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Archive for January, 2007
We all know about clothes horses in tennis. But what about table tennis? (Please, don’t call it Ping-Pong.) I’d never much thought about the apparel in that sport until Jeremy Brahm recently alerted me to a Japanese player named Naomi Yotsumoto, who wore an off-the-shoulder dress and a geranium in her cranium during last week’s Japanese National Championship tourney.
Other players in the tournament wore outfits like this and this, and recent female table tennis players at the Olympics (yes, it’s an Olympic sport) have looked like this, this, this, and this. So what’s up with Yotsumoto’s outfits?
Jeremy was kind enough to translate the pertinent bits from this article, which helps explain Yotsumoto’s unusual attire:
Her uniform obsession began after she graduated from college. “I wanted to show myself. So with that, I wanted to change the image of ‘Table tennis is stupid.’ ”
She has designed the uniforms that she is wearing [in the Japanese National Championships]. She wore a cream number that exposed her left shoulder and also had a “Paris daisy” in her hair. She advanced to the quarterfinals in the mixed doubles, but lost in the fourth round of the women’s singles.
“Without a doubt, I wouldn’t wear gear that would be a hindrance to my play. (As for the loud uniforms), I understand the pros and cons, but I want to continue with it.”
According to this page, “Serious players wear real table tennis clothing.” But real is as real does, and anyone who has a “uniform obsession” is OK by me. Plus I like that Yotsumoto’s trying to counteract one kind of geekiness (playing table tennis) with another (uni obsession). Plus-plus she can’t possibly be as annoying as Serena Williams. So I say let her wear whatever she wants.
Media Blitz: I’ll be talking about the new NHL uniforms today’s All Things Considered show on NPR — I’m told my segment will air at 4:50pm. And then it’s more of the same on Wednesday night at about 10pm, when I’ll be appearing on the Face Off Hockey Show podcast. Imagine how many interviews I’d be doing if the NHL had actually revealed anything substantive yesterday…
NHL All-Star Raffle: Speaking of the new NHL unis: As noted in yesterday’s FAQ roundup, the league was kind enough to give me an authentic Eastern Conference All-Star jersey at last week’s little media gathering. Now I’m going to be kind enough to raffle it off, and I’m expecting you folks to be kind enough to turn it into a good fund-raiser. Are we all a bunch of wonderful people or what?
First, here are the details on the jersey itself: It’s a size 54, in perfect condition (except maybe for a couple of stray cat hairs from Uni Watch mascots Tucker and Caitlin). The All-Star Game logo is embroidered on the shoulder. The back is blank, except for the embroidered Reebok logo. All tags are intact (collar, front, sleeve). Includes fight strap.
The raffle will cost $5 per entry. So $5 gets your name in the hat once, $10 gets it in twice, etc. PayPal your entry to me at paul_lukas at earthlink dot net by 10pm Thursday, and I’ll announce the winner on Friday. If you’re not PayPal-ish but still want to enter, put a check in the mail (Paul Lukas, 671 DeGraw St., Brooklyn, NY 11217) and e-mail me to let me know — I’ll put your name in even if the check doesn’t arrive in time for the drawing.
Uni Watch Winter Party Tour: Okay, my February travel plans are finally firmed up, and I’m happy to announce that there will be Uni Watch parties in three separate cities over a six-day period, which will surely set some sort of record for uni-based debauchery. Here’s the scoop:
February 3rd, Brooklyn: Forget Super Sunday — the real action will be on Saturday, as we gather at 3pm at the 12th Street Bar (corner of 8th Ave. and 12th St.; take the F train to 7th Ave.). The big news is that the bartender will be former Village Voice sports editor Miles Seligman, the man who once said, “A column about uniforms? That’s the stupidest-ass idea I’ve ever heard!” Alright, so that’s not quite what he said. Webmaster Johnny Ek is planning to be on hand too, plus design director Scott M.X. Turner, Mets by the Numbers webmaster Jon Springer, and we’re even flying in Jeremy Brahm for the occasion. Okay, no we’re not. But we would if we could! Anyway, it should be a kickass time.
February 7th, San Francisco: Uni Watch’s first-ever west coast shindig will take place at 7:30pm, at a venue still to be determined (although I’m seriously considering the Latin American Club — your thoughts, San Franciscans?). Further details soon.
