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History of the MLB dugout jacket


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Perhaps some posters with knowledge and interest could show and tell us about dugout jackets, what year they first were worn, which brand and stuff like that.

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I know Majestic comes out with new ones every 2 years, it could be fun to see the timeline from when they first was used, up til present day

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Perhaps some posters with knowledge and interest could show and tell us about dugout jackets, what year they first were worn, which brand and stuff like that..I know Majestic comes out with new ones every 2 years, it could be fun to see the timeline from when they first was used, up til present day

I used to have a good old fashioned satin button-up Phillies jacket back in about 1980...

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This might help a bit:

http://www.midwest-vintage.com/en/vintagehistory/?view=baseball

BASEBALL “LETTERMANS” JACKET
Like many of the clothes we wear today, the original BASEBALL JACKET too has a long history and have evolved from a more traditional product.
However, while we call them Baseball Jackets, they were originally known as Letterman’s Jackets or Award Jackets.
As you may remember in a previous article, University and Sport’s Teams first introduced athletic wear in the mid 1800’s with the use of color matching shirts and pants, eventually carrying their team colors as well as team logos and names.
By the 1890’s, we saw the birth of Athletic Sweaters, which were worn by team players, also reflecting the colors, names and logos of the team. You see them sold today in vintage stores as VINTAGE LETTERMAN SWEATERS. These sweaters, were worn with a sense of pride by team players reflecting their team spirit and consequently someone came up with the idea to place the “Letter” of the team name on the sweaters and give the sweaters as awards to the players. This continued until the early 1900’s.
In the early 1900’s, the Letterman’s Jacket appeared. In addition to the traditional leather sleeves and the wool body of the jackets, some of the earlier models included leather which ran from the sleeves over the shoulder portion of the jackets as well. In the 1930’s the “Letter” award started to appear on these jackets, just as they had on the Athletic Sweaters before.
In the 1950’s a Company called Phoenix Lettering started embroidering “Chenille” labels on these Sweaters and Jackets. This technique is actually the raised three dimensional lettering found on traditional Letterman’s Jackets. The Students name was sewn on the left pocket, the year of graduation on the right pocket and on the right sleeve, the sport or activity that was earned by the wearer. The team player always had the varsity “Letter” sewn on the left chest, over the heart, to show loyalty to the team. To find traditional designed “Letterman’s” Jackets today, you can look for these features.
These Jacket styles have evolved over time to become what today we popularly know as Nylon Baseball Jackets. While, these are primarily commercial products, promoting the name of a product or a Company or a team, they follow the style and cutting found in some of the more traditional leather and wool baseball jackets.

Here's the earliest photo I have found so far. It's from 1950:

http://www.brooklynvisualheritage.org/burt-shotton-lou-boudreau

c65b601f634b400728c55d24bf798213&ext=.jp

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MLB tried to bring the Letterman Jacket back in 2005. The White Sox & Angels wore them in the ALCS that year. It never took hold.

The satin Starter jackets were so awesome. Still my favorite dugout jacket.

Go Astros!

Go Texans!

Go Rockets!

Go Javelinas!

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While not quite jackets. I know baseball players used to wear button up sweaters back around the turn of the century. Especially in northern colder climate cities.

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Of course, their manager's jacket was a little different...

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Connie Mack was the first thing I thought of when I saw this thread title...

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Indeed. Would love to see a coach/manager in the NFL or MLB go back to this. Didn't the 49ers coach do that for a little while?

Mike Nolan, the 49ers coach before Singletary, wore it for a game or 2. I think Jack Del Rio did too for the Jags.

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Indeed. Would love to see a coach/manager in the NFL or MLB go back to this. Didn't the 49ers coach do that for a little while?

Mike Nolan, the 49ers coach before Singletary, wore it for a game or 2. I think Jack Del Rio did too for the Jags.

If i'm not mistaken the suits were issued by Reebok and they could only use them for a predetermined number of games.

Edit: Found an article http://sports.espn.go.com/nfl/news/story?id=2663580

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I have a Cubs Starter jacket from the 80s that a friend of my grandma gave me a few years back. Love bringing it out every April for the start of the season. Now I just need a reason to wear it in October...

But to get back on topic, I'd love to see some pictures of these letterman jackets. I wonder if players had different patches for different accomplishments, like in high school.

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Coaches in business suits is stupid in all sports. No matter how they try to sell it, it's a game, not a board meeting, and you look stupid jumping around and running up the sidelines / baselines and hugging sweaty dudes in a wool suit and silk tie. Not saying they need to look like slobs like some of the NFL coaches, or wear uniforms like baseball managers (that's even dumber than a suit IMO), but there's a happy medium in there somewhere.

"The views expressed here are mine and do not reflect the official opinion of my employer or the organization through which the Internet was accessed."

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Coaches in business suits is stupid in all sports. No matter how they try to sell it, it's a game, not a board meeting, and you look stupid jumping around and running up the sidelines / baselines and hugging sweaty dudes in a wool suit and silk tie. Not saying they need to look like slobs like some of the NFL coaches, or wear uniforms like baseball managers (that's even dumber than a suit IMO), but there's a happy medium in there somewhere.

Should people on TV not wear suits? I mean, it's not a board meeting...it's the news.

I'd rather see basketball coaches wear business suits than tracksuits. A polo and sweatpants usually looks like you just woke up.

Smart is believing half of what you hear. Genius is knowing which half.

 

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