What If Every MLB Team Kept Its Original Look? (Houston Colts 2/26)

[Coiler]

Love the Marlins and Astros. I'd say do Colt 45s colors, but that'd probably just be pure orange.

[coco1997]

6 hours ago, Coiler said:

Love the Marlins and Astros. I'd say do Colt 45s colors, but that'd probably just be pure orange.

Thanks! And yeah, the Colt .45s had a pretty much identical color scheme to the Astros.

 

SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS (est. 1885)

 

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- The (New York) Giants played with several short-lived colors early on, including mono-black, royal blue and even brown. I chose their black & pink scheme from 1913 because it was their first to last more than a few consecutive seasons, and because it would make for one of the more distinctive schemes in MLB.
- Added bonus that the Giants in pink would probably make that bozo Aubrey Huff’s head explode.  

C&C appreciated!

[Coiler]

THE PINK GIANTS LIVE!

 

Favorite one yet. (I honestly think one of their real city connections should be a throwback to pink/purple plaid)

[coco1997]

22 hours ago, Coiler said:

THE PINK GIANTS LIVE!

 

Favorite one yet. (I honestly think one of their real city connections should be a throwback to pink/purple plaid)

Thanks!

CHICAGO WHITE SOX (est. 1901)

 

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- Chicago’s early look paired white and red home unis with monochrome navy road uniforms, so shifting from navy to black wasn’t too much of a stretch. I also like the visual synergy black and red produces with the local Bulls and Blackhawks.

- Seeing as those original 1901 White Sox uniforms were sans pinstripes, I saved them for the Cubs, which you’ll see shortly.
- McAuliffe style numbers seemed to fit with the angular block “C” fairly well.  

 

C&C appreciated!

[MilSox]

Always love concepts with the Sox in black and red. Crazy that baseball doesn't have a red and black team... black with Arizona "Sedona" red just isn't the same.

[coco1997]

On 11/30/2023 at 11:31 AM, MilSox said:

Always love concepts with the Sox in black and red. Crazy that baseball doesn't have a red and black team... black with Arizona "Sedona" red just isn't the same.

Agreed! Much as I love my Sox in black and silver, this is probably the only other color scheme I'd be OK with them wearing.

 

CHICAGO CUBS (est. 1876)

 

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- The Cubs were a one-color team for the first eight years of the Modern Era. I needed a secondary color to pair with navy, and, since the team introduced brown in 1908, that seemed like an obvious choice. Plus, it makes sense for a team named after bears to use brown in some capacity.
- Chicago’s first logo was actually an Old English “C.” However, considering the Reds just about own that look, I used their subsequent logo from 1906. This is when we see the classic round “C” begin to take shape.
- The away set has a dusty-brown tint, a la the team’s 1908 road uniforms.

 

C&C appreciated!

[Coiler]

Both Chicago teams are grand slams!

[coco1997]

32 minutes ago, Coiler said:

Both Chicago teams are grand slams!

Thanks!

TAMPA BAY RAYS (est. 1998)

 

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- Like the D-Backs, the Rays are just a rehash of the Tampa Bay design from my Bringing MLB's '90s Expansion Teams into the Modern Day series. You can read my breakdown of that design here.

As always, C&C appreciated!

[coco1997]

WASHINGTON NATIONALS (est. 2005)

 

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- I briefly toyed with something Expos-inspired for the Nats, but since I had done that before, I instead decided to update Washington’s original look from 2005-08.
- Block wordmarks return, as does the beveling on the wordmarks and numbers. I also replaced metallic gold with silver and darker shades of red and navy for the beveling on the wordmarks and numbers.
- The color distribution here is closer to the Nats’ current uniforms, which balance navy and red a bit more evenly.  
- I figured I’d take this opportunity to drop the Walgreens “W” altogether and go all-in on the “DC” monogram.

 

C&C appreciated!

[Victormrey]

I think the Nats 2005 look without the the metallic gold looks incredible! The bevelin is more subtle, helping the wordmarks not to look dated. I also really like the colour wordmark swap between the home and road jersey. Great work as usual!

 

As for the previous designs, the Rays look excellent with their original gradient, and the navy/brown colourway fits the Cubs like a glove. The blackout cleats is a genius detail

[coco1997]

On 12/9/2023 at 7:56 AM, Victormrey said:

I think the Nats 2005 look without the the metallic gold looks incredible! The bevelin is more subtle, helping the wordmarks not to look dated. I also really like the colour wordmark swap between the home and road jersey. Great work as usual!

 

As for the previous designs, the Rays look excellent with their original gradient, and the navy/brown colourway fits the Cubs like a glove. The blackout cleats is a genius detail

Thanks for the feedback!