February 8th, Dallas: We also need a venue for this get-together, which will commence at 7:30pm. I know exactly zero about Dallas, so help me out, people. Please keep in mind that while I love sports and love bars, I hate sports bars. A simple neighborhood watering hole is more my speed. Little help..?
And if anyone somehow manages to attend all three parties, first round’s on me.
Uni Watch News Ticker: Remember our discussion a few months back about target-esque hockey jersey logos? Ethan Rowley was reminded of that when he saw this old comic strip. … “Your talk of Oakland University’s mismatched shirts and shorts prompted me to send this picture of the Quebec City Kebewa of the ABA,” writes Doug Brei. “They aren’t exactly mismatched, but they are some of the most interesting uniforms I’ve seen in years. The road uniforms are the ones that are really bizarre. They’re so unique that for some reason I don’t hate them as much as I should.” … Interesting note from Jeremy Brahm, who writes: “I just learned about something called the Masters [baseball] League in Japan. It’s for retired players to play from November to February, which is the traditional off-season in Japanese baseball. The five teams have some pretty funky uniforms, as seen in these photos of the Sapporo Ambitious (player names are beneath the numbers), Nagoya 80D’sers, Tokyo Dreams, Osaka Romans (names beneath the numbers again, plus look at the blue trim on the sleeves), and Fukuoka Dontakus (can you say Vancouver Canucks V?).”
January 23rd, 2007
The NHL’s new uniform system is officially being unveiled today in Dallas, where the All-Star Game will be played later this week. But a small pre-unveiling event was held last Wednesday in New York, for media members who wouldn’t be in Dallas.
The Wednesday event was embargoed, meaning attendees had to agree beforehand not to disclose any information until 2pm today. Now that the embargo is over, here’s a peek at what went down:
Where was the event held?
In a back room at Aquavit, a restaurant in midtown Manhattan.
Was there food?
Enough shrimp to keep George Costanza very happy, and enough langoustines to keep me very happy. Plus some fruit and stuff, but c’mon, who wants free fruit?
How many media people attended?
Not many. There was a guy from Crain’s, a guy from a sporting goods trade magazine, a guy from Sports Illustrated, a few other people whose affiliations I didn’t get, and myself. All the regular hockey beat writers will presumably be at the Dallas event.
Who else was there?
About half a dozen people from the NHL (including Commissioner Gary Bettman and Executive VP Brian Jennings), maybe half a dozen more from Reebok (including Reebok CCM/Hockey prexy Matt O’Toole), defenseman John-Michael Liles from the Colorado Avalanche, and a few people with cameras.
Isn’t Liles injured?
Yeah, but they flew him in just for this event, so he could give the players’ perspective (or at least his perspective) on the new unis. He wore a suit but had a soft cast on his left leg, with the Avs’ logo emblazoned on the cast. An NHL official later told me that Liles had been stopped several times in the Denver airport by people who wanted to know where they could get their own Avs-branded cast.
So what actually happened?
There were some introductory remarks by Gary Bettman, then some remarks by Reebok’s Matt O’Toole (who at one point said, “There’s never been a major professional sports league that’s changed all 30 teams’ uniforms en masse,” to which I immediately thought, “Yeah, and there’s probably a good reason for that”), and then a short video explaining the features of the new uniforms. After that, John-Michael Liles and the NHL’s Brian Jennings took questions from the audience. Then Liles had to leave, at which point we were all free to mingle and address questions to whoever we could corner.
What sorts of questions got asked?
Most of the other media people asked business-related questions (how much will the new jerseys retail for, that sort of thing), and I kept asking really detail-oriented questions like, “Will the Red Wings’ nameplates still have vertically arched lettering?” Afterward, I was asking one of the Reebok guys if the Blackhawks’ logo would still be chain-stitched, and Brian Jennings, who was standing nearby, looked at me and said, “Who are you anyway?” When I told him, he said, “Oh, right — that guy.”
What did Liles have to say?
Basically, he said he really liked the new unis, which was no surprise — they wouldn’t have flown him out there otherwise. But he seemed very genuine and sincere. The most interesting thing he said was that the new uniforms weren’t as snug as the ones he wore during the Olympics (which were made by Nike, although he didn’t say that). “The socks at the Olympics were noticeably tighter — too tight,” he said.
