Every now and then a debate breaks out in the comments section about the precise definition of logo creep. As the guy who came up with the term, I feel reasonably qualified to define it as follows: Logo creep is visual clutter formed by the unnecessary proliferation of logos where they don’t belong. This can include maker’s marks, league logos, and other sorts of gratuitous logotypes. And have I got a doozy of an example for you today.
Here’s the scoop: As you no doubt recall, the NFL instituted a new rule last season requiring the one radio-equipped helmet on the offensive side of the ball to be adorned with a green sticker (which led to my receiving an endless stream of “What’s that green dot?” e-mails last season, but that’s another story). As you may also recall, there was talk a few months ago of allowing one defensive helmet to be radio-equipped as well. That led many folks to wonder if a corresponding green dot would appear on the defensive side of the ball.
Judging by this photo from the first day of Giants camp, the answer is yes. That’s Antonio pierce wearing the telltale green sticker. But it looks a little smudgy, no? Is there some dirt on the dot, or maybe something printed on it?
It’s tough to tell for sure in that photo. Fortunately, I’m able to provide you with a better view. Here’s what the sticker looks like up close.
This isn’t the stupidest thing the NFL has ever done, but that’s only because they tried to keep Mike Nolan from wearing a suit. Like, seriously, do these people have the NFL logo tattooed on their dicks or what? Do they sit around an NFL logo-shaped table while munching on NFL logo-shaped macaroons and ponder new places to apply the NFL logo? Are they aware that the average NFL player already wears the league’s logo on his jersey, pants, helmet, gloves, towel, wristbands, and those little stretchy bands that Jeremy Shockey likes to wear on his biceps to show what a studmuffin he is?
There’s something about this whole enterprise that reeks of everything that’s wrong with the NFL (and with a lot of other corporate enterprises that spin out of control). For starters, who needs radio-equipped helmets anyway? Larynxes and hand signals and worked fine for decades. Then radio-equipped helmets begat the problem of multiple radio-equipped helmets, so they came up with the rule that there could only be one electronically wired helmet on the field at a time. Which in turn meant they had to come up with the green dots, which looked like shit because they didn’t match any team’s color scheme except the Seahawks’. And now the green dot has been imprinted with a design that looks like a smudge from a distance and looks pathetic up close.
The technology-driven progression here reminds me of instant replay, which seemed like a good idea until it led to lengthy delays, coaches who didn’t know which plays were and weren’t reviewable, teams that would hurry to the line and snap the ball just to prevent the opposing team from asking for a review, bad calls that couldn’t be challenged because the coach had already used up his allotment of challenges, refs who didn’t remember where the ball should be placed after they’d ruled on a challenge, and little red flags that revealed the horrible truth about NFL coaches (namely that they all throw like girls, at least when tossing a red challenge flag). It’s like there’s something about the NFL that makes them take every idea to its most ridiculous extreme until they’ve sapped every ounce of potential enjoyment from the situation. I still like football, but they’re making it harder and harder.
In happier news, I attended yesterday’s Mets/Cards game in the company of my good friend The Rev. Nørb, who’s smarter than everyone at NFL HQ put together — a fact clearly demonstrated by the two installments of his seminal food and drink manifesto, “Rev. Nørb’s Keen Cusine,” which you can enjoy here and here. It has nothing to do with uniforms, but it’s brilliant in precisely the same way that a logo-emblazoned green dot is idiotic, and therefore serves as a handy antidote for these troubled times.
