MLB 2023 Uniform/Logo Changes

[GriffinM6]

3 hours ago, TBGKon said:

Unfortunately this is likely not a possibiliy for most companies, as branding rules for company logos exist.  Usualy colors cannot be modified from a businesses primary colors, unless its adjusted to black and white.

Then I'd kick them to the curb and not let them be a sleeve sponsor

[ptay]

3 hours ago, WSU151 said:

 

Maybe bring this hat back.

 

 

______________________________________________

 

And I appreciate the comments here about the 2023 hats...but except for the Twins...these are the exact same ST/BP hats as 2022. Hopefully 2024 brings some new designs and they get rid of the trucker mesh. 

 

Does anybody know if they wore this cap on-field during a regular season game?

[CaliforniaGlowin]

Ooh that grey Yankees hat is tough!

[Old School Fool]

8 hours ago, ptay said:

 

Does anybody know if they wore this cap on-field during a regular season game?

 

I love this hat. The Mariners promoted the hell out of it back in the late 90's but I never saw it in action myself. Despite all the emphasis on the hat they just rarely wore it and then dropped it despite it supposedly being a favorite among people.

 

The below pic is from a 1997 game.

 

[Brian E]

17 hours ago, CaliforniaGlowin said:

Ooh that grey Yankees hat is tough!

 

agreed., but i think that version is just a fashion. last year, they did the same thing: they had the official version of the ST/BP cats, then different color options that were never worn on field.

 

for example, the mets have the white front panel listed as "2023 on field batting practice cap," then have a black version that just says 2023 batting practice without the words "on field."

[FiddySicks]

10 hours ago, Old School Fool said:

 

I love this hat. The Mariners promoted the hell out of it back in the late 90's but I never saw it in action myself. Despite all the emphasis on the hat they just rarely wore it and then dropped it despite it supposedly being a favorite among people.

 

The below pic is from a 1997 game.

 

I still think this hat would’ve been better with a teal bill rather than a silver bill.

 

[GhostOfNormMacdonald]

This thread is convincing me that the compass should be used on their hats full-time. Their S logo doesn't stand out, but the compass is a really strong mark. At least put it in the rotation

[TBGKon]

More clarity to the Rays uniforms entering 2023.

 

 

[BBTV]

If it's "4+1", and you're not getting your +1 till 2024, why can't you keep 5 in 2023?  Not that I want anyone to have 5, just seems a little arbitrary.

[FiddySicks]

4 hours ago, GhostOfNormMacdonald said:

This thread is convincing me that the compass should be used on their hats full-time. Their S logo doesn't stand out, but the compass is a really strong mark. At least put it in the rotation

Hat Club put one of these out a few years ago with the teal bill and a tonal flag (one of the very last US made Poly hats they produced, in fact), and I just had to get it. It’s part of my regular rotation. Love that hat. Would make a great primary for them. I like the S Compass logo more than most, but the S is probably unnecessary. The compass totally works well enough alone as a primary cap logo. 
 

I wouldn’t even mind a team color version of their TATC caps.

[coco1997]

3 hours ago, TBGKon said:

More clarity to the Rays uniforms entering 2023.

 

 

 

Now the big question is whether they'll be adding light blue pants to go with the light blue alts. 

[hormone]

This has probably been discussed (but being displaced from this train accident and now driving 1:30 each way to work), I haven’t been able to scour the thread. If anyone can answer a few questions, I’d appreciate it.

1) So, is each team getting a spring hat and 2 BP? I see the spring (same as last year except date), a white hat and a gray one.

2) I’m a 5950 guy only. How does the mesh look/feel? 
3) what’s the point of the 4 plus 1? A quick scroll through my head only really sees it affecting the rays, mariners, rangers, pirates, Phillies, and diamondbacks. 6 teams. So what’s the point?

[Carolingian Steamroller]

54 minutes ago, hormone said:

This has probably been discussed (but being displaced from this train accident and now driving 1:30 each way to work), I haven’t been able to scour the thread. If anyone can answer a few questions, I’d appreciate it.

1) So, is each team getting a spring hat and 2 BP? I see the spring (same as last year except date), a white hat and a gray one.