Did they have any live human beings wearing the new uniforms?
No. They had two mannequins — one dressed up in the Eastern Conference All-Star uni, facing front, and one wearing the Western Conference design, facing backward.
Were there any live demonstrations?
At one point Brian Jennings took one of the new jerseys, stretched it out over his lap, and poured a glass of water onto it, so we could see how it repelled water. Sure enough, the water rolled right off of it (”just like after you Turtle Wax your car,” as Jennings put it). Another NHL exec later told me, “He’s been dying to do that trick all day.”
Weren’t they supposed to show the individual team uniforms, not just the All-Star designs?
That’s what I had assumed, and of course I was disappointed when that turned out not to be the case. To be fair, nobody at the NHL ever specifically said that the new team designs would be unveiled, and many fans — myself included — were probably guilty of getting ahead of themselves in terms of their expectations. But there’s no getting around the fact that the league has been making a big fuss over the introduction of “the new uniforms,” and it’s hard to see how that fuss is justified when all they’ve shown us so far is some new fabrics, a slightly slimmer silhouette, and the All-Star designs.
So are you saying the NHL intentionally misled everyone?
No. But I think they may have botched the PR aspect of all this by sending mixed or muddled messages about what was in store.
Was there a goodie bag?
Upon leaving, we were each given a box containing a couple of press releases that summarized most of what we’d just been told, a really cool little booklet full of very Uni Watch-ish info, and an Eastern Conference All-Star jersey about 17 sizes too large.
Can I have the jersey?
No.
January 22nd, 2007
As we look forward to what should be a very aesthetically pleasing Super Bowl, let’s all chip in and send a muffin basket or something to the Bears, as a gesture of gratitude. The NFC is the designated home team in the Super Bowl this year, and you know the Saints would’ve opted for solid black if they’d won yesterday. So here’s to the Bears for saving us from a Super Sunday blackout.
Now then, a few administrative details:
• Hearty congrats to reader Robert DeCorte, who won last week’s Distant Replays $250 raffle (and was surprised to win because, as he put it, “My luck usually isn’t this good”). Robert cashed in his winnings on 1969 Ernie Banks jersey — a fine choice. For those of you who entered but didn’t win, I’m happy to report that another raffle is on the way. I’ll have the details in a day or two. (Also, I believe today is the last day of Distant Replay’s 25%-off sale, so if there’s something you’ve been thinking about buying from them, today’s the day to do it.)
• For people who are dying to hear me express a bunch of thoughts and opinions you already know, I’ll be interviewed for about 10 minutes today at about 6:05pm eastern on WUMP in Huntsville, Alabama. It’s streamable here.
• As many of you know, my ESPN column on the new NHL uniforms will be published today at 2pm. A few minutes after the ESPN column goes live, I’ll post a bonus blog entry here, with lots of additional info about the NHL uni-unveiling event I attended last week.
Meanwhile, here’s a XL-sized dot-dot-dot section to keep you busy until the NHL stuff is available.