Uni Watch News Ticker: Any further discussions of “the worst baseball uniform ever” will have to reckon with the uni that Dylan Horowitz has turned up. Look, if you dare, here. … Really interesting article here about the guy who makes Ichiro’s gloves (with thanks to Jeremy Brahm). … My recent ESPN column on the 1998 futuristic game between the Royals and Mariners inspired gumball helmet maven Bill Jones to create these. He’s also got lots of updated logo sheets available for sharing, as you can see here. … More Iowa State Baseball Tourney observations from Jesse Gavin: a cool, kinda Negro Leagues-esque cap worn by Grandview Park Baptist; award decals being used by Johnston; and lots of very flat brims. … On the subject of logo-emblazoned socks, Karl Krekeler found these UPS hose. … If you go to this link and then click to page 32, you’ll find an article on the designer who created the Astros’ tequila sunrise design (with thanks to John Weghorst). … Brad Foster nominates the CFL’s now-defunct Memphis Mad Dogs in the “worst jersey ever” sweepstakes (here’s another shot). … Pretty damn cute. … Get this: The first time an Atlanta police detective solves a case, he’s rewarded with a fedora. Additional info and photos here (great find by Brent Hardman). … Last year I wrote about how Carlos Gomez had worn a cap that was a weird hybrid of the Mets’ road and alt caps (blue brim, but that version of the “NY” logo usually appears only on the solid black cap; details here). I assumed it was a one-time manufacturing glitch by New Era, but apparently it’s at least a two-time glitch, because Casey Moses found the same hybrid design in a store (additional pics here, here and here). “It was the only one of its kind at the store, so I bought it as a novelty, even though it’s not my size,” he says. … This story about former Czech president Vaclav Havel includes the following: “And what, if anything, disappoints Havel with the state of contemporary capitalist culture, whose forces he helped unleash as a dissident? ‘I do not like the ads on the shirts of hockey or football players,’ he said. ‘You’d think Coca-Cola is playing against Pepsi Cola.’” I assume he’s talking about European hockey and soccer there, and he’s right (great find by Bryant Robinson). … Hmmm, got logo creep? Looks like they worked in just about every manufacturer (with thanks to Wayne Yeung). … Speaking of logo creep, David Sonny points out that the Reebok logo is front and center on this Sporting News cover photo, which is interesting because the MLB undershirt license actually belongs to Nike, not Reebok — wonder whether it was Yunel Escobar or TSN who was responsible for that little maneuver. … On Friday I quoted a reader asking whether any football teams had replaced their primary helmet logos with anniversary logos. But as many readers immediately pointed out, lots of college teams wore the NCAA’s “100″ mark in 1969, including Ole Miss, ’Bama, ASU, Navy, and many more (thanks to Jim Parker for those pics, and please let’s not have everyone posting every single example — we all get the idea). … Lots of really cool old-timey sports T-shirts available here. I especially like this one (with thanks to Dusty McGowan). … Big news from Steve Dewing (whose baseball photo site remains essential viewing): He’s got a new site devoted to old hockey photos. Check it out here. … Some great new baseball revelations from Steve too, including Chris Spier wearing an Astros helmet in the 1972 All-Star Game and Denny McLain as a Brave. … Interesting NOB here (courtesy of Johnny Garfield) — note that it’s “Miller, M.” instead of “M. Miller.” Anyone know more about this? … Brinke Guthrie notes that several of the Giants’ recent call-ups seem to have their uni numbers riding a tad low. … Reprinted from Saturday’s comments: Cool slideshow of the Oklahoma football equipment room here. … Also from Saturday: Indiana assistant hoops coach Bennie Seltzer wore the team’s candy-striped warmup pants to get recruits’ attention at a recent summer camp. Details here. … Interesting note from eagle-eyed Josh Edney regarding yesterday’s Phils/Braves game, which had a two-hour rain delay: “The umps started out the game in their powder blue shirts, including home plate umpire Alfonso Marquez, whose shirt was No. 61, even though his number is listed on the MLB web site as 72. When the rain delay concluded, the umps returned to the field wearing black shirts, and Marquez’s had his proper number.” … Mark Mihalik’s footwear site has an interesting tidbit regarding Bronson Arroyo’s swooshes. … Mets-hating Phillies fans should dig this and this, both available here (with thanks to Morris Levin). … The B.C. Lions will be wearing a memorial decal in honor of former team exec Bob Ackles. Details here (courtesy of Alex Tepperman). … Jeremy Brahm reports that the Japanese volleyball team will be wearing this in Beijing. … Several jillion readers wrote in to tell me that Xavier Nady’s uni number and helmet number didn’t match on Saturday. Also, the last item on this page reads like so: “The [Yanks’] new left-handed reliever Dámaso Marte was issued No. 34, with the blessing of the injured pitcher Phil Hughes, who had no luck with the number early this season. Xavier Nady took No. 29, last worn by pitcher Kei Igawa, who was