MLB 2019-20 Fix 'Em Up: Minnesota Twins (Three Takes)

[SFGiants58]

This is a little series for me to fix up a bunch of the '19-'20 redesigns that messed up in some regard, IMHO. Now, this isn't distracting from Defunct Saga, as I'm in the middle of the latest batch. 

 

Let's start with the worst redesign of 2019, the Texas Rangers! 

 

TEXAS RANGERS; PT. I - Scripting Error

 

Upon their move to the ballpark that they should've constructed in 2001 or 2002 (I get that Turnpike was a glorified erector set, but you should have waited like the Astros did to get a proper retractable-roof venue), the team redesigned their admittedly safe uniforms. All they had to do was put a "Rangers" wordmark or script on the home uniform and maybe tweak a few things, but they managed to botch it. In the words of yours truly:

 

On 12/4/2019 at 5:03 PM, SFGiants58 said:

That “Rangers” script might be the most awful cursive mark since the Cubs’ “Cuba” script.

 

Aside from that, it’s a lateral move. The blue jerseys don’t need powder stripes, powder is kind of “blah” for the club, and the “TX” should be a “TR” and replace the flag logo. The drop shadow is OK, but I’d rather it be all-shadow or all-double outlines. They were meh before, but now are sub-meh.

I stand by that opinion. The script is atrocious compared to the 1984-93 design, the drop shadows and incorporation of powder blue (powder for powder's sake is not a good trend, IMHO) are poor decisions, the "TX" cap is trash, and they still haven't fixed the color imbalance with the red caps. It also kept issues from 1994, such as the drop shadow on the cap logo and said insignia's asymmetry. The only upgrades are the return of thicker stripes (which could be a few millimeters thinner) and the idea of "script at home, wordmark on the road." So, where to go from here?

 

The first step was to dust off the Project 32 Rangers, where I had fixed up a lot of the issues I had with the 2014-19 uniforms (albeit in different colors). The cap logo fixes, the alternate "TR" logo, and the reinstatement of the badge all carry over. Instead of trying to create a wholly new script, I instead took the Rangers' historical cursive (on their old primary logo) and adjusted Fenway Park JF to match it better. Now, we have a faithful modernization that adds thickness while not sacrificing the fun quirks of the original. Here is a comparison:

 

 

EDIT: I've adjusted the "Texas" cursive script, per @sparky chewbarky's suggestion. Here is a comparison, and the original logo sheet.

 

 

The uniforms follow the new set's pattern, with a script at home and a wordmark on the road. However, I've added much-needed front numbers and inverted the interior color. Red is the primary lettering color, with blue accessories on the outfit. That way, accessory colors can change without causing color balance issues. The team also now wears a blue cap with a red bill at home (historical reference) and an all-blue cap on the road.

 

The front numbers and NOB are blue alone, for maximum contrast. Given that I've done so much work on "no touching" designs in Defunct Saga, I carried over a lot of my lessons in color contrast here. Double outlines are on the wordmarks and numbers, and while I'm not keen on them, it's something the Rangers can call their own. The stripes are thinner, while the socks have an asymmetrical pattern. 

 

 

The first set of alternates features an inversion of the primary, with a wordmark on the red jersey and a script on the blue shirt (inspired by @Ted Cunningham's "Texas" design). Two-layer stripes are now on the sleeves, to avoid the power block on the royal jerseys. The alternate logo is on the blue jersey. The original image is linked here.

 

 

The second set of alternates includes the red accessorized home uniform and a cream retro alternate, with drop shadow (a 1972-82 detail resurrected and updated) and no-NOB. It's far more tasteful than full powder blue at home.

 

 

The jacket is my typical Rangers jacket design, playing up color contrast and putting a badge on the chest for wannabe cops. 

 

 

PT. II - Slate and Brick Bastion

 

My preferred variation, one that uses slate blue, brick red, and sand, is also here. I've opted against double outlines here, preferring to use sand as a white substitute on the alternates. The format of all of the uniforms is the same, save for the retro outfit having inverted colors. EDIT: At the recommendation of @MJD7, I've got a double outlined version!