Uni Watch News Ticker: Reprinted from Thursday’s comments: Thursday’s entry about the All-American Redheads led reader Dave A. to point out another early women’s hoops team: the Edmonton Grads, whose various uniforms can be seen here, here, here, and here. … “Not sure if you have been following the Mitch Mustain ordeal at all,” writes Dominic Litten. “While reading about the nonsense from one of his home state columnists, I found some amazing info about Mustain’s need for narrow cleats and what Adidas did to accommodate him.” To see what he’s talking about, go to this page and scroll down about halfway, to the paragraph that begins, “There have been some claims…” … Interesting historical tidbit from Michael Furno, who writes: “My very good fiend’s father is in the top left (#15) of this photo of the Sioux City Siouxs. As you can see, it shows Joe DiMaggio in a Cardinals uniform! I have contacted the Hall of Fame and the Sioux City archive, and no one could explain it. But according to George Randazzo, executive director of the National Italian-American Hall of Fame and a very good friend of Joe D, the man in the Hawaiian shirt is Dizzy Dean. DiMaggio was always a big fan of Dean’s, and Randazzo speculates that either a) Joe D lost a bet to Dean, or b) Joe wore it to get a laugh out of Dean (he apparently loved trying to make him laugh).” … Penn State’s women’s hoops team will wear pink on February 4th (with thanks to Matt Godfrey). … For years now the go-to site for old ABA uni photos has been Remember the ABA. But now Ronnie Poore has turned up a new contender, which is full of game photos, game-worn jerseys, and some incredible ephemera. Poke around — it’s worth it. … Scroll down the last entry in this Q&A session for a really great factoid about Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury (as spotted by Jerry Wolper). … Excellent article here about how the Warriors’ equipment manager coped with an eight-player trade (with thanks to Alex Moggridge). … Latest athlete only too happy to be branded as a slave to the corporate plantation: Jeff Samardzija, who wore an Under Armour lapel pin at his Cubs press conference the other day. … Reprinted from Saturday’s comments: “With about two minutes left in the first half of today’s Texas/Villanova game, the refs actually had to peel the Big East decals off of the lane on both ends of the court because the players were slipping on them,” says Will Morris. “I don’t have a pic, but I also don’t remember ever seeing a court decal having to be peeled off because of slippage issues.” … The NBA’s All-Star Game jerseys will look like this and this (minus that URL watermark, natch). Not bad. … “Here’s the new football helmet for the University of Nebraska at Omaha,” writes Brian Redemske. “The excitement is over the decal, and I’m guessing the metallic paint will send hearts aflutter. Their previous lids were flat red with no logo.” … Japanese news from Jeremy Brahm: “The Hiroshima Toyo Carp have a new road uniform, with cursive script returning for the first time in 19 years. Sanfrecce Hiroshima have introduced their new uniforms as well. This is the first time that the team is placing player names on the back of their jerseys (teams in the J-League are not required at this time to do that). And the Urawa Red Diamonds (Reds for short) have introduced their new home uniforms. They will have two different home sponsors: DHL for international competitions and SAVAS for domestic competitions.” … John Cary notes that some Miami players had straight nameplates during Saturday’s game against FSU, while other players’ nameplates were radially arched. And those FSU unis, incidentally, were 1972 throwbacks. … Taylor Gaddy likes George Mason’s new gold unis, so he sent an enthusiastic e-mail to coach Jim Larranaga, who responded thusly: “After last season we asked the team if they wanted something special. They said yes — they wanted gold uniforms along with the normal green and white. Our George Mason players designed the uniforms themselves via Nike uniform web site. We like when our players get to learn something about business ordering these uniforms. It makes them appreciate it more. Everybody seems to love them.” … The Kings retired Luc Robitaille’s number on Saturday night, and wore a jersey patch to boot. … As many of you know, Oakland University’s hoops team has been superstitiously wearing mismatched jerseys and shorts. There’s a good article about it here. … Greg Trandel notes that the “L” in “Atlanta” on the Thrashers’ left sleeve is wider than it is long, which looks really odd now that he’s pointed it out. … “I’m watching West Ham v. Newcastle here at about 3am,” writes apparent insomniac Todd Davis, “and West Ham has the funky solid powder blue left sleeve (with white stripes), and then the maroon right sleeve with the vertical powder blue stripe and white stripes as a border (also available with long sleeves). Sort of a modified Phil Knight wet dream or something. The old-school version looked like this.” … Xian Choy notes that Al Harrington, recently traded to the Warriors, was still wearing his Pacers-colored sneakers the other day. … Check out Ken Stabler’s red facemask clips.
January 22nd, 2007
(Photo by Allen Einstein/NBAE via Getty Images)
Chris Webber shows off his new uniform in front of his locker on January 17, 2007.
January 21st, 2007
(Photo by Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images)
Jason Kidd and Vince Carter slap hands during the Nets/Knicks game last night at the Garden.
January 20th, 2007
[Editor's Note: Before we proceed with today's entry, I'm happy to announce that the winner of the Distant Replays $250 raffle is Robert DeCorte. Thanks to all who entered.
