San Diego Padres focus-grouping new uniforms for 2020

[OnWis97]

15 hours ago, SFGiants58 said:

 

First off, that season was an outlier. It was after two .500 seasons, but it was the only postseason appearance for the team in brown. The 1990s teams had two playoff appearances, one in 1996 (91-71) and the 1998 run to the World Series (98-64). It's a minor difference, but it's an indication of some sustained success compared to the Taco Bell period. They also won two division titles at Petco Park (2005 and 2006) and came close to two additional playoff appearances (2007 and 2010). Sure, the 2005 team only won 82 games and had a first-round exit, but it's still a part of team history.

 

I'm not convinced there's enough there to really matter.  It's not like the Buccaneers being terrible in orange and then very good almost immediately in their new look.

 

I wanted to base it on Tony Gwynn, but he wore Taco Bell, brown/orange, blue/orange, and blue/white in roughly equal measure.  

[Ray Lankford]

16 hours ago, Gothamite said:

 

And, ironically enough, the men who most likely have the least interest in it.  Few active players can afford to have an emotional connection to a team, much less a uniform.  That's the nature of their profession.

 

If you're looking to give weight to opinions, I'd put current players very near the bottom of the list.

Is that true? Players were against brown at the time (Steve Garvey called them Taco Bell uniforms) and the players supposedly also were behind dumping the sand jerseys. And teams like Toronto have consulted players for their opinion during redesigns.

[MilSox]

I could see the Padres trotting out the 98s when it's time for anniversaries, but I think getting swept by the Yankees in the World Series has wiped away any need to keep them around as permanent alts.  If the Padres must keep some form of navy around, just throw this beauty worn by Ted Williams and the 1937 PCL champs on a modern template.



 

[larrypep]

10 hours ago, Ray Lankford said:

Is that true? Players were against brown at the time (Steve Garvey called them Taco Bell uniforms) and the players supposedly also were behind dumping the sand jerseys. And teams like Toronto have consulted players for their opinion during redesigns.

Players were against the 84 “Taco Bell” designs.  They liked the change to pinstripes and a more conservative look.  There was never any consideration to switch out brown until Tom Werner bought the team in 1990.  

[Ray Lankford]

19 hours ago, NicDB said:

I could see the Padres trotting out the 98s when it's time for anniversaries, but I think getting swept by the Yankees in the World Series has wiped away any need to keep them around as permanent alts.  If the Padres must keep some form of navy around, just throw this beauty worn by Ted Williams and the 1937 PCL champs on a modern template.



 

Losing a World Series isn’t a dealbreaker for a team like the Padres. Just making it is an accomplishment and worth celebrating.

[MilSox]

58 minutes ago, Ray Lankford said:

Losing a World Series isn’t a dealbreaker for a team like the Padres. Just making it is an accomplishment and worth celebrating.

Maybe not.  But I feel like San Diego has a significant enough pre-MLB history that it should be acknowledged.  Especially when that's where their name came from.

I say the same when people make the idiotic argument that if the Brewers return to the BiG they'll never be able to sell throwback merch again.

[Ray Lankford]

22 minutes ago, NicDB said:

Maybe not.  But I feel like San Diego has a significant enough pre-MLB history that it should be acknowledged.  Especially when that's where their name came from.

I say the same when people make the idiotic argument that if the Brewers return to the BiG they'll never be able to sell throwback merch again.

The owner actually said that he preferred the PCL blue and red but that the focus group results showed that he was by himself.

[Cosmic]

On 10/3/2018 at 6:21 AM, Ray Lankford said:

Is that true? Players were against brown at the time (Steve Garvey called them Taco Bell uniforms) and the players supposedly also were behind dumping the sand jerseys. And teams like Toronto have consulted players for their opinion during redesigns.

I think players have a strong reaction to the especially garish uniforms, but mostly don't care. I'm guessing baseball uniforms were much more conservative when Steve Garvey said that; all of the Padres' options are probably considered pretty staid now. 

[MilSox]

12 hours ago, Ray Lankford said:

The owner actually said that he preferred the PCL blue and red but that the focus group results showed that he was by himself.

Right.  But I'm not suggesting they go with a PCL look full time.  Just that there's a place for one if the club absolutely must satiate the element that actually wants navy.

Going forward, the Padres need to be a brown and gold team.

[IceCap]

On 10/3/2018 at 6:21 AM, Ray Lankford said:

Is that true? Players were against brown at the time (Steve Garvey called them Taco Bell uniforms) and the players supposedly also were behind dumping the sand jerseys. And teams like Toronto have consulted players for their opinion during redesigns.

Players come and go, but the uniform will be around for at least five years. If not longer. Why would a team listen to players who have no vested interest in the team's off-field brand?

[Ray Lankford]

1 hour ago, Ice_Cap said:

Players come and go, but the uniform will be around for at least five years. If not longer. Why would a team listen to players who have no vested interest in the team's off-field brand?

Good question? 

[Quillz]

I'd like to think part of a uniform's appeal is brand legacy. Maybe the brown-and-orange wasn't that popular, but what if the Padres were an immensely successful franchise while wearing them? Maybe players wouldn't be as adverse to them because they represented a strong brand. Surely the iconic uniforms of the Yanks and Dodgers, among other teams, is helped a lot by the fact the franchises themselves have been successful and they've kept the uniform templates more or less unchanged.

 

I think with the Padres, more than anything, just stick to something. Then leave the uniforms alone and stop thinking changing the clothes will change the franchise. Stick with something (brown + anything would be unique), then rebuild.

[Ray Lankford]

21 hours ago, Quillz said:

I'd like to think part of a uniform's appeal is brand legacy. Maybe the brown-and-orange wasn't that popular, but what if the Padres were an immensely successful franchise while wearing them? Maybe players wouldn't be as adverse to them because they represented a strong brand. Surely the iconic uniforms of the Yanks and Dodgers, among other teams, is helped a lot by the fact the franchises themselves have been successful and they've kept the uniform templates more or less unchanged.

 

I think with the Padres, more than anything, just stick to something. Then leave the uniforms alone and stop thinking changing the clothes will change the franchise. Stick with something (brown + anything would be unique), then rebuild.

But by this logic, the Padres could stick with what they’ve got and people would eventually embrace it and that is hard to believe.

[Quillz]

5 hours ago, Ray Lankford said:

But by this logic, the Padres could stick with what they’ve got and people would eventually embrace it and that is hard to believe.

I think they would, in time. *IF* the Padres stuck to something, build up a team, there will always be fans that will come to like the uniforms.

[Ray Lankford]

2 hours ago, Quillz said:

I think they would, in time. *IF* the Padres stuck to something, build up a team, there will always be fans that will come to like the uniforms.

What about the Brewers? They've been wearing the same jerseys for almost 20 years and it seems like everyone's ready to either go back to the 80s look or come up with something new based on the 80s look. At a certain point, both aesthetics and nostalgia factor in.

[Gothamite]

14 hours ago, Ray Lankford said:

What about the Brewers? They've been wearing the same jerseys for almost 20 years and it seems like everyone's ready to either go back to the 80s look or come up with something new based on the 80s look. At a certain point, both aesthetics and nostalgia factor in.

 

Exactly.  We see from the Brewers that longevity alone cannot make a bad uniform set good. 

[IceCap]

We also need to stop using the opinions of players from nearly thirty years ago to delegitimize brown.