Remember how several National League teams wore those striped pillbox caps during the 1976 season? In addition to the Cardinals (who even had striped helmets), other teams wearing this style for at least some of their ’76 games included the Mets, Phillies, and of course the Pirates, who liked the pillbox design so much that they kept it for several more seasons.
Most NL teams didn’t do the pillbox thing, however, including the Expos — or at least that’s what I thought until a few days ago, when I got the following note from Joel Kirstein: “On the last day of the 1976 season — at the last game at Montreal’s old Jarry Park, Sunday, September 26th, 1976 — the Expos wore white throwback caps, with three stripes that circled the cap. Quite a departure from their patented tricolor beanies.” Kirstein doesn’t have a photo from this game, alas. Anyone got any visual confirmation of this?
That might have gone down as a simple Ticker item, except that I turned up lots of other stuff along the way. I vaguely remembered, for example, that the 1976 National League All-Star team had worn pillbox-styled all-star caps — or at least they’d worn them in the locker room, during pregame warm-ups, and for the team portrait. But did they wear them in the game? I didn’t think so, but I couldn’t find a photo — until I remembered that I’d just gotten a used copy of this book, which includes this photo from the ’76 ASG, showing Bill Russell clearly wearing a regular Dodgers cap.
So in retrospect, the white pillbox all-star cap was essentially MLB’s first batting practice cap. But wait a minute — Kirstein said the Expos wore “white throwback caps, with three stripes that circled the cap” on the last day of the ’76 season. Sounds an awful lot like these, no? Hmmmmmmm. This merits further study.
Meanwhile, here are some other things I stumbled across while researching all of this:
• Tito Fuentes wore a huge headband in 1976.
• I’d forgotten that Lee Mazzilli had worn eyeglasses early in his career.
• And here’s the kicker: Look at this photo of Willie and Hank. As you can see, Mays is wearing a pillbox-style Mets cap, but forget about that — what’s up with his jersey? The placket piping and lack of pinstripes make it look like he’s wearing an early version of the team’s current “snow white” design. But that design didn’t exist back in the ’70s, when Mays was a Mets coach. What’s the deal? The caption doesn’t offer much help:
FLUSHING, NY: Hank Aaron #44 of the Milwaukee Brewers poses for a portrait with coach Willie Mays #24 of the New York Mets circa 1975 at Shea Stadium in Flushing, New York. Aaron played in Milwaukee for the Brewers from 1975-1976. Mays coached for the Mets from 1974-1979.
The photo is actually from ’76, not ’75, as evidenced not only by Willie’s cap but also by his left-sleeve armband, which the Mets wore in ’76 to memorialize Joan Payson and Casey Stengel. But either way, it still doesn’t explain the jersey. Another subject for future study.
Membership News: Trading deadline? Yeah, whatever. The real last-minute scramble yesterday involved the Uni Watch Charter Membership deadline, which provoked a furious scrum of activity as dozens upon dozens of readers signed up.
I normally add new members to the roster as the orders come in, but that protocol was blown out of the water by yesterday’s unprecedented avalanche of enrollees — I gave up trying to keep pace sometime in the afternoon. I’m going to be off the grid for most of today, and much of tomorrow is already spoken for, which means I probably won’t get caught up processing everything until the weekend (and who knows how long it’ll take poor Scott to design all the cards!). So if you signed up yesterday and don’t yet see your name on the roster, don’t fret — it’ll be dealt with soon-ishly.
If you have any outstanding membership-related issues — like if you asked about a certain design and haven’t heard back from me, or you had some special circumstance that merits an exemption from the deadline — please-please-please don’t send me any e-mails about that today. I won’t be anywhere near a computer for most of the day. I promise that each and every concern will be addressed, but just give me a couple of days to catch up with everything first.
Obviously, a slew of membership orders is a nice problem to have — mega-thanks to everyone who signed up, and for the very kind comments many of you included with your orders. As I’ve said many times before (but it bears repeating), a writer couldn’t dream of having a better readership than you guys.
While this batch will take a while to process, I’m happy to report that about 50 membership kits from the last batch went out in yesterday’s mail.
And, of course, while the Charter Membership period has ended, new membership orders are still welcome. Keep ’em coming.