Now then: Today's post is the latest contribution from Uni Watch intern Vince Grzegorek, who's giving some well-deserved space to that really popular sport that I never write about. -- PL]
I know you’re excited about soccer in 2007, especially with that Beckham guy heading to the Los Angeles Galaxy. So for all of the people (the five or six of you) who may take a first look at the MLS this season, and for some of the more casual futbol fans, I thought this was a good time to put on some shin guards and take a look at soccer uniforms, which don’t always get their fair shake here at Uni Watch. But there’s plenty to discuss, because there’s another foreign export besides Beckham heading for American soccer: uniform advertising.
Although jersey ad patches have crept into a few low-level sports (arena football, lacrosse, minor league hockey), major-level team uniforms in America have remained largely ad-free. That’s not the case in the rest of the world. Jersey advertising and sponsorship have been a part of soccer uniforms in Europe, Asia, and South America for some time, and jersey advertising also appears in NFL Europe and European hockey. But soccer is where jersey advertisements are most widely known.
The trend began across the pond in the late 1970s, when UK teams thought they could raise some extra revenue by selling jersey sponsorships. Liverpool was the first team to officially sign a deal, wearing Hitachi on their jerseys during the 1979 season. (Hibernian had worn uniforms featuring Bukta [a uni manufacturer] in 1977, but that situation falls into a slightly different category, since the company already had a relationship with the team, and Bukta didn’t pay the club to feature the logo.) Seems simple enough, but there were logistical hurdles. Until 1983, television broadcasts had a strict ban on filming games featuring logo-emblazoned uniforms, so for four years teams wearing sponsor logos were forced to use different uniforms for televised matches. Even as the rules relaxed and teams took advantage of the more receptive atmosphere, broadcasters initially refused to embrace the advertising revolution, mandating that sponsor logos worn during taped games could only be half the size of the versions worn during non-broadcast matches.
Nowadays, jersey sponsorship has evolved into a gigantic humongous gigundous business. Manchester United signed a deal last year with AIG that will net them a cool $106 million over four years, and Chelsea is proudly wearing Samsung across their chests for $18.7 million a year. While European clubs usually have only one sponsor logo on their jerseys (see additional examples here, here, here, here, and here), Mexican and South American teams generally go the more garish (and lucrative) route and pile on sponsors on top of sponsors.
And then there’s Barcelona, which has always refused to wear a sponsor logo — until this season, when Barca took a jersey sponsor for the first time in its 107 year-old history. The difference? The sponsor is UNICEF, and Barcelona is PAYING the charity almost $2 million dollars a year for the privilege of wearing the logo.
What does that all mean for the MLS? Well, upon its creation the MLS inked deals with sponsors and allowed their logos to be displayed on the backs of the jerseys and on shorts (for example, Budweiser, Sierra Mist, Honda, and RadioShack), while the jersey fronts remained free ad-free, and divided the proceeds amongst the clubs. Last year, however, the MLS changed its rules to allow the individual clubs to sell the space on the front of their uniforms (although Commissioner Don Garber took some of the fun out by not allowing ads for hard liquor, tobacco, or gambling).
Real Salt Lake was the first team to take advantage of the opportunity, signing a deal that will display the XanGo brand name on their uniforms. (Technically, Red Bull owns the New York team, so having their logo on the uniforms doesn’t count as a sponsorship deal.) Word is already out that the New England Revolution will take a sponsor this season too. And Chivas, owned by Mexican billionaire Jorge Vergara, will likely wear the Bimbo name, just like Chivas Guadalajara, a Vergara-owned team in Mexico. (Just to be clear, Bimbo is a company that makes bread, although I would vote for sponsorship from this Bimbo, this Bimbo, this Bimbo, or this Bimbo as well.) Meanwhile, the Los Angeles Galaxy will presumably be able to strike a mega-bucks deal, thanks to Beckham’s arrival.
So what of it? Does the MLS jersey sponsorship mean the Pandora’s Box of professional sports advertising in the US has been opened? Does anyone really care, since we’re just talking about the MLS here?
Personally, I’m conflicted. I think MLS teams that take on jersey sponsors may actually look more professional, because I associate top-level soccer with leagues in Europe or Mexico or wherever, and that’s the way it’s done. On the other hand, this isn’t something I’m fully prepared to accept. I realize the MLS doesn’t have the attendance, fans, or revenue that the NBA does, for example, and I know these teams could really use the extra cash, especially when competing for the attention span of a country that doesn’t really care about soccer, but I firmly believe that uniforms do in fact represent something meaningful, and that not everything should be for sale.
