MLB: Project 32 - New Dugout Jackets Added

[EBrooks]

The only thing I would change is making the gold uniform cream. It fits with the whole "Cream City" thing too. But again, that might just be my hatred for gold being used as a primary color by most teams lol

[MJD7]

Once again great job! This has the making of a truly classic & timeless identity. While it doesn’t immediately jump out for any particular reason, its greatness is in the attention to small details. Looking forward to the alternate take.

[Gothamite]

21 hours ago, SFGiants58 said:

MILWAUKEE BREWERS, PT. I - Roll out the Royal Blue Barrel (with yellow)!

 

 

 

This one is a refinement of a concept I posted here about two years ago. I'll rehash what I said there, albeit with a few adjustments.

 

In the two years since I released that concept, I moved to Milwaukee. I love it here, and I adopted the Brewers as my second team. It helps that the Giants have no "bad" history with the team, save for the Prince Fielder bowling incident. Heck, I've grown kind of fond of the moment. I like going to Miller Park, as it's a pretty laid-back facility (compared to AT&T Park) with plenty of sweet people. 

 

One of the things I've noticed about Milwaukee (aside from the polite, laid back people and all the cool places around the town) is that people here bleeping love the royal/yellow color scheme for the Brewers. I see it everywhere, with the current look getting relatively little attention. What I've also noticed is that people love Ogwust, the Beer Barrelman. It's not to the same level as the Ball-in-Glove, but it's close. I've never been keen on the BiG, and my time in Milwaukee has not changed that. I don't dislike it, but I think its expiration date has passed. I've found that Ogwust, in his many forms, is more adaptable and speaks more to the team name. So, I've taken it upon myself to give the Brewers a look that blends the club's history with the American Association Brewers' aesthetics (Thanks, @Gothamite and friends!).

 

I restored royal and yellow, albeit with a bit of a twist. I used the Dodgers and Cubs' shade of royal blue (294 C), to make a compromise with navy (the primary color of the American Association Brewers and of the Major League team for the past 23 years). The yellow is proper 1235 C athletic gold, as the classic yellow was too pale.

 

The new primary logo is a "Borchert Field-ized" version of the current cap logo, as the block M has relevance to both the minor league and major league baseball history of Milwaukee. It gets both the city name and namesake across while looking classy. It may be a bit Michigan-ish, but the proportions and the barley leaf make it different enough. I tweaked it to have uniform serif sizes (an issue I had with previous versions). The secondary logo is @ren69's excellent cleanup of the American Association Brewers' Ogwust logo, albeit in the new colors. It's playful, has modern line weights, and fitting for the team/city. The tertiary is Ogwust in front of Wisconsin, with Ogwusts' glove hovering over Milwaukee (my modernization of this logo).

 

 

The uniforms go for a classy look that fits with both team and civic history. The scripts are a modernization of the American Association Brewers' cursive wordmarks from the 1940's. It calls to mind the old styles of beer labeling around Milwaukee (which I've seen a lot of since moving here), while also paying homage to the history of baseball in the city. I adjusted the "s" in the "Brewers" script to look more like the 1940's version. The numbers are a modified slab-serif font, to tie in with the cap logo and with the aesthetic of some of those old beer signs. The scripts have enough heft for there to be less of a clash than with the Nationals. The "5" has a Packers-style notch. Ogwust appears on the raglan sleeves, along with a simplified striping pattern (blue/yellow/blue, a sort of Braisher Stripe). The patterned trim of my first edition just looked garish to me and didn't fit a team of the Brewers' age. The sock stripes are the classic Packers' pattern, as I thought it worked well for the old-timey aesthetic.

 

 

The first alternates have a little flair to them. The first is a gold top with a gold-billed cap. It uses the hat insignia as a crest, like the 1911-37 minor league Brewers. The blue jersey is a recoloring of the home uniform, with the tertiary on the sleeve (as a "civic identifier"). I put a limit on their usage, for obvious reasons.