 

 

Logo Sheet (Original render)

 

 

Home and Road

 

 

Alternates Pt. I (Original render)

 

 

Alternates Pt. II

 

 

Jacket

 

 

You see, Rangers? That wasn't too hard not to screw up your set again. Heck, the slate blue, brick red, and sand color scheme would be a good way to "evolve" out of that tired royal/red look, should you desire such a course of action. C+C is appreciated, as always!

 

I'm going to try to get this all done before opening day. Up on the docket are the Padres, Brewers (I know a certain fella looking forward to that!), Diamondbacks, and a few other squads that did less this offseason. 

[sparkychewbarky]

Beautiful work!!

I'm gonna be a little nit-picky, but there's 2 things I might change.

I think the round shapes, at the end of the star points, should also have the white highlights. They ARE part of the 3-D badge.

...Also, there's something a little awkward with the "Texas" script word mark. 

I think the up-stroke between the "e" and "x" should be narrower, and the "s" could be pushed out a tad...looks a wee bit cramped.

Like I said...I'm being pretty nit-picky. There's not too much to complain about here. Nice! 

[heavybass]

"pulls up" Oh hey how you doing? Always love these.

[coco1997]

Great work! Glad to see you back in action. Yes, everything about this set is an improvement over the Rangers new look. 

 

Any chance we could see a powder blue alternate? I'd love to see how it would look with that beautiful "Texas" script. 

[WSU151]

Way better than what they went with.

 

I'd buy that road hat in a heartbeat.

 

And off-white idea is interesting...reminds of Frisco RoughRiders (Roughriders?) a little bit, who use it to perfection. 

[MilSox]

You brilliant bastard... you've done it again!

[_DietDrPepper_]

Huh, guess I’m in the minority, I actually like what Texas did, outside of the unnecessary powder blue. 
However, I really like your updates to the cap logo, and the Texas TR logo. That slate and brick concept delivers as always as well!

[Eastport76]

Wow! The slate blue, brick red and sand concept is totally beautiful! That’ll be a huge improvement of their current set. 

[sportsfan7]

Bold choice to put the star in the Dallas area instead of San Angelo

[TrueYankee26]

Lovely, another SFG58 concept series to enjoy

[midnight.oil]

That slate and brick colour scheme is--as my Appalachian grandmother would say--"pure sex." It's just fits so well for Texas and is the perfect alternative for yet-another-blue-and-red.  Kudos!

[KittSmith_95]

He is back. 

As always, you kick off your threads with a bang.... and this time, I'm liking what I'm seeing but I also feel split. 

The "Rangers" script is a great look, but the fact it's so disjointed from the rest of the set makes it look out of place, even though it is nice. Then, you have that alt with a "Tecas" variation of that script and I instantly love it... wishing it could be on the Road as well as said alt.... but then I wondered if that would spring too much into the old Expos look with the tail scripts back in the day, and it made me wonder what Texas would look like had they just stuck to the old "Rangers" script..... 


The other thing I'm torn on is the number on the front being only on some of the jerseys. I get that it's common to have it on the front of a Tail script set, but given that t's not on the other jerseys, it once again looks disjointed. 


As always though, the Brick & Slate look really nice for the Rangers if they ever wanted to change up their colours. 

[SFGiants58]

On 2/3/2020 at 10:04 AM, sparky chewbarky said:

Beautiful work!!

I'm gonna be a little nit-picky, but there's 2 things I might change.

I think the round shapes, at the end of the star points, should also have the white highlights. They ARE part of the 3-D badge.

...Also, there's something a little awkward with the "Texas" script word mark. 

I think the up-stroke between the "e" and "x" should be narrower, and the "s" could be pushed out a tad...looks a wee bit cramped.

Like I said...I'm being pretty nit-picky. There's not too much to complain about here. Nice! 

 

Thanks, @sparky chewbarky! I thought about doing the white highlights, but they're not on the original for good reason:

 

 

I'm not a fan of how it looks. However, I did heed your suggestions about the "Texas" script, and fixed the up-stroke and "s" kerning:

 

 

I fixed the originals accordingly. You're right, it produces a cleaner mark!

 

On 2/3/2020 at 2:02 PM, coco1997 said:

Great work! Glad to see you back in action. Yes, everything about this set is an improvement over the Rangers new look. 

