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MLB: Project 32 - New Dugout Jackets Added


SFGiants58

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Well, I guess there's no better way to celebrate post #1600 than by launching my newest concept thread!

 

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Welcome to MLB: Project 32! After posting in my tweaks thread for about two years (where I'll keep posting little one-offs), I figured I should reorganize all of my concepts with new presentations, template tweaks (mostly altering sleeve and trouser displays), and other refinements. I will try to have regular updates, as long as my schedule allows it.

 

Above are the preliminary colors for each team, along with new divisional alignments! There are no more Centrals, but rather two divisions of eight. The Astros and Diamondbacks have swapped spots (making the 1998 expansion an AL expansion, parallel to the 1993 NL expansion), while one team has been added to each league. The top two teams in each division make the playoffs (seeded 1-4 regardless of division) and the first round grows to seven games (because no Wild Card game and "death to small sample size randomness"). 

 

This series will feature two parts per team. One part will be the main concept, the one I'm most happy with presenting. The other will be an alternate take. These will explore past identities, shirk off brand equity, and present interesting fusions. I hope to you take you guys on a wild ride, so let's get started!

 

TEAMS

 

American League East

Baltimore Orioles (Modern St. Louis Browns)

Boston Red Sox (Forest Green + Red Sox)

Carolina Pilots (Modern Seattle Pilots)

Cleveland Indians (Cleveland Guardians) (Navy-Centric) (Guardians Update and Recolor)

Detroit Tigers (Bengal-ized Tigers)

New York Yankees (Dugout Script + Red Accent Yankees)

Tampa Bay Stingrays (Tampa Bay Rays "of Light")

Toronto Blue Jays (Salvaging the Black Jays)

AL East Updates/AL West Teaser

Dugout Jackets (Alternate Takes)

 

American League West

Anaheim Angels (Navy/Red Revival)

Arizona Diamondbacks (Phoenix Snakes) (Snakes Update)

Chicago White Sox (Greyscale goodness)

Kansas City Royals (Royal Blue + Metallic Gold) (Minor Tweaks)

Minnesota Twins (Forest Green + Light Blue and "Twin Cities") (New Road Alternate)

Oakland Athletics (Oakland Oaks)

Seattle Mariners (Royal/Yellow and Pt. I Update) (New Grey Base Color)

Texas Rangers (Dallas Chaparrals)

AL West Updates and NL East Teaser

Dugout Jackets (Alternate Takes)

 

National League East

Atlanta Braves (Atlanta Firebirds) (Firebirds Update)

Cincinnati Reds (Fancy Block, scripts, and black highlights)

Miami Marlins (Updated) (Florida Flamingos)

Montréal Expos (Updated) (Montréal Voyageurs) (White Pine Tweaks)

New York Mets (Updated) (Black and Pink Windowpanes and Road Options)

Philadelphia Phillies (Blue and Gold, a keystone, and William Penn)

Pittsburgh Pirates (Updated) (Tuscan Font and Updated Pirate)

Washington Nationals (Salvaging the Beveled Nats)

NL East Updates and NL West Teaser

Dugout Jackets (Alternate Takes)

 

National League West

Chicago Cubs (Gray Update) (1930's Modernization)

Colorado Rockies (Updated) (Denver Zephyrs)

Houston Astros (Updated) (1994-99 gradient) (Houston Railers) (Navy Nagareboshi)

Los Angeles Dodgers (Los Angeles Angels)

Milwaukee Brewers (Rescuing the Germanic Brewers)

St. Louis Cardinals (Updated) (1956 Modernization)

San Diego Padres (Surf's Up in Navy and Brown/Light Blue/Yellow)

San Francisco Giants (San Francisco Seals)

Dugout Jackets (Alternate Takes)

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AL East


BALTIMORE ORIOLES, PT. I - 1966-71 Modernization

 

Like with my first full series, we start off with the Orioles. This concept is an evolution of my earlier set of tweaks, modernizing the 1966-71 uniforms. What I've done on top of the old versions (using the 1989-94 script - a tailed version of the dynasty-era script, restoring the classic striped socks, and removing all references to the ornithologically-correct bird and the Maryland flag) is more minute tweaking.

 

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The primary logo's cartoon bird has had a few of his lines tweaked while receiving a new cap based on his cap logo counterpart. Comparison here.

 

The cap logo is a new update, borrowing ideas from John Atsid's logo proposal (pupils towards the bottom, upturned bill, and smaller outline) with my own spin (a longer bill with a more subtle "flip," a lower and longer crown with a squarer button, and a cursive "B" instead of the "O's" logo). It now has a bit more of a 1966-74 look to it, and less of a 1979-88 aesthetic. Comparison here.