2) I’m a 5950 guy only. How does the mesh look/feel? 
3) what’s the point of the 4 plus 1? A quick scroll through my head only really sees it affecting the rays, mariners, rangers, pirates, Phillies, and diamondbacks. 6 teams. So what’s the point?

 

1. I don't know if it's really 2 BPs but the Spring hats are out and the white/grey split might just be fashion.

2. Looks like trucker hat style on the back. Very vinyl feel.

3. To make it easier on the suppliers, Nike wants teams to limit their "regular" uniforms to 4 jerseys, not including 1 City Connect. 

[WBeltz]

I mean realistically, outside of the one-off throwback or special uniform, the 4+1 rule seems a little ridiculous. 

[Bmac]

Some of you may recall that this past season, several teams weren't able to get their alternate jerseys from Nike (or Majestic or whoever is actually producing them) until several weeks into the season. Certainly those production/supply chain issues contributed to this situation in which Nike is looking to limit the workload. Also keep in mind that baseball teams usually go through a handful of jerseys per player throughout the season. From a retail position, this move might not make the most sense or line up with traditional Nike strategy, but from a production standpoint it makes sense to limit the workload.

[jzn110]

On 2/6/2023 at 4:51 PM, TBGKon said:

Unfortunately this is likely not a possibiliy for most companies, as branding rules for company logos exist.  Usualy colors cannot be modified from a businesses primary colors, unless its adjusted to black and white.

If a company wants to sponsor a team badly enough, they can have their branding department create a version of their logo that meets the team's requirements. Companies make their own branding rules (well, the marketing agencies that create their brands set the rules, but the companies still have final say).

[McCall]

7 hours ago, jzn110 said:

If a company wants to sponsor a team badly enough, they can have their branding department create a version of their logo that meets the team's requirements. Companies make their own branding rules (well, the marketing agencies that create their brands set the rules, but the companies still have final say).

So you really believe T-Mobile would be willing to have their logo on a Mariners jersey in navy and northwest green?

[VampyrRabbit]

1 hour ago, McCall said:

So you really believe T-Mobile would be willing to have their logo on a Mariners jersey in navy and northwest green?

 

They have been willing to change the logo colour for Bayern, I can see them changing it to all navy for the Mariners on the home and the cream alternate, and silver for the navy alt.

[gosioux76]

4 hours ago, VampyrRabbit said:

 

They have been willing to change the logo colour for Bayern, I can see them changing it to all navy for the Mariners on the home and the cream alternate, and silver for the navy alt.

 

I know it seems like this is a smoking-gun example of your point, but marketing deals vary greatly from sport to sport and country to country. 

 

T-Mobile (Deutsch Telekom, in this case)  is one of three dominant mobile carriers in Germany. Bayern is that nation's biggest sports brand.  Its Bayern sponsorship means that its logo is the largest and most visible thing on the most high-profile piece of sports apparel in that country. The leverage in that case belongs to the team, and T-Mobile gets the exposure it needs no matter the color of the logo. 

 

In the U.S., T-Mobile is one among a much more crowded field of competition. Its signature brand element, the one thing that helps it instantly stand out from its competitors,  is its magenta color.  The placement of its logo as a small patch on a shoulder isn't valuable enough for it to concede something so critical to its brand as its primary color. The return on investment wouldn't justify such a move. The leverage in this case belongs with the sponsor. 

 

To the bigger point, @jzn110is 100% right. If a brand wants its logo on a jersey badly enough, they could absolutely choose to do so in a way that matched the team's color scheme. But the companies likely to make that call are ones without the leverage in these scenarios. It would likely be a brand with a logo that's A) designed to be adaptable or B ) values the exposure so highly that it trumps any concerns about brand continuity.  T-Mobile's probably not the best example in this case. 

[VikWings]

17 hours ago, BBTV said:

If it's "4+1", and you're not getting your +1 till 2024, why can't you keep 5 in 2023?  Not that I want anyone to have 5, just seems a little arbitrary.

 

Nike: "we only want to you to have 4 jerseys, well really 5 cause of our City connect program."

 

Team: "what if we don't want a city connect and want to keep or 5th jersey that actually fits our brand instead?"

 

Nike/MLB: "NO!"