What do you think? How do you feel about the new changes for the MLS? How would you feel about a similar situation occurring in baseball, basketball, football, or hockey? Is it inevitable? Is there a way it can be done tastefully?
E-mail your comments to Uniwatchintern at gmail dot com, and I’ll print a sampling of responses in a future entry.
Tangential Bonus Material: Can’t get enough soccer uni info? Here are some additional resources:
• Two great sites detailing the history of European and International soccer kits (including this controversial design worn by Arsenal from 1991-1993, affectionately nicknamed the “bruised banana”) can be found here and here.
• MLS kits from the league’s inception until last year can be found here. New uniform designs will be used this year, which will be another change in addition to the jersey sponsorship. (Asked about wearing the old-style Galaxy uniforms with yellow and green, David Beckham gave this response.)
• Here is an amazing site that details some of the more interesting uses of cool fonts and numbers on soccer uniforms, including my favorite, which was used by Sevilla in the 2006 UEFA Cup Final (they used italics!). The site also shows how you can fashion a remarkably accurate version of the block-numbering used by the 2006 Dutch team using Dutch toilet paper. With the exception of the last item, the site’s attention to detail, accuracy, and history are definitely worthy of Uni Watch.
• Remember seeing this picture of David Beckham throughout the news after the official announcement that he was coming to play for the Galaxy? Notice the mixture of upper and lower case letters? Me too. Personally, I think it looks pretty slick. The font is called Peignot. Anyone know any other cases of teams using upper- and lowercase letters on jersey nameplates?
• Councilmen in New Castle County, Delaware are sending soccer balls to Iraq to try and bring the Iraqi people and American troops together with sport. Good idea in theory, but who really thought this ball design was a good idea?
• Finally, since I’m from Cleveland, I have to give proper recognition to one of my favorite soccer teams (and logos) ever, even though it’s a long-defunct indoor team: the Cleveland Force.
January 19th, 2007
So I’m watching football and looking at old magazines the other day with Uni Watch design director Scott M.X. Turner, and I tell him how reader Byron Wages recently sent me a bunch of photos from his parents’ old high school yearbooks. “Look at this one,” I say. “What the hell is going on there?”
“Oh,” says Scott, all nonchalant and matter-of-fact. “Those are the Redheads.”
As I quickly learned, the All-American Redheads were a barnstorming women’s hoops team that played from 1936 through 1986, competing exclusively against men’s teams (and supposedly winning about 70% of their games). The yearbook photo apparently shows them playing against Byron’s father’s high school men’s team.
I’d never heard of the Redheads before, but man did they wear some cool uniforms over the years. They started out looking like this, then used some really nice color blocking, and then went a bit stripe-happy, as you can see here, here, and here. This shot, from the 1970s, appears to match up with the yearbook photo. At one point they even wore vertically striped socks (additional views here and here), so I’ll have to add them to our list of teams with longitudinally trimmed hosiery.
Most of these photos, incidentally, come from this page, which has lots of additional info and photos. There’s some additional Redheads info here.
Meanwhile, as long as we’re talking about Byron’s parents’ yearbooks, here his rundown of the other photos he sent, along with some my commentary on a few of them:
My dad’s alma mater was Duluth High School. Now, their main color was purple, but these photos are b&w so you don’t need to worry about your eyes.
• Here are some shots of players with tearaway jerseys, which were still legal [and were basically just T-shirts -- PL].
• Here’s a shot of some nice hoisery, and the phenomenon of thigh-taping. [As an aside, notice the thin piping on the defensive team -- looks sooooo much better than some of the garishly thick piping we see nowadays. -- PL]
• A rare shot of a football player wearin’ specs.
• I’ve never seen a forearm pad like this. The water bottle is odd, too. [I don't know about the bottle, but it sure has a long straw. Also: Brace face! Does that tear up the mouthguard? -- PL]
• Now we move on to basketball. This is the only pic I could find of Duluth’s famed Indiana-style purple warmup pants.
• Then we have closer pics of the uniform. The coolest thing is the different sides of the shorts.