 

Any chance we could see a powder blue alternate? I'd love to see how it would look with that beautiful "Texas" script. 

 

Thanks! You betcha:

 

 

It looks good for what it is, but the Rangers are not a team that should ever embrace powder blue. 

 

On 2/3/2020 at 3:52 PM, NicDB said:

You brilliant bastard... you've done it again!

 

Thanks! I think you'll like the next one in line.

 

On 2/3/2020 at 7:10 PM, _DietDrPepper_ said:

Huh, guess I’m in the minority, I actually like what Texas did, outside of the unnecessary powder blue. 
However, I really like your updates to the cap logo, and the Texas TR logo. That slate and brick concept delivers as always as well!

On 2/4/2020 at 7:55 PM, Eastport76 said:

Wow! The slate blue, brick red and sand concept is totally beautiful! That’ll be a huge improvement of their current set. 

On 2/4/2020 at 10:05 PM, TrueYankee26 said:

Lovely, another SFG58 concept series to enjoy

On 2/5/2020 at 11:33 AM, midnight.oil said:

That slate and brick colour scheme is--as my Appalachian grandmother would say--"pure sex." It's just fits so well for Texas and is the perfect alternative for yet-another-blue-and-red.  Kudos!

 

Thanks!

 

On 2/4/2020 at 9:32 PM, sportsfan7 said:

Bold choice to put the star in the Dallas area instead of San Angelo

 

Ha!

 

On 2/5/2020 at 6:05 PM, KittSmith_95 said:

He is back. 

As always, you kick off your threads with a bang.... and this time, I'm liking what I'm seeing but I also feel split. 

The "Rangers" script is a great look, but the fact it's so disjointed from the rest of the set makes it look out of place, even though it is nice. Then, you have that alt with a "Tecas" variation of that script and I instantly love it... wishing it could be on the Road as well as said alt.... but then I wondered if that would spring too much into the old Expos look with the tail scripts back in the day, and it made me wonder what Texas would look like had they just stuck to the old "Rangers" script..... 

The other thing I'm torn on is the number on the front being only on some of the jerseys. I get that it's common to have it on the front of a Tail script set, but given that t's not on the other jerseys, it once again looks disjointed. 


As always though, the Brick & Slate look really nice for the Rangers if they ever wanted to change up their colours. 

 

Thanks! I totally understand where you're coming from on the disjointed approaches, but I thought it'd be a good quirk that the team could "own," like the Cleveland and the Mets. The "Texas" and "Rangers" wordmarks don't look so hot with a front number, so I left them off. It's part of the charm. The striping, number font, patches, and cap logos are enough connective tissue, IMHO.

 

Up next, a redesign that kind of stuck the landing. 

[SFGiants58]

MILWAUKEE BREWERS, PT. I - A BiG Tweakening

 

The Brewers' latest redesign was a massive step up from their previous design, but it still had some glaring flaws. While I (and many of the other posters here) liked the number font, the "Milwaukee" script, the creme home uniforms, and the overall aesthetic, I found it marred by a few significant issues.

1. The BiG modernization: There are some parts that I liked in the updated design, such as the elimination of the white webbing and even line weights. However, some flaws screwed with the design. The centered ball with the "standard" seams looks terrible, and the overall profile of the mark is too tall. It now looks a bit awkward.
2. The "BREWERS" wordmark: The "W" in the middle is too wide, offsetting the mark in a distracting way. What's more confounding is that the Brewers have a condensed version of their "W" in the NOB font, which would fit well within the design.
3. Inconsistencies in the uniforms: The stripes on the home and road jerseys don't match, while the team uses far too many different logos throughout the set.
4. Too many logos: the primary, the BiG, the Owgust renderings, the barley ball, and the M-Wisconsin are an overdose of designs. Also, the new Owgust looks dreadful, as do the other two "alternate" logos.
5. Poor color choices: I liked the decision to go navy/yellow-gold, but it was poor form to ignore powder blue in favor of royal for detailing. With the color scheme of navy/yellow/powder and navy/powder being so widespread in the city, it should have been a given to adopt that color scheme. Additionally, dropping the royal/yellow pinstripes was also a problematic choice.