DETROIT TIGERS (est. 1901)

 

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- The Tigers were one team for whom I felt it absolutely necessary to change colors. Detroit’s original uniforms were black and maroon, with little contrast between the two.
- Maroon becomes orange and black becomes midnight blue, the same “almost black” shade used by the Rangers for their City Connect uniforms. I assume the lack of orange on those original Tiger uniforms had something to do with what color dyes were available at the time.
- Per tradition for Detroit, no alternates.

 

C&C appreciated!

[seasaltvanilla]

Don't San Franciscans generally not like "San Fran"?  And it feels odd to have a nickname on a classic look jersey.

[coco1997]

On 12/9/2023 at 4:21 PM, seasaltvanilla said:

Don't San Franciscans generally not like "San Fran"?  And it feels odd to have a nickname on a classic look jersey.

I can't speak to San Franciscans' aversion to "San Fran," but I will say I went with the nickname mainly because I liked that the asymmetry mirrored the original "NEW YORK" wordmark. My original idea was to just use a block "GIANTS" wordmark:

In hindsight, this might have been the way to go.

 

PITTSBURGH PIRATES (est. 1891)

 

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- The Bucs wore blue and red for the first few decades of the Modern Era, but seeing as it’s next to impossible to imagine a Pittsburgh team in anything but black and gold, I kept their classic color scheme.
- I kept the partial button-down and contrasting collar from the team’s original uniforms because it seemed to scream “pirates.”
- The Tuscan-style “Pirates” wordmark wouldn’t appear until 1933, but I used it here because it matches the team’s original “P” cap logo quite nicely. I also added Tuscan style numbers to go with the wordmark and cap logo. 

 

If anyone would like to see the Pirates in their original blue and red, I don't mind working that up. C&C appreciated! 

[coco1997]

TEXAS RANGERS (est. 1972)

 

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- For the reigning World Champs, I restored the team’s original look from 1972, which featured more vibrant shades of blue & red and a block “T” cap logo.
- Since the team wore “Rangers” on both their home and road jerseys in ’72, I used the “TEXAS” wordmark, first worn in 1975, for the road and alt.  
- For consistency with the road wordmark and numbers, the home script has been tweaked to feature outlines as opposed to shadows.

C&C appreciated as usual!

[Coiler]

Love the Pirates and especially Tigers (who really have been tame IRL when they had the opportunity to let loose)

 

Rangers, I was going to say "Do their version of the Senators", but that would either be plain red or generic dark blue/red.

[coco1997]

1 hour ago, Coiler said:

Love the Pirates and especially Tigers (who really have been tame IRL when they had the opportunity to let loose)

 

Rangers, I was going to say "Do their version of the Senators", but that would either be plain red or generic dark blue/red.

I may have a Senator-fied version of the Rangers planned for my next series. 

 

COLORADO ROCKIES (est. 1993)

 

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- Like the D-Backs and Rays, this one is just a rehash of the Colorado design from my Bringing '90s Expansion Teams into the Modern Day series. You can read a breakdown of that design in this post.

 

C&C appreciated! Two more teams left before I finish the first leg of this series. 

[maxwasson]

14 minutes ago, coco1997 said:

I may have a Senator-fied version of the Rangers planned for my next series. 

 

COLORADO ROCKIES (est. 1993)

 

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- Like the D-Backs and Rays, this one is just a rehash of the Colorado design from my Bringing '90s Expansion Teams into the Modern Day series. You can read a breakdown of that design in this post.

 

C&C appreciated! Two more teams left before I finish the first leg of this series. 

 

First leg? Does the second leg imply you'll be doing defunct teams?

[coco1997]

On 12/15/2023 at 9:09 AM, maxwasson said:

First leg? Does the second leg imply you'll be doing defunct teams?

 

SEATTLE MARINERS (est. 1977)

 

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- This one is a pretty straightforward conversion of Seattle’s original pullover, sansabelt uniforms from 1977 into a modern, button-down design.
- As I mentioned early on, I didn’t give Milwaukee the Pilots’ captain’s sleeve stripes because I was planning to use them for this M’s design.
- Shoutout to @MJD7 for suggesting the number font, which pairs nicely well with the scripts and cap logo.

C&C appreciated! Wrapping up the 30 present day teams next. 

[Victormrey]

Incredible set for the M's I think you nailed it!

The Pilots' sleeves keep that unique look from their beginnings, and the numbers match perfectly the style.

[VampyrRabbit]

One of the best things that Nintendo did when they bought the Mariners was change the team colours to navy and teal. That said, I do like the home and the alternate, though the original Seattle Script looks nicer than the one you've used.