• Here’s a look at the women’s team. Note the collars and the socks. Here’s a side view of the even cooler side-short design. [Also noteworthy: The jerseys are designed to be untucked, like the old Marquette uni.]
• Next I found two pics of my mom’s alma mater, Headland High. Here’s a shot of the girls’ team. The socks rock. [Note that those socks are actually stirrups, as was fairly common for hoops hosiery in the 1950s-'70s. Also: Dig those jersey sashes! -- PL]
• Here’s another pic which shows off the uniform’s nice Maryland-esque trim.
Big thanks to Byron for snooping through his parents’ stuff sharing these cool photos, and to Scott for the Redheads primer. I love it when things come together like this.
Raffle Redux: Today’s the last day to enter this month’s raffle for a Distant Replays $250 gift card. If you haven’t already entered, send an e-mail to uniraffle at earthlink dot net by 10pm Eastern Time tonight. Only one entry per person, yadda-yadda-yadda. I’ll announce the winner on Friday.
Left Coast Leftovers: Tuesday’s entry about San Diego uni history prompted a good follow-up note from Richard Craig, as follows:
• Total coincidence: When Ted Williams played for the Pacific Coast League Padres in 1936-’37, he wore No. 19, just like Tony Gwynn did many years later. Williams’ Padres uniform number had supposedly been lost to history until a photo of him was recently discovered. It had been used on the front cover of game programs as part of a collage.
• It’s fairly well documented that while Gwynn wore No. 19 for his whole
Padres career, he actually wore #53 in spring training, as shown in his Topps rookie card. What’s not as well-known is that Gwynn’s first actual appearance in a Padres uniform was in a silly TV ad for the Padres featuring car dealer
Cal Worthington and the San Diego Chicken. Gwynn was a student at San
Diego State at the time, and the team recruited a bunch of guys to wear
Padres uniforms and stand in the stadium parking lot like used cars. He wore Broderick Perkins’s uniform, No. 15.
• Perhaps even less well-known is that in Ozzie Smith’s first-ever
appearance in a big-league stadium, he wore No. 32, in an exhibition at
Jack Murphy Stadium against the Minnesota Twins. I was there, but I’ve
never seen any photos of it since for verification. Maybe someone out
there has a photo.
Uni Watch News Ticker: Add another sport to the list of games afflicted by streakers: snooker (with “thanks” to Denis Hurley). … “UL-Monroe has changed its nickname from the Indians to the Warhawks, so all of the school’s teams were forced to get new uniforms this school year,” reports Chris Mycoskie. “Most of the teams look alright, but the baseball team looks incredible.” … According to the Boston Globe Bruins goalie Hannu Toivonen’s new mask is very Boston-centric, with “graphics of Tedy Bruschi and David Ortiz on the left side of the mask, matched on the right with head shots of Larry Bird and Ray Bourque. There are logos of the teams pasted around the mask, along with a basketball player and a hockey player in action.” No photos yet, but Jeff Israel’s gonna try to provide one when Toivonen starts tonight. “The best part is, he’s had a terrible year and has been the subject of trade proposals all season long,” says Israel. “That mask would look quite strange on another team.” … Update, 10am: Lindsay Oliver has provided photos of Toivonen’s mask. Look here, here, and here. … For those who like old historical uni photos, Bob Andrews has sent along links to some good collegiate archives: For Oberlin, go here and put the terms “baseball” or “football” (or whatever) in the search field (here’s a typical result); for early Princeton football pics, look here (note the sophisticated training methods used way back when); this page leads you to great pics of North Carolina’s basketball, football, and cheerleading squads; and literally thousands of Michigan football photos are available here. … Speaking of historical photos, last night’s Comments section included this mind-bending shot of the 1930 U. of Wisconsin hockey team (who also wore some goggles that looked a lot like the gear worn by women’s lacrosse teams). … And look what Percy LeSueur of the original Ottawa Senators used to wear (hat trick for Jonathan Goupil).
January 18th, 2007
During Sunday’s Bears/Seahawks game, I got about half a dozen e-mails asking about the “extra nipple” on Lovie Smith’s jacket. Nobody could figure out what it was (neither could I), and it didn’t appear to be included on any of the Bears jackets currently available for retail sale.