So while it's a big step forward, it didn't come without its problems. As I said on the MLB Changes thread:

 

 

It's the redesign equivalent to the Bee Gees' 1987 album E.S.P. - it's a return to form in many regards, but it's got some subpar and baffling stuff in it. (Note: prepare to learn a lot about one of the most prolific families in pop music during this thread). If you're wondering, this is my favorite track off of said album:

 

(I kinda want to own those sunglasses Robin has)

 

The redesign would not be a complicated one. With some advice from @Gothamite and a boatload of Brewers concepts I've done since 2018, I set about fixing the set up. 

 

The BiG has undergone a notable tweak to bring it more in line with the original, namely de-centering the ball, restoring the traditional seam design (thickened to fit), and shortening it. EDIT: After consultations from @the admiral and @NicDB, I made the "m" and b" separate again, since the connection doesn't really reflect a glove from this perspective - here's the original.

 

 

It keeps the benefits of the new version, all while restoring some of the original's charm. 

 

The color scheme is now navy (282 C, not 289), yellow-gold (1235 C, not 123), sky blue, and creme. Think People's Flag-meets-Cream City. Their primary logo now resembles a bottle cap (from Defunct Saga, but tweaked), with barley leaves on each side and the BiG at the center. The BiG is the secondary, while my Owgust design is the tertiary (albeit with a new "M"). Owgust has white skin with a creme uniform, for a bit of visual flair (and because a creme ball looked awful on the BiG). EDIT: After consultations from @NicDB, @Carolingian Steamroller, and @MJD7, I've adjusted the sky blue to be an average of the darker and lighter shade. The primary now has sharper edges, to look more like a bottle cap. The original is linked here.

 

 

With the uniforms, I chose the road uniform's design as the basis for the striping (albeit with the 1971 collar trim). The home uniform features a wordmark with a condensed "W" to match the classic design and fit better on the jersey. Here is a comparison. Road uniforms now use a light blue-tinted road grey and the "Milwaukee" script to match the '80s design more. I wanted a splash of color, so front numbers are contrasting now. The font now has the "notched" numeral five from the Packers' and '80s Brewers' fonts. Owgust is on the sleeves while the socks feature a modified Northwestern stripe that features all three accent colors. EDIT: I've flipped the colors on the front numbers, implemented the new BiG and sky blue shades, and switched the road uniform to a lighter regular grey (#b2b4b2 - 421 C). The original is here.

 

 

The alternates now include a sky blue jersey for home use and a navy top for road games. The navy top features the gold front-panel and sky blue accents. EDIT: The logos and shades have received updates, while the contrast-colored front numbers/NOB are no longer on the navy alt. The original is in the link.

 

 

The second set of alternates restores royal to the pinstripes, while also offering a full powder blue road option (with the gold front-panel). Of all the teams using powder blue uniforms, why the heck don't the Brewers have one? EDIT: Aside from the universal changes, the powder uniform now uses the updated shade. The original is here.

 

 

The jackets are a standard affair, reflecting the color balance and striping patterns of the uniforms. EDIT: The originals are here: primary and retro alternate.

 

 

 

Much like E.S.P., there was a lot to like in the Brewers' redesign. It just needed tweaking and restructuring to work right. Now, the Brewers can look their best!

 

PT. II - Labeling the Script

 

I figured that I'd demonstrate how my "Braves as Brewers Pt. II" scripts would look with the set. They do a fantastic job of adding more sky blue to the design, while also going well with the lettering font (but not as well as the Brewers' new machined-cursive). EDIT: Originals are here: logo sheet, home & road, alternates set one and set two, and the primary jacket and retro alternate.

 

 

 

C+C is appreciated, as always!

 

The Padres will be next.

[KittSmith_95]

1. The Brewers should be using your version of the BiG.... that guy is perfection. You brought back the small quirks & charm from the old while using the actual fixes the new guy did fix of the BiG.... I love it & if I could buy merch of it, I'd wear it with pride. I was one of those at first who preferred the new placment of the ball at first as I was iffy on the B being too bottom heavy, but I've come around on that now seeing this. 

2. Love almost everything here besides that... not sure about the light blue numbers on the front of the Navy alt, but everything else is pretty spot on & is a nice variation of the Brew-Crew's new look. 