 

 

The throwback alternates are also fun. The first is a 1993 (because of the NOB) throwback with a few adjustments. These tweaks include a sleeve patch with the 1970-77 Ogwust in front of the original Wisconsin logo. The socks bear the striping pattern of the 1969 Pilots, to discourage the Mariners from throwing back to that team. It's my way of satisfying the BiG fans. The second throwback is a recreation of the 1948 American Association Brewers' home uniform, which corrects some inaccuracies with the throwbacks. The cap M now looks like the original logo, while the jerseys gain a zipper front. I added Ogwust to the sleeves, to enforce an informal visual continuity with the uniforms (cursive front, Ogwust as a patch, etc.).

 

 

This identity for the Brewers takes elements from the history of both the major league club and the history of baseball in Milwaukee (the American Association Brewers and their affiliation with the Braves). It merges these bits into a cohesive identity that balances both modernity and vintage charm. The throwbacks/faux backs also aid this goal, as they carry across a visual continuity of script and logo design with references to various points of Milwaukee's baseball history (i.e., the BiG, pinstripes, the classic cursive wordmark, and the Braves affiliation). C+C is appreciated!

 

For the alternate take, we unlock the potential of a forgotten Brewers identity!

 

 

Stop it.

 

You are breaking my heart.

 

Breaking my  ing heart.

 

 

[JH42XCC]

You spelled Owgust wrong. But regardless, the Brewers redesign looks extraordinarily impressive. I could see the Brewers going to this look if they get the chance.

 

Also, great work with the Los Angeles Angels (alternate Dodgers) concept. Imagine: if the Brooklyn Dodgers had adopted the "Angels" identity upon moving to Los Angeles following the 1957, then the AL Los Angeles team (which began play in 1961) might've been named the Stars! (after the PCL's Hollywood Stars)

[The_Admiral]

There's a lot that I love and a couple things I'd have done differently. First things first, the updated scripts are perfect. "Brewers" in particular looks amazing. The updated Beer Barrel Man brings joy to my heart. The stripes on the socks add a ton by getting more blue/yellow interplay involved. 

 

The old block M with the barley: excellent idea and execution to merge two eras of the Brewers, but it's not the ball-in-glove! Yes, I'm one of those people: ball-in-glove is love, ball-in-glove is life. I'd have incorporated it into the old M/Wisconsin secondary, which would gain a ton of character by adding the barley underline. I can't help it: I really like the ball-in-glove.

[neo_prankster]

Pretty good so far. Now looking forward to Part 2.

[TVIXX]

You can never go wrong with the royal and yellow for the Brewers and the concept gives the Brewers the own look without looking to much the cubs

 

you fixed the angry jays look, let's see how you gonna fix the mid 90's look

[SFGiants58]

Thanks, guys! I'm sorry that I didn't get back to you guys sooner, but real life has kind of gotten in the way of the series. I won't be posting as frequently these next few weeks (or longer), so bear with me for a bit. I've got to pay more attention to the other parts of my life.

 

On 9/24/2017 at 2:52 PM, KittSmith_95 said:

It's.... it's beautiful. I feel this is as close as we could come to seeing a perfect Brewers identity. Part 2..... are you going all in on the Motre Bame look? I always enjoyed it. 

On 9/24/2017 at 3:11 PM, coco1997 said:

I know I sound like a broken record, but what can I say? You've outdone yourself yet again. This is exactly how the Brewers should look and forever remain. It's better than anything they've ever worn. 

 

I'm also curious about the "forgotten identity." Like @KittSmith_95 I too hope it's an update of the '90s set. Always thought that was a really underrated look that had some questionable color choices. 

 

Thanks! I think you'll like my Part II on them.

 

On 9/24/2017 at 3:16 PM, mcrosby said:

Have you tried using the BiG logo on your new Barrelman?

 

Thank you! I thought about it, but I couldn't find a way to incorporate it that was natural/didn't clash with the rest of the design. If I made it the glove, it loses the symbolism. If I put it on Owgust's chest, it clashed with the logo's details. I wanted to work it in, but it just didn't flow well.

 

On 9/24/2017 at 7:05 PM, EBrooks said:

As a diehard Brewer fan, I'm salivating at this look. Brewers desperately need a bit of a re-brand and we've been motioning more towards the ball and glove look as of late. While I love that logo, I really like what you did: especially with the barrel man logo. I'm not a fan of the gold jerseys (I've just never been a fan of that color being the entire uni), but everything else is excellent. I do like @mcrosby's idea of using the BiG logo on the barrelman in some way. 