 

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Now, the uniforms. The "Baltimore" script has received more clean-up, and the NOB's have a bit more of an arch to them (comparison here).The black sleeve outlines of the old template now match the placket "seams," which will be the case for the other entries in this series. 

 

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The home and road alternates now reflect the logo and script updates (I like the Orioles to be orange-centric, so no black alternates), while the retro uniform has had an overhaul.

 

The Retro Day set still uses the 1954 script (sourced and cleaned up from the 60th Anniversary logo), with some twists. It now resides on the template of the 1950 International League Orioles, winners of the "Junior World Series." I flipped the color distribution of the script to match those uniforms and paired it with a tweak of UNC's number font (narrower, with straight edges). Ren69's excellent cartoon bird update now graces a diamond patch (from the other "Junior World Series" winners, the 1944 Orioles). The cap now bears the cursive "B" from the Baltimore script, as I wanted the cartoon birds' hat to show up in the identity. 

 

The Orioles don't need drastic alterations to their set (even though some ideas, like patterned striping modeled on Baltimore's flag, are pretty swell). Instead, the further modernization of the 1966-71 look is my chosen path, with little tributes to the '40s, '50s, and '70s-'80s. 

 

In part two, we go deep into the team's history, with a twist! 

 

EDIT (2/18/19): I did an update to the Baltimore script and cursive B on my Defunct Saga thread, here is the link.

 

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BALTIMORE ORIOLES, PT. II - The modern St. Louis Browns

 

The first alternate take delves into the Orioles' turbulent history in St. Louis. The Browns barely survived their time in St. Louis (a short recap by Hardball Times writer and fellow board member @pmoehrin here, and a cool website designed by @STL FANATIC here) and there's no way that the city could have ever supported two teams in the long-term. However, what if the Browns had survived to the modern age? What would I have look like? Well, here's the answer.

 

The most obvious change from the original Browns is the color scheme. Gone is orange, and in its place is red. I did this for two reasons. The first reason is that brown/orange is too associated with the other two teams named "Browns" (the team that's now the Ravens and the record book-ignoring doofuses), and I wanted the baseball Browns to carve their own aesthetic path (let's presume they added red sometime in the late-60's/early-70's). The second reason is that I wanted to try out the color scheme, as I've grown to like its application on Indians concepts and the NHL Panthers.

 

The second change to differentiate the team from the NFL Browns is the deletion of Brownie the Elf. I've never liked the logo. The identity now focuses on St. Louis' history (as part of New France from late-seventeenth to mid-eighteenth centuries - here's a good book on New France) and the city's namesake Saint Louis (King Louis IX of France, from 1226-70). The real team referenced this connection in their 1936-51 primary logo. It was from this point that I drew my inspiration.

 

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The new primary logo, to go along with the Louis IX theme, is now a shield (based off of the proportions of Lego shields, which had a more "medieval" look to them than the '39-'51 logo). The logos feature the color "Champagne Silver," from the USFL's Michigan Panthers. I thought the name and color fit with the brown/red pairing and the city's ties to France.

 

In one section is a modernized version of the '39-'51's rendering of the Apotheosis of St. Louis statue, commissioned for the 1904 World's Fair/Louisiana Purchase Exhibition/Anthropology Days/Olympic Games and therefore connected to the wackiest Olympic marathon ever). Here is a comparison with the original logo.

 

In the opposite section section are three fleur-de-lis sourced from the 1945-53 alternate logo (in a pattern that mimics the Île-de-France flag and heraldry, the home region of Louis IX). The center of the logo features a baseball with the team script, to divide the sections. The lower part showcases the barberpole sock stripe pattern and the Gateway Arch with the cap logo in center. 

 

The secondary logo features an enlarged arch, stripe pattern, fleur-de-lis, and Apotheosis rendering. The founding date of the 1902 is on the Apotheosis' platform.

 

The cap logo is based around the 1946-53 cap logo, with alterations to make it look less like the contemporary Cardinals cap logo. I gave it spurs (a la the Cardinals' 1900-19 primary logo - per Cooperstown Collection), and adjusted the height/spacing/serifs of the letters to better accommodate an outline. Here is a comparison.

 

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The uniforms are based off of the 1952-3 set, AKA "The Padres can totally do brown/white/grey" look. I tweaked the scripts to clean up inconsistent line weights, standardized the tails, and widened the letter kerning to accommodate outlines (a tip for fellow concept artists, adding outlines to scripts necessitates wider kerning). Here is a comparison. 

 

The fleur-de-lis takes the place of front numbers, while the secondary and primary logos grace the sleeves of the home and road uniforms, respectively. The barberpole sock stripes and wide red outlines on the logos allow for a red-billed hat on both uniforms. I used black cleats to enhance the "retro" aesthetic.