Uni Watch News Ticker: The Patriots are wearing a “91″ memorial helmet decal for Marquise Hill (with thanks to J. Gillespie). … “I was in Cooperstown this weekend for the HOF induction,” writes Alan Chewning. “Check out the socks on this guy, who I ran into at the Cooperstown Brewing Company (aka Slugger’s Brewery). They are Princeton socks, but he wore them to show his support of Cal Ripken.” … The NFL’s new rule requiring sideline photographers to wear “Canon”-emblazoned vests continues to stir up controversy. Latest articles are here and here. … Spectacular job by Matthew Lepke, who found a photo of John Van Benschoten (he of the two-word surname but the one-word nameplate) pitching last year at triple-A, where his name was rendered correctly (which just goes to show that the Pirates aren’t a minor league team — they’re worse). … The 49ers will honor Bill Walsh with a “BW” helmet decal and coaches’ sleeve patch. … The Pirates are making some uni number changes (scroll down to the “Number Swap” section on this page, as noted by Daniel Weimann). … This seems a bit much, since Paul Pierce has been a Celtic for nearly a decade (thanks, Vince). … Next year’s MLB All-Star Game logo will look like this. … Anthony Memme notes that Noah Lowry had a “22″ cap inscription last night. Anyone know why? … “A couple of notes from Sunday’s 20-year reunion of the 1987 Giants celebration,” writes David Taub. “Pitching Coach Norm Sherry came out wearing No. 46. He never wore this number in his tenure with the Giants (he was 34). Sherry did wear the number as a coach in the 1970s with San Diego (and maybe with California as well). Kevin Mitchell wore No. 7. In 1987, he wore 9. He swapped numbers with Bob Melvin in 1988.”
#1 by Dave on 08.01.07 7:43 am |
Anybody know if the Mets pillbox hat can be purchased?
#2 by Tom C. on 08.01.07 7:46 am |
I’m a Red Sox fan, but even I like that ASG logo. It it understated and classy, which is a nice departure from recent ASG logos. In recent years the BP Jerseys,Caps and other memorabilia are designed around the hosting team’s colors . That means we should be in store for a less hideous ASG next summer.
#3 by Mike Engle on 08.01.07 8:19 am |
About Lowry’s 22: Lowry, a SF Giant, is “mourning” the departure of now former teammate Matt Morris, soon to make his Pittsburgh Pirates debut. This is a pretty common practice, as I recall the 2004 Dodgers wearing 16 for Paul Lo Duca, who had been traded to the Marlins.
#4 by Mike Engle on 08.01.07 8:26 am |
Looks like Mark Teixeira has #24 for the Braves…for the moment.
#5 by duker on 08.01.07 8:30 am |
Gotta love the title Paul. “Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat” by Bob Dylan
#6 by Rich on 08.01.07 8:34 am |
On the Aaron/Mays photo, just a guess, but since the photo is black and white, is that the Mets’ 1974-77 gray road uniform Mays is wearing? Aaron is definitely wearing the Brewers’ powder blue, so the gray would appear lighter next to the powder blue.
#7 by Cathy on 08.01.07 8:42 am |
Dave said:
found one at an auction site….but it is really pricy, not a replica.
#8 by Cathy on 08.01.07 8:48 am |
you can buy a Pirates pillbox style at Distant Relpays…one of this sites advertisers…maybe write them and inquire about the Mets
#9 by johnt on 08.01.07 8:50 am |
Could the Willie and Hank picture be from an Oldtimers game. Mets use to have these on a regular basis back in the 70’s and I do remember Willie playing in a few of them. Just a thought…
I know, the franchise was not even 20 yrs old, but remember the first few years the mets were stacked with Vets at the tail end of their career.
#10 by Phil on 08.01.07 8:54 am |
On the Mays/Aaron photo. Milwaukee was still in the American League in the 70’s. What would have brought them together for a picture like this unless it was Spring Training.
#11 by CJ on 08.01.07 9:25 am |
I like the Eddie Gaedel card.
I don’t, like, however, the striped Phils pillbox hat. Especially if they wore it with the vertically striped set.