 

On 9/24/2017 at 7:25 PM, EBrooks said:

The only thing I would change is making the gold uniform cream. It fits with the whole "Cream City" thing too. But again, that might just be my hatred for gold being used as a primary color by most teams lol

 

Thanks! I'm going to stick by the yellow-gold jerseys. I've always liked the way they look for the team, and I find that look far more appealing than seeing royal/yellow-gold on a creme jersey (look at the Mariners' throwback to get why the combo isn't pleasing).

 

On 9/24/2017 at 9:25 PM, MJD7 said:

Once again great job! This has the making of a truly classic & timeless identity. While it doesn’t immediately jump out for any particular reason, its greatness is in the attention to small details. Looking forward to the alternate take.

On 9/25/2017 at 10:07 AM, Gothamite said:

 

 

Stop it.

 

You are breaking my heart.

 

Breaking my  ing heart.

 

 

 

Thanks, guys! Gothamite, you were right about dumping the patterned trim in my old thread. It was a bit too much for the Brewers' otherwise retro look. Patterned trim is OK for the Diamondbacks/Snakes and Rockies, but not really for the Brewers. Knowing a bunch of Brewers fans, I have a feeling that the patterned trim may be a step too far for them.

 

On 9/25/2017 at 1:41 PM, JH42XCC said:

You spelled Owgust wrong. But regardless, the Brewers redesign looks extraordinarily impressive. I could see the Brewers going to this look if they get the chance.

 

Also, great work with the Los Angeles Angels (alternate Dodgers) concept. Imagine: if the Brooklyn Dodgers had adopted the "Angels" identity upon moving to Los Angeles following the 1957, then the AL Los Angeles team (which began play in 1961) might've been named the Stars! (after the PCL's Hollywood Stars)

 

Thanks for catching the typos! I too figured that the AL Los Angeles team might have gone by the name "Hollywood Stars" or "Los Angeles Stars," with a purple/yellow-gold color scheme (assuming that Jack Kent Cooke bought/founded the team). I might explore that at some point.

 

On 9/25/2017 at 2:00 PM, the admiral said:

There's a lot that I love and a couple things I'd have done differently. First things first, the updated scripts are perfect. "Brewers" in particular looks amazing. The updated Beer Barrel Man brings joy to my heart. The stripes on the socks add a ton by getting more blue/yellow interplay involved. 

 

The old block M with the barley: excellent idea and execution to merge two eras of the Brewers, but it's not the ball-in-glove! Yes, I'm one of those people: ball-in-glove is love, ball-in-glove is life. I'd have incorporated it into the old M/Wisconsin secondary, which would gain a ton of character by adding the barley underline. I can't help it: I really like the ball-in-glove.

 

Thank you! I'm glad you like the wordmark, as it's easily my favorite part of the set. It hits a  balance between a baseball script and a vintage beer logo. It's perfect for Milwaukee!

 

I can see why Ball-in-Glove lovers might take issue with it getting shunted off to alternate status, so I'm probably going to do a set (not a replacement, but a supplement) with the BiG as the primary cap logo. Owgust and the script carry enough of the "beer" imagery. I'll try that Wisconsin secondary idea for the alternate, and I may have a new alternate cap logo in the works.

 

On 9/26/2017 at 7:46 PM, TVIXX said:

You can never go wrong with the royal and yellow for the Brewers and the concept gives the Brewers the own look without looking to much the cubs

 

you fixed the angry jays look, let's see how you gonna fix the mid 90's look

 

Thanks! I might do something with the 3D shadow/reddish Jays, but I doubt it. Whatever I'd wind up doing to it wouldn't be as fun as the Black Jays salvage operation.

 

Anyway, onto the alternate take!

 

MILWAUKEE BREWERS, PT. II - Es ist die rettungszeit! (It's the rescue/salvage time!)

