 76ers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsaline Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 I'm going to disagree with everyone and say that I love the keystone. It's a great nod to the railroad, Pennsylvania State Highway system, and free masonry. If you change the stroke from gray to white, it will help make the numbers pop off the keystone. Love the number font. I wish the alt jersey could be paired with white pants, or add a red alt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsaline97 Posted April 3, 2016 Author Share Posted April 3, 2016 Thanks for the comments, everyone. While I see what you're all saying about the keystone, I guess my thought was that the front number isn't really an identifying mark of a baseball jersey anymore. Not everyone has it, and it's not always legible from any distance, so putting a color block behind it wouldn't change a whole lot, if you ask me. Putting the secondary logo on the sleeve might look pretty good, but the front number/logo hybrid, to me, is a much more unique look, similar to the Blue Jays. @Roadrunner8ball, I went with a silver stroke as opposed to white on the Bell so it would stand out on the white-paneled hat and not feel as empty. I tried out your suggestion, but it felt like it broke off the silver heavy vibe and had a little too much pop, especially on the road and road alt. @rsaline, the goal with the alternate was to look like the Mets, but more tasteful (actually having silver/grey in the color scheme and no stupid hat to match), so that's why there's no white pants there. I like colored alternates as much as the next guy, but I don't want every RWB team to be outfitted in essentially the same look. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coco1997 Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 The Liberty look awesome! My only critical observation is that it's a bit of an awkward name for a baseball team, but aesthetically the concept is top notch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JosiahWVU Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 10 hours ago, rsaline said: I'm going to disagree with everyone and say that I love the keystone. It's a great nod to the railroad, Pennsylvania State Highway system, and free masonry. If you change the stroke from gray to white, it will help make the numbers pop off the keystone. Love the number font. I wish the alt jersey could be paired with white pants, or add a red alt. I like the keystone too. I think that the gray pants work, on the third because it has gray numbers. I think that's the Marlins fonts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Raptorman415 Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 I love the Philadelphia Liberty. Really the only problem I got with uniform is that I think that the number should be inside the keystone otherwise it's beautiful. I can't wait to see San Antonio and the two American Division teams. Keep up the good work man. It's Me Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsaline97 Posted April 3, 2016 Author Share Posted April 3, 2016 5 hours ago, JosiahWVU said: I like the keystone too. I think that the gray pants work, on the third because it has gray numbers. I think that's the Marlins fonts. Not the Marlins font, but it is something close. 48 minutes ago, Raptorman415 said: I love the Philadelphia Liberty. Really the only problem I got with uniform is that I that the number should be inside the keystone otherwise it's beautiful. I can't wait to see San Antonio and the two American Division teams. Keep up the good work man. I disagree, I think that the only way to contain the number in the keystone would be to either make the number miniscule or the keystone massive. It's a good thought, but I think that kind of concept would work better on a football helmet than a baseball jersey, where there's pretty much one accepted size the number should be. Thanks for the input, the next batch of teams won't be quite as traditional Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Totems!! Posted April 3, 2016 Share Posted April 3, 2016 Great series dsaline. Followed this thread since you started but never commented. Good stuff. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dsaline97 Posted April 5, 2016 Author Share Posted April 5, 2016 Happy real life Opening Day! The second of four expansion teams is the USBL’s second attempt at a second team in a city. And in the meantime, the Brooklyn Privateers seem to be just that in the Big Apple--the second team. You may remember the Boston Americans who spent 15 seasons there before moving to the nation’s capital to become the Potomacs. They were an utter failure, but a lot of that should be pinned on the owner and front office, not just the low attendance. However, the league has a lot of faith in Brooklyn to be a welcoming city for a new franchise. Like Philadelphia, there’s a lot of baseball history there with the Knights as well as past minor league affiliates in Long Island, the Bronx and Brooklyn. Heritage Field also made a good case for an expansion team in New York. The ballpark is a former home of the Knights, has hosted 3 All Star Games in different decades, as well as a prospects game for future USBL draftees. The 24-foot-tall brick wall in left field makes up for the short distance, making a homer to left-center field a near impossible feat. In center, an uphill slope makes long fly balls a difficult play for outfielders and provides a great old-time quirk. The majority of space from the hill to the right field pole is an extension of the hill and can be used as overflow seating for playoffs, All Star Games, or concerts. The enlarged batters’ circle with the words “Welcome to Brooklyn” is another iconic feature of Heritage Field. The Privateers emphasized pitching in the expansion draft, and that may be the only thing that they can be proud of in their inaugural season. Collectively, the staff is projected to put up a fairly decent team ERA, but the pitiful offense may make them the worst expansion club of the bunch. Emilio Castro, Jack Dickey and closer Keith Burns are all trying to make a name for themselves on the mound, and Miguel Diaz comes in as an experienced veteran from Colorado who knows what it takes to win. Brooklyn will roll onto the field on Opening Day with a classy, modern look. Pinstripes thin out (not a gradient) at the shoulders and shins, representing a pirate slashing the stripes. The notches in the scripts and numbers give the same effect. While the color scheme is a bit muddy, it reflects the wear-and-tear of privateer ships in the past. Another unique feature are the road pinstripes, which haven’t been worn in the USBL since the mid-2000s. And finally, the lettering remains red on red backgrounds, including the caps. Phildalephia Liberty < Brooklyn Privateers > San Antonio Phantoms Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timberwolf Posted April 5, 2016 Share Posted April 5, 2016 Oh that's beautiful. My only change would be to make the flag on the red background a different colour, like wheat. That would help with definition. That's only a minor nitpick, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coco1997 Posted April 5, 2016 Share Posted April 5, 2016 I would lighten up the gold color to create better contrast. From a distance it would be difficult to make out what the wordmark says. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KittSmith_95 Posted April 5, 2016 Share Posted April 5, 2016 The blue.... I want to call it "Shadow"... clutters up the wordmarks. Also, red letters would be hard to read on the field on a red jersey. It's a great set, but yeah. You really need to fix up that wordmark issue. Also, did you try a double outline with the numbers? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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