Thanks to the one guy for your opinion on my stirrup idea. I guess nobody else cared. . . .
*sniff*
#12 by Lou on 08.01.07 9:42 am |
You can try Mickeys Place in Cooperstown for the mets Pillbox cap. They don’t have it on their website, but I bought one there a few years ago.
As for the photo, that is clearly just an overexposed photo of Willie wearing the Mets road jersey. Why Willie and Hank are both wearing their road jerseys is not clear to me.
#13 by duker on 08.01.07 2:59 pm |
Check this out.
logo creep + transformers = still awesome
#14 by Mike Engle on 08.01.07 11:19 pm |
Was it just me, or was the website not working for much of today? Perhaps this blog entry deserves a do-over…re-run this tomorrow?
#15 by Jordan Skipper on 08.01.07 11:28 pm |
Mike Engle said:
ya, i didnt get on till 10:20 PM…..lol
#16 by Mike Engle on 08.01.07 11:35 pm |
Lou said:
This Nines picture suggests you might be right. Good call, perhaps.
#17 by Brett S on 08.01.07 11:38 pm |
Jordan Skipper said:
I just got on now lol
And from yesterday’s comments, there was something saying that the new Canucks sweater was going to unveiled today. Anybody get any pics or hear anything about that?
#18 by Eriq Jaffe on 08.01.07 11:39 pm |
Lou said:
You can also order one through the Cooperstown Ballcap Company. I have a 1972 Braves cap from them, and I am very happy with it.
#19 by junkland on 08.01.07 11:41 pm |
What’s going on in the Bill Russell picture? What’s the torso-less Phillie doing right behind Russell and tangled up with the baserunner?
#20 by possum on 08.01.07 11:58 pm |
Teixeira will keep #24. Scroll down, as in the Pirates Notes link Paul posted. (AND FREAKING GO BRAVES!!! We’re coming for your boys, Paul!)
Re: Hank/Willie pic…did the Brewers wear those block M caps? It looks like a Milwaukee Braves cap but I’m no Brewers expert.
The Canucks site still has the old jerseys pictured.
FYI, I couldn’t get on here all day until I Googled “uniwatch” and was able to get to a link from June, then hit the Home link. Of course if you’re reading this you got here fine.
#21 by possum on 08.01.07 11:58 pm |
Oh I forgot to give props for the Dylan quote. Here’s to a navigation-friendly Thursday for Uniwatch. :)
#22 by JM Rempt on 08.02.07 12:02 am |
Brett S said:
nothing on the Canucks site or NHL.com, nothing coming up on Google, nothing on espn. Pretty safe to say they haven’t been unveiled yet.
#23 by John Baranowski on 08.02.07 12:07 am |
yeah, internet explorer refused to load the site, but i’m on firefox now and it seems to be working fine. the lack of comments seems to show that i’m not the only one with this problem, but i’m one of the lucky few who thought of how to get around it.
and the canucks jersey was photographed privately today, and our only hope to see it before training camp is if someone leaks some photos. here’s hoping!
#24 by Brett S on 08.02.07 12:11 am |
thanks for the canucks info john and jm
#25 by Dennis Abrams on 08.02.07 12:12 am |
John Baranowski said:
I had been trying to get on the site all day with only firefox and it hasn’t worked until now.
#26 by schuby on 08.02.07 12:16 am |
Dennis Abrams said:
yea i tried Explorer and Firefox and it hasn’t worked till now
#27 by Brandon Davis on 08.02.07 1:27 am |
Not sure if it’s been posted anywhere on here but Saint Mary’s College of California has replaced their stacked collegiate monogram SMC with a new logo.
I’m personally not crazy about it.
#28 by Forrest on 08.02.07 2:16 am |
I just now managed my way on, 12:16 mountain time.
#29 by DW in Tampa Bay on 08.02.07 2:17 am |
Phil said:
The Mets trained in St. Petersburg while the Brewers were in Sun City, AZ. So that rules out Spring Training.
#30 by JM Rempt on 08.02.07 2:18 am |
Brandon Davis said:
I dunno, I kind of dig it.
#31 by stan aka the took on 08.02.07 2:18 am |
HEY the site works!!!!!!!!