 

If I could sum up the 1994-99 Brewers' identity in one word, it'd be "potential." It had the potential to be a modern classic, what with the unique "germanic" font and the mixing of navy and metallic gold. However, the rollout set had a lot of problems, like an awkward arch pattern on the wordmarks, a weird cap logo, and too much of the forest green accent color. The 1997-99 tweaks fixed some of the issues by minimizing green, introducing a new cap logo, and redoing the arching. @Gothamite has suggested that the way to improve the set would be to eliminate the green and go to single outlines. That thread also features a funny @the admiral quote about why Brewers fans aren't fond of that period. He's right. As a current resident of Milwaukee, I never see the Germanic merchandise (period or reproduction) anywhere outside of a few people at Miller Park.

 

Green goes away, leaving us with just navy and metallic gold. The primary logo still uses the "MB," but has a new backing diamond (adapted from my Carolina Pilots concept). The secondary is the "M" cap logo, and the tertiaries are updated versions of the Wisconsin logo, and the portrait of the 1970-77 Owgust (from the TATC uniform, my favorite TATC look) encased within the current primary logo's roundel.

 

 

The standard set features only a few changes from the 1997-99 uniforms. The wordmarks and cap logo (based off of the road cap, as I like the extra gold) all have one outline, and the new primary is on the sleeves. I kept the thick striping, as it's a distinctive look.

 

 

The alternates are where I have a bit more fun. The first one features the "Brewers" script in gold, as I wanted a little more gold in the set. The Wisconsin roundel is on the sleeve, as a city identifier. It doesn't have placket trim, as gold placket trim looked too busy. I brought back the barley pattern from my 2015 concept, as I wanted to use it somewhere in the set and it fit with the 1990's styling. The second jersey uses the "M" logo, with the Owgust roundel (as a team name identifier). It also has a metallic brim, like the Astros' old alternate cap. I'm surprised the Brewers didn't do it at the time, so I sought to fix this omission. 

 

 

It's nothing too fancy, but it goes to show how the close the Brewers came to a modern classic in the 1990's before they screwed it up with their modern look. C+C is appreciated!

 

Up next, the now-eliminated St. Louis Cardinals!

[coco1997]

That's a BIG improvement on their '90s set. If the Brewers refuse to return to their BiG look full time, I'd be more than happy if they went with something like this.

 

One small quibble: you forgot the inner white trim on the second alt's "9."

 

Looking forward to the Cards!

[SFGiants58]

7 minutes ago, coco1997 said:

That's a BIG improvement on their '90s set. If the Brewers refuse to return to their BiG look full time, I'd be more than happy if they went with something like this.

 

One small quibble: you forgot the inner white trim on the second alt's "9."

 

Looking forward to the Cards!

 

Thanks! I fixed the image error.

[KittSmith_95]

Now this has me split. I love both Part 1 & Part 2 equally here. In fact, I kinda did a meshing of both looks here ages ago, and I feel like you really nailed the 90's era whilst bringing it to the modern day. Part of me kinda wishes the "MB" logo was used outside of the primary, but that's a really minor nitpick. Either one of these looks would work well for the Brewers today. 

[Paul Lucas]

Man, I love that 97-99 set...my favorite Brewers look. And you've perfected it here! Glad you kept the thick piping.

 

Unpopular opinion: I would love to see them go back to this (or even switch the blue for a dark green and unify the Wisconsin teams) and return to the American League while they're at it.

 

Anyway, excellent job, brother. 

[coco1997]

I'm very curious to see how you do the alternate take for St. Louis, another team that's been historically very traditional. 

[SS8609]

The Milwaukee sets are definitely golden! I honestly believe if the Brewers really want to bolster its fan base, especially given its current situation, a return to the Marquette colors (complete with the definitive barley stalk underline) would be the way to go. I also would not mind the Brewers doing the alternate take, which had the potential to really be something had the team played their cards right in the 90s. I'm not sure if the muted bronze on the alternate take would really win over fans lock, stock and barrel, since a good portion of their fans are so snobby about the BiG-era colors that any future rebrand would have to involve the colors of the pre-"Motre Bame" period.

 

Annnndddddd...I'm about to call another Uber again. Miller High Life may be fine and dandy, but I'm ready for some Beechwood-aged Budweiser...Meet me in St. Louis!