 

The number font is the same as the Orioles' retro day alternates, and the NOB font is Rawlings' block (used by the Orioles and in the past by the Cardinals). 

 

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The home/road alternate is an updated take on the 1908 home uniform, with an "St.L" on the chest and the fleur-de-lis on a piped cap (a pre-1950's design element I'd like to see return). The Heritage Day alternate is a brown/red fauxback to the 1944 home uniforms (with the addition of the fleur-de-lis on the cap and the modern secondary logo), one of the few bright moments in team history. This ties the "modern" Browns to the history of the old Browns and their sorta-funky uniforms. 

 

I had a lot of fun creating this one. While most "alternate takes" won't be this extensive, I do like to have the opportunity to put new spins on the classics.

 

C+C is greatly appreciated, as always. Up next, Boston!

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Great. Another MLB concepts series I have to follow. ;)

 

In all seriousness, I've been eagerly awaiting this series to start and now I'm even more excited than ever. I love the idea of "alternate takes" for each team and this is probably what I'm most interested to see. I'm also curious which two expansion teams you'll be doing. I'm betting the Expos return to the NL East, but I have no clue what the other team will be, and that intrigues me.

Looking over the color code you posted, there are some schemes that are totally throwing me for a loop. A brown & powder blue team in the AL East? I think I've figured most of them out, but I'm eager to see which teams have been given entirely new and unique color schemes. 

 

The Orioles and Browns look superb and I can't wait for more!

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BOSTON RED SOX, PT. I - Vintage Tuscan Update

 

As with my previous Red Sox concept, I saw little need to overhaul the team. However, the tweaks seen here are a bit more thorough than the previous piece. 

 

The main change here is the lettering font. When Wilson took over producing the Red Sox's uniforms in 1979, they brought along their squarish and rough Tuscan font. These new letters replaced some of the older, more elegant Tuscan variants that had been in use since the '30s   (with better kerning, thinner letters, and sharper edges). While I do like this font, I found myself gravitating more towards the older typography.

 

Back in ye olden days (2009), @eriqjaffe released a font based on @andrewharrington's traces of the old Tuscan letters. As somebody who downloaded that font, I wanted to update the Red Sox's set with it. I tested it out last year, and I liked what I saw. However, further review revealed an issue with the font, namely the odd serifs on some of the letters (i.e. "E," "S," and "R"). I fixed the serifs to be a bit more even (like the '36-'78 ones) and implemented this font in the uniform scripts, primary logo, and wordmark.

 

The most noticeable change to the entire set is the new take on the "hanging socks" logo. Now, it showcases the classic striped sock pattern. I figured it'd be a good way to incorporate the hosiery more into the identity, and hammer home the navy/red balance of the look. The primary logo has a new baseball and keeps my navy/red "Boston" and red/navy "Red Sox" division. The "color flip" will be a distinctive element for the Red Sox in this series, as I don't plan on implementing it for other teams.

 

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The uniforms are similar to my first tweak. The neck connections to the headspoon trim return, as do the piece of cuff trim. The trim on the home and road uniforms match each other again (recreating the inaccurate, yet beautiful throwbacks from last year - I like the way the trim connects to the outline of "Boston," something absent on the originals). Red undershirts remain, as I love they way they look with the scripts and the returning striped socks. Think of it as a modern take on the 1957-64 Cardinals' color balance, with a bit more navy thrown in.

 

On the uniforms, the scripts bear more resemblance to the 1936 styles, with better kerning, more arching, and more "elegant" forms. Here is a comparison.

 

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I decided to have a little fun with the Friday night alternates. While the red alt stays pretty much the same (just with updates to fit the new typeface), the navy alt receives an extensive makeover. I wanted to use the "B" logo as a crest, but the regular template was a tiny bit too "reserved." So, I introduced thick, sublimated sleeve striping designed to match the socks! It's a radical new look for the team, but one that's still grounded in the team's history and isn't too out there. A new version of the "hanging socks" hat joins it, as it plays into the theme and gets that oft-maligned hat back onto the field with a bit more panache.

 

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If you're wondering why I wouldn't include a red cap or a 1972-78 throwback, I like the metanarrative that Bucky Dent and the '78 collapse killed those uniforms. Besides, I don't even like them that much (the only teams that sorta pulled off pullovers/bright-colored looks were the Pirates, A's, and Giants).

 

Now, I know that my road alt may be a little extreme, so I prepared an action template to demonstrate what it would look like on field (thanks for the template, @jayjackson3).

 

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With this uniform set, the Red Sox can have a better color balance while re-establishing some retro charm and some "experimental" alternates. C+C is greatly appreciated, as always.