 

[The_Admiral]

Scalloping the roundel to make it a bottlecap is inspired as hell and I can't believe it eluded the actual designers, who fell ass-over-applecart drawing unnecessary brick-and-mortar patterns on things for Local Flavor. However, the ball-in-glove tweak of the tweak didn't address the logo no longer being formed by an m and a b, it's gotta have that weird ambiguous webbing that no one agrees on the true color of.

 

There's no fixing that Milwaukee script without starting over.

[MilSox]

Your BiG is definitely an improvement, but I would just take the original and color in the "pocket" so that it still retains the M and B shapes.  Maybe as a concession, you could center the ball and use the two-seam version, but I don't think that's necessary.

 

I think your roundel needs sharper edges to come across as a bottlecap.  I get more of a captain's wheel vibe from it as it is, which could be a wink and a nod to their origins as the Pilots if that's what you were going for. 

I would like the powder blue accents much more if you used the more muted shade that you have on your Sunday road alt.  I actually think your powder blue alts are backwards.  The more vibrant shade should be on the Sunday roads since that's closer to what they wore in the 80s (which is what I assume you're going for).

Not a fan of the contrasting front numbers.  Gold is just not a dark enough color to pull it off, IMO.  Even with the thick blue outline.  Worse, they get totally lost in the pinstriped alts.

I'm still not sure your underscore in the second version comes across as what it's supposed to.  Maybe try a single color version like in the Miller logo (but keep the outline)?

Anyway, those are my critiques/nitpicks.  Most of which I wouldn't think to make had you not set such a high bar for yourself.

[Carolingian Steamroller]

Overall this is great but it has a key problem or two:

 

1. I don't think the light blue is going to show up well as the front number/NOB on the navy alternate jersey. I would just leave it gold or go with cream. 

 

2. Right now there are a total of 5 different shads of blue in the set. Two shades of darker blue and three shades of light blue, including two distinct pairs of light blue pants. Its trying to be all things to all people which was a trap the Brewers fell into. I would keep the dusky shade for the roads, drop the 70's style alternate roads, and the medium blue on the home pins. 

 

3. Minor issue but maybe consider swapping the gold and navy on the lettering for the People's flag alternate jersey. 

 

 

[MJD7]

Good to see you're back! I’ll get right into my opinions on your designs:

 

I love the main Rangers set, as you said yourself the double-outlines are something they can really own. The retro alt in particular is beautiful.

 

I’m not as keen on PT. II, mostly because I feel like the slate & brick need some separation from each other, as they are both somewhat dark shades. You did this particularly well with your Project 32 iteration. Following the template of the main red & royal set, I would utilize sand to separate the two colors on the main home & away, as well as using white to separate the sand from the main wordmark color on both of the color alternates. Once again, the retro alternate is fantastic, however.

 

For the Brewers, the condensed “W,” the updated BiG, and the royal pinstripes are all nice touches. However, I’m not a fan of the use of your sky blue in this set; it stands out more than the royal blue does, and in my opinion doesn’t merit use as a home alt or for accents on the navy, considering how little it is used on the main home & away. Like @Carolingian Steamroller, I think there are too many shades of blue at play, with the powder-tinted away and full-on powder away being added to the mix, not to mention the royal pinstripes. If it were me, I would drop the sky blue, either in its entirety or replacing it back with royal and reserving it to an accent on the logos and such. I would also make the away uniform a regular gray, while keeping the powder blue as an alternate option. Right now those two uniforms are just too similar to justify the need for both of them.

 

All in all, great work as always! Hope you’re doing well!

[itsmb8]

I mostly like it but I have some differences.

 

1. I like your change of making the BiG shorter, but Id leave everything else the same.  Ironically enough, thats how the hats are and I think it looks perfect.

2. I'd prefer, if anything, to make the road sleeve piping match the current home uniform.

3. Blue with yellow outline numbers on everything and everywhere except for the navy jersey.

4. Id keep the original "Milwaukee" script on the away jersey.

5. Ditch the sky blue color and just roll with powder in every application.

6. I like your bottlecap logo but I'd keep the state outline logo.

7. Because Id rather have thick sleeve cuffs, Id also rather go without collar piping.