Yesterday I chatted with a Reebok spokesman, who patiently explained the whole thing:
Uni Watch: So was that a pump on Lovie Smith’s jacket, or an iPod attachment, or what?
Reebok: It’s a pump jacket. It’s not for sale yet — it’s just being wear-tested. Basically, it’s to keep you warmer. The idea is that you inflate the jacket and your body heat warms the air.
UW: Are any teams besides the Bears using it?
RBK: The Buccaneers used it earlier, and I think some others — I’d have to check.
UW: So although my readers and I first noticed it this past Sunday, it had actually debuted a few weeks or even months earlier?
RBK: Yes. I mean, it’s not like it’s being worn all across the sidelines. It’s just been a couple of different guys.
UW: Is it only for extreme cold weather? Or could you also wear it on a moderately chilly day?
RBK: Yeah, sure.
UW: And the user can regulate the amount of air he puts in there?
RBK: Correct. There’s a valve up on the right shoulder, and then the actual pump actuators are in the pocket.
UW: The pump what?
RBK: Actuator.
UW: So you, like, squeeze something with your hand in the pocket?
RBK: Exactly. The pump itself is almost like a grip.
UW: So you stick your hand in –
RBK: — in the pocket, and you can squeeze it up as far as you want it to go.
UW: Just one pocket?
RBK: Both pockets.
UW: So you can just be standing there with your hands in your pockets, talking to someone, or whatever, and meanwhile you could be pumping up the jacket?
RBK: Exactly.
UW: And the little nub is the valve to release the air?
RBK: Yes.
UW: What’s printed above and beneath the valve?
RBK: The half-circle around the top reads “Pressure Release Valve,” and underneath it says “the Pump.”
UW: Is there an official name for this yet?
RBK: It’s officially called the Pump Sideline Jacket. Like I said, it’s just being wear-tested — it won’t retail until later.
UW: “Later” meaning, what, next winter?
RBK: We hope so, yeah.
So there you have it. Inflatable jackets are nothing new, natch (especially if you’ve seen Sleeper), and neither are extra nipples. But those in-pocket pumps are pretty intriguing. Given that most NFL head coaches are total control freaks who are wound tighter than a drum, it’s not hard to imagine some of these guys getting in the habit of reflexively pumping the “actuator” every time there’s an interception or a missed tackle, until they blow up like the Michelin Man. Might give new meaning to the term “blowhard.”
Uni Watch News Ticker: Reggie Bush’s high school team sure wore some killer socks (video clip here, with thanks to Brian Terreson). … Ryan Muraro reports that the Milwaukee Admirals will wear “Hawaiian-themed” jerseys this Friday. Not sure if there are any Uni Watch readers in Hawaii, but let’s all apologize to the whole state, just in case. … Had a good e-mail back-and-forth yesterday with Tyler Kepner, who covers the Yankees for the New York Times. “I used to cover the Seattle Mariners in 1998-99,” he wrote at one point. “One day they just decided to wear their BP top for the games. It was the strangest thing. I remember thinking, ‘Can they do that? Isn’t there some uniform czar to regulate this stuff?’ ” … Back in October, I linked to this page, in which Capitals owner Ted Leonsis said, “We will eventually go back to red, white, and blue [as the team's colors].” The latest development on that front comes from Washington Post reporter Dan Steinberg, as noted by reader Dan Franko: “In Steinberg’s blog, he says that he was talking to Mystics President Sheila Johnson (the Mystics and Caps are both owned by Ted Leonsis’s Lincoln Holdings, along with part of the Wizards.) She mentions that the Mystics are looking to go “to red white and blue, too,” but that they have to wait until the Caps do it, so the two teams can do it together.” The full blog entry he refers to is here. … Jeremy Brahm, in a rare non-Asian-related contribution, reports that Chelsea goalkeeper Petr Cech, who suffered a fractured skull three months ago is returning to action in a rugby helmet (full details here). … According to this article, Chris Webber is wearing No. 84 at the suggestion of “his 6-year-old nephew, who had a dream in which Uncle Chris was wearing that number.” Let’s all be glad six-year-olds can’t count any higher than that.
January 17th, 2007
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