#32 by DW in Tampa Bay on 08.02.07 2:23 am |
Mike Engle said:
Dayum…You mean we probably won’t get asked about the Bucs fonts on their practice jerseys today?
I am so disappointed……
#33 by Terry Mark on 08.02.07 2:29 am |
Brandon Davis said:
That’s a sweet new logo. Simple, but a little panache to make it interesting.
Here’s my contribution from the NCAA: The Indianapolis Star reports that IU will honor the late Coach Hoeppner with a patch/decal of some sort on their helmets and jerseys. It seems the team gets to pick the design, which hasn’t been revealed. A sensible approach, in my estimation.
If it were me, I’d go with a simple “Hep” in white lettering inside a black oval or rectangle. I’d also wouldn’t mind seeing the “Play 13″ rallying cry that Hoeppner brought to the program meaning, y’know, to play in a bowl game, which the Hoosiers haven’t done in forever.
One final note: I’m glad to see all those that finally made it onto the site. Firefox wouldn’t load this page until one time — on a lark — I clicked “Try Again” and the page appeared.
#34 by Kyle at IU on 08.02.07 2:41 am |
Terry Mark said:
Living in the shadow of Memorial Stadium here in Bloomington, I am very glad to hear that Coach Hep is being honored in a tasteful manner. It’s amazing to see just how much people have come together in the community given that the man was only here two years. Let’s hope the spirit and optimism he instilled in this program will carry through and we will indeed “play 13″
#35 by JM Rempt on 08.02.07 3:14 am |
Terry Mark said:
or “Defend the Rock”
as far as the Bill Walsh tribute goes, given his total reinvention of that franchise, they should give him a permanent tribute like the bears gave Halas.
#36 by Mikey on 08.02.07 3:45 am |
Anybody seen the font used on the Tampa practice jerseys? Pretty crazy…..
I hate for people to be disappointed…..
#37 by felix on 08.02.07 5:07 am |
Mikey said:
SI has also posted their top 10 college football uniforms too, check it out if you get a chance.
#38 by felix on 08.02.07 5:08 am |
DW in Tampa Bay said:
And is it just me, or is Kenny Rogers wearing a BP cap?
#39 by Michael Churchill on 08.02.07 6:31 am |
Is this why the site was down?
#40 by Buckeye Mike on 08.02.07 7:46 am |
I have still been having trouble, but I found that if you delete the backslash from the end of the URL, and then try to look for it, it comes up fine in IE just FYI
#41 by ADD on 08.02.07 7:47 am |
felix said:
Probably, he was wearing an altered one last year too.
#42 by A on 08.02.07 10:01 am |
Anyone know why the met’s man who runs this board didnt post anything about the YANKEES ASG coming up???
#43 by Scott on 08.02.07 12:32 pm |
You mean, like posting
“Next year’s MLB All-Star Game logo will look like this.”
near the end of the Ticker section? Gee, must be biased or something. Of course, since there isn’t really any uni-related info about that game yet, it’s unclear exactly what one should expect…
#44 by Chance on 08.02.07 3:26 pm |
possum said:
Yep – from 1970-1978 the Brewers wore a recolored version of the Braves cap (which in turn was borrowed from the minor league Milwaukee Brewers):
http://www.gasolinea...
#45 by Chance on 08.02.07 3:26 pm |
Ugh – that should be through 1977….
#46 by Skip Lockwood on 08.02.07 10:44 pm |
On the Mays/Aaron photo….funny little aside….Chris who used to own Mojo Guitars on St. Marks Place had what looked to me like a bonafide Mets road jersey from that time (#11 (Wayne Garret???). The thing is: the uniform was white…the only thing I can conclude is the powder blue (which I do believe was the Mets shade of choice at that point) was washed out. I have to think that because even the number font was the same one the Mets used for the road at that time (different from the home font).
Anyhow, I’m not sure this is an Oldtimers Game because didn’t Aaron play in 76? Unless this is Oldtimers Day at Yankee Stadium in ‘76.
#47 by Chris on 08.07.07 12:40 pm |
Does anyone know where I could find a 1964 New York Mets jersey with patch commemorating the 1964-1965 World’s Fair?
Thanks.