[Carolingian Steamroller]

As a kid who owned not one but two separate mid-'90s Brewers caps, I approve of this concept. I'm of two minds about the extra thick stripes. It's a great unique element but I feel like the thickness on the original was a little too thick, while throwbacks that use the current soutache thickness seem to be lacking. There's probably a nice middle ground wherein thicker than normal soutache would be used without being too much. 

[The_Admiral]

I like it a lot, and think it solves a lot of the problems the 1994 set had, but ultimately, it would have been a good change of pace that couldn't have lasted. As I've said about the Rams, Oilers, Penguins, and whoever else did it (most certainly the Brewers), teams that dark-n-fade their colors are teams that are sleeping and have to wake back up.

[SFGiants58]

Thanks, guys!

 

20 hours ago, KittSmith_95 said:

Now this has me split. I love both Part 1 & Part 2 equally here. In fact, I kinda did a meshing of both looks here ages ago, and I feel like you really nailed the 90's era whilst bringing it to the modern day. Part of me kinda wishes the "MB" logo was used outside of the primary, but that's a really minor nitpick. Either one of these looks would work well for the Brewers today. 

 

Thanks! I like what you did with the navy/metallic gold. It's a good color scheme, but I don't think it works for the Brewers.

 

14 hours ago, Paul Lucas said:

Man, I love that 97-99 set...my favorite Brewers look. And you've perfected it here! Glad you kept the thick piping.

 

Unpopular opinion: I would love to see them go back to this (or even switch the blue for a dark green and unify the Wisconsin teams) and return to the American League while they're at it.

 

Anyway, excellent job, brother. 

 

Thank you! I do think it'd look nice in dark green, but I like the idea of the "unified color scheme" thing being exclusive to Pittsburgh. Green and/or yellow-gold are a nice way to tie the Wisconsin teams together (as well as the Braisher stripe).

 

14 hours ago, coco1997 said:

I'm very curious to see how you do the alternate take for St. Louis, another team that's been historically very traditional. 

 

I was curious about that too, but I think I've figured out something enjoyable.

 

11 hours ago, SS8609 said:

The Milwaukee sets are definitely golden! I honestly believe if the Brewers really want to bolster its fan base, especially given its current situation, a return to the Marquette colors (complete with the definitive barley stalk underline) would be the way to go. I also would not mind the Brewers doing the alternate take, which had the potential to really be something had the team played their cards right in the 90s. I'm not sure if the muted bronze on the alternate take would really win over fans lock, stock and barrel, since a good portion of their fans are so snobby about the BiG-era colors that any future rebrand would have to involve the colors of the pre-"Motre Bame" period.

 

Annnndddddd...I'm about to call another Uber again. Miller High Life may be fine and dandy, but I'm ready for some Beechwood-aged Budweiser...Meet me in St. Louis!

 

Thanks! I would not want to see the Brewers wear my alternate take in the modern day, especially when royal/yellow-gold is an option.

 

8 hours ago, Carolingian Steamroller said:

As a kid who owned not one but two separate mid-'90s Brewers caps, I approve of this concept. I'm of two minds about the extra thick stripes. It's a great unique element but I feel like the thickness on the original was a little too thick, while throwbacks that use the current soutache thickness seem to be lacking. There's probably a nice middle ground wherein thicker than normal soutache would be used without being too much. 

 

Thank you! I tried to get a nice balance with the thick trim, but I think it could be a tiny bit thinner (not to make the front of the jersey look busy). I'll include it in an update.

 

7 hours ago, the admiral said:

I like it a lot, and think it solves a lot of the problems the 1994 set had, but ultimately, it would have been a good change of pace that couldn't have lasted. As I've said about the Rams, Oilers, Penguins, and whoever else did it (most certainly the Brewers), teams that dark-n-fade their colors are teams that are sleeping and have to wake back up.

 

Thanks. It's another example of me trying to make the best of a crummy premise, namely the dark-n-fade fad. Their time was the mid-late 1990's and early '00s, and that time is over. I do wonder what the Germanic Brewers would look like in royal/yellow-gold. It'd probably just look silly, as the aesthetics don't line up. It's the same kind of discord that happens when people try to recolor the 2004-15 "Padres" script in brown/yellow.

 

Anyway, onto Los Birdos!