 

As for Pt. II, watch the Red Sox escape from the navy/red hegemony in a way that preserves tradition.

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Great job on the Red Sox. I love the updated hanging sock logo and the new alternate. I've always felt the "B" logo is strong enough to work as a crest. 

 

Bring on Part 2!

 

P.S. I love your new avatar. Sir Roger was truly the best. 

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On 5/25/2017 at 6:46 AM, ahowe6464 said:

I don't know about this... I like the uniform, but the logo represents the "Boston (Mostly) Red Sox." Just keeping the socks all red would be best imo

 

Yeah, the striped hanging socks were a later idea. I was trepidatious about including them, but I decided to bring them in. It was all a part of entrenching the "color balance"  and stripe design into the identity. I know they're controversial, but I'll stick by them.

 

On 5/25/2017 at 7:57 AM, coco1997 said:

Great job on the Red Sox. I love the updated hanging sock logo and the new alternate. I've always felt the "B" logo is strong enough to work as a crest. 

 

Bring on Part 2!

 

P.S. I love your new avatar. Sir Roger was truly the best. 

 

 

I made sure to watch The Spy Who Loved Me last night. It's still my favorite in the series, with For Your Eyes Only as my #2.

 

Thanks for the C+C guys, I really appreciate it. Now, part II time!

 

BOSTON RED SOX, PT. II - Death to Navy/Red, Enter Forest Green!

This alternate will explore how the classic navy/red teams can diversify their color schemes without sacrificing their traditional aesthetics. Replacing navy with green (to mimic the famed "Green Monster" of Fenway Park or reference Boston's Irish-American community, take your pick) for the Red Sox is nothing new, as several concept artists here have done it. However, these concepts often try to reinvent the team with a red-first color balance and neglect to use a dark enough green to contrast with the red. Red/green (which is a complementary color pair like blue/orange and purple/yellow) can be a beautiful color scheme, but it needs the right shades and distribution to work. I wanted to demonstrate how the red/green color scheme could be done in a way that was subtle and stayed within the team's traditional aesthetics.

 

Instead of Kelly Green (i.e. the Celtics' 356C/#007A33) or "Fenway Green" (as specified by Benjamin Moore), neither of which are that appealing when paired with red, I opted to use a Forest Green shade. It is Pantone 627 C, a color that was both well-saturated and dark enough to contrast with the red. I've kept the logos from Part I, as I felt the green worked well with the old-style Tuscan font and my chosen color distribution.

 

uVngePa.png

 

The uniforms retain their color balance from the original set (red undershirts, green caps/belts/shoes, and the classic striped socks). Given the stadium (bring a piece of Fenway with them) and the city's Irish-American connections, I think it's fitting that the "Boston" wordmark is in green.

 

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The alternates, however, are different from Part I. While the red alt only underwent a color flip from navy to green, the green alt is a bit different. I thought the sock stripe sleeves would be a bit much with the green, so I decided to go in another direction.

 

The Forest Green road alternate now features a callback to the team's distant past. It uses a modernized "B A" crest design from the Boston Americans' uniforms. I thought it worked well to reference the team's pre-Fenway years and the "Boston American League Baseball Company" name that lasted up until at least the 1950's (which is still on Fenway Park's office doors). It would also be useful in interleague play (something @Discrimihater did it before me for his Braves-Red Sox set), which would be moved back to a couple of weeks in June in my new alignment.

 

The modified MLB Tuscan New font graces the traditional headspoon template (instead of caligraphy), alongside the recolored hanging socks patch (to avoid two seperate styles of "B" logos) and the primary logo as a sleeve patch, tieing the old "Americans" name in with the post-1908 "Red Sox" name. 

 

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It's not as radical as the revived Browns or the other red/green Sox concepts, but I think it's a good demonstration of how the Red Sox could shirk red/navy while preserving their traditional appearance. C+C is greatly appreciated, as always!

 

Up next, the first of the two expansion teams will fly into view! ;)

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Thanks for the C+C guys, I appreciate it! I've done some quality control fixes on the original images, as I'd misaligned the second O in the "Boston" scripts and neglected to recolor a few pieces of the green set.

 

6 hours ago, coco1997 said:

I think that's the darkest shade of green I've ever seen. Excellent job on that alt.

 

Excited to see the expansion team!

 

I like 627 C because of how dark it is, giving it the same contrast properties as navy. I used the same shade in one of my favorite concepts, the Timberwolves from NBA: Project 32:

 

5 hours ago, Carolingian Steamroller said:

Love that Boston Americans jersey. It'd be tempting to use that on the blue/red set too. 

 

I figured I should show off what the alts looked like in opposite color schemes, so here you go!

 

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