 

ST. LOUIS CARDINALS, PT. I - The Cardinal Way of Restomodding.

 

The Cardinals, despite their fans being the worst kind of jabronis out there (i.e., McCall ), have a beautiful identity. However, there are tiny problems with their set. The "StL" insignia is a tad too sterile for my liking, the retro alternate misses on several marks, and the away uniform could use a few choice alterations. So, let's get to it!

 

The colors remain the same, as does the "bird on a toothpick." It's a strong logo, and I find it preferable to a roundel. The secondary is my tweaked version of the "StL" insignia, to have a bit more of the 1940-55 cap and 1960's -80's batting helmet /BP jersey flair. Here is a comparison. The tertiary is a home plate shape with the birds on top. It features the insignia, the founding date, and the sock stripe pattern. It's such a classic sock stripe pattern (dating back to 1951) that I wanted to put it in a logo.

 

 

The uniforms get several tweaks. I brought back the old-school Rawlings NOB font, as I've always liked the way it looked. Here is a comparison. 

 

The road set has the most changes. I moved the "St. Louis" wordmark from the home alternate to the road jersey, as I hold to my belief that only the Phillies, Tigers, and Yankees are exempt from the "team name at home, city name on the road" rule. I also decided to split the difference between the red and navy away cap looks (both of which have their fans) by giving the navy hat a red bill. I've often advocated for the Cardinals to do this, as it's a good way to tribute those early-mid 1940's teams and inject a bit of color into their road uniforms without going overboard. Of course, I wouldn't make it the road and home hat, as the red cap has been with the team for over 50 years at this point and has survived pullovers, powder blue, and the no front number phase. I also restored navy belts to the aways.

 

 

The retro alternate gets a big makeover. I added the sleeve/shoulder striping from the 1940-50 uniforms (which necessitated raglan sleeves), added the road cap (like back in the day), and redid the lettering. There's no NOB, the number font is a serifed block, and the bat on the script is now navy (like the old black bats). It's a bit more authentic now. The road alternate is a "clash kit" for when the team plays other teams with navy caps (i.e., Braves, Nationals, interleague in the AL East, etc.). It's a way to cater to the red-on-road fans.

 

 

The Redbirds don't need a whole lot of changes, but these little tweaks restore and modernize a few classic touches. C+C is appreciated!

 

For the alternate take, what if the 1956 redesign stuck?

 

P.S. The number I used on the templates was for Giants/Cardinals Hall of Famer Orlando Cepeda.

[MJD7]

I echo @the admiral's sentiments in regards to the Brewers alternate take.

 

As for the Cardinals (probably my favorite look in baseball) you did a good job of cleaning everything up. I will be honest though that I'm not a big fan of the new "StL." Maybe it's because I'm so used to the real version ,but it looks like a compromise between old and new that doesn't completely gel. At most, I would place the pointed serif that is at the top of the real-life "S" on the bottom as well, to match and to keep the lines more fluid. Also, I'm one that's in the "red cap on the road" camp, but I'd say it's fair to reserve that to a clash.

 

I'm really looking forward to this alternate take, should be one of the more interesting ones!

[The_Admiral]

Terrific. I'm red-cap-on-road too, but the red insignia on navy crown with red bill should definitely be their BP/ST cap (the single bird-on-bat always felt too informal for the estimable St. Louis Cardinals, even on practice hats, and especially unacceptable in Sunday games). I agree that if the Cardinals are to have navy hats, the bills should be red. I like the new StL but can't put a finger on what changed. The retro uniforms look neat, too.

 

I like losing the condensed block for NOBs, which is practically a signature Mets element to me and out of place on an NL rival of sorts (outside of Jason Isringhausen). 

EDIT: thinking about it more, I can definitely see the tertiary as a template of sorts for observing championships and retired numbers around Busch Stadium. 

[Cardsblues02]

I love the uniforms here, but I am not sure what to make of that "home plate" logo. Its too busy for my liking. The stripes, the year, the birds, it is way too much. Do the Cards really need an alternate logo? As long as I have been following the Cardinals, I have never heard a bad thing about their uniforms, and you some how made them better, so props for that. But I don't like that logo...