dropped from the 40-man roster.” … Becky Taylor has crated a huge gallery of Georgia high school sports photos — some that she’s taken herself, some scanned from yearbooks she’s collected. … And Hadyn Green has scanned a bunch of photos from old rugby almanacs. … “I was going through some old issues of Pro magazine,” writes Michael Princip. “The Aug. 17, 1978 issue had an article on George Brace and the portraits he did of 1931 Chicago Bears players. Great read [here and here], as well as photos [here and here].” … Terry Proctor along a bunch of pics of the 1956-57 Rochester Royals — note the striped shorts. “Sort of a ‘Globetrotters-meets-NBA’ look to the whole set, he says. … Latest team to wear their BP jerseys for a regular-season game: the Rays yesterday. Even worse, they did while playing the Royals, who were wearing their powder blues, resulting in a pathetic spectacle that was unworthy of MLB status. … Lots of news (much of which we’ve already heard) regarding NHL alts here. … Good story here about America’s last remaining baseball glove factory. … Against all reason (but much to my delight), graphic artists continue to depict baseball players wearing stirrups. Latest example is here. … Absolutely stomach-turning sight, at least for me: Bowie Kuhn wearing a Mets cap. … The more you look through the Sporting News archives, the more you find that the old mag was way into uni-watching, as seen in this 1969 clipping regarding Ken Harrelson’s NOB (great find by John Schaefer). … Two interesting field hockey shots from Tris Wykes: First, rather unusual socks on display here. And what was Kecoughtan High from Hampton, Virginia, thinking when they outfitted their goalkeeper? … Jeremy Sowers looked particularly sharp yesterday. … “So I popped open my Hockey News this week, and the contents page showed Brian Rolston’s nameplate being applied,” writes T.J. Leibowitz (who also sent along some pics of Japanese Little Leaguers wearing stirrups and Asian uni numbers). … “This article seems to argue (midway down, right around the white jersey with LUFC in cursive) that Leeds United’s manager at the time (Don Revie) started manufacturer’s logo creep on soccer jerseys in Britain,” says Andrew Connor. … “Here is a pic of my grandpa, John Novosel, who played for the 1941 Springfield Browns, writes Scott Novosel. “They were a minor league team for the St. Louis Browns that played in Iowa, Illinois, and Indiana. That year he batted .302 and a scout from the New York Giants came down to see him play. The scout asked the Browns how much it would cost for him. The Browns said $60,000, and the scout said, “No thanks, for that much money, we got a guy who is pretty good in right field.” He was referring to Mel Ott.” … By now you’ve seen that Aquafina commercial with Lou Piniella a few dozen times (if not, it’s here), but Doug Simpson noticed something that nobody else had brought to my attention: The pitcher who’s backing up third base at the very beginning of the ad has no uni number. … The Red Sox have previously flown a Jolly Roger flag in their bullpen, but now they’ve modified it somewhat, as seen here (with thanks to Randy Williams). … “I took this photo at Fenway Saturday,” writes Jere Smith. “As you can see, Ortiz seems to have a flame/torch decal on his bat. He had this bat in BP and, as shown here, on deck during the game. It appears to be red, yellow, and green from left to right, like the Rastafarian flag. I’ve never seen any decal like this on a bat during a game before.” … Speaking of Big Papi, it’s one thing to mark your helmet with a memorial tribute to a deceased family member, teammate, or friend. But I think doing it for a family member of a former teammate, as Ortiz did on Friday night, is pushing it. That inscription on his helmet read, “RIP 45,” for Pedro Martinez’s father — well-meaning, yes, but I say it’s a bit much. … Tigers and Chisox wore Negro Leagues throwbacks on Saturday (additional pics here, here, here, here, here, here, and here). … What the hell is this? Did the Twins really wear this in 1968, as the seller contends, or — as I suspect — is it just a scam? Details, please (as found by Jeff Barak). … Eric Sun notes that Geno Espineli doesn’t just have picture-perfect stirrups, he’s completing the old-school look with a Spalding glove and Puma spikes.
#1 by Marcus from B-More on 07.28.08 8:19 am |
Brad Foster nominates the CFL’s now-defunct Memphis Mad Dogs in the “worst jersey ever” sweepstakes (here’s another shot).
http://www.geocities...
I thought I was looking at Jonathan Ogden on quick glance…
#2 by jesse on 07.28.08 8:43 am |
the new mantra in the red sox pen may be related to this great story…first nugget here:
http://news.bostonhe...
#3 by Juan Grande on 07.28.08 8:46 am |
http://farm4.static....
What the hell is that field hockey goalie wearing? It looks like a foam factory exploded! Is this legit gear?
#4 by Juan Grande on 07.28.08 8:51 am |
Paul,
This is, I think, the third time that the Rays have worn their BP jerseys in a live game. They view them as slumpbusters. Other teams choose other things to be slumpbusters…
http://www.urbandict...
#5 by Ricko on 07.28.08 8:53 am |
A few quick things before work…
1. Wondered if those Rochester Royals striped trunks had ever been discussed here at Uni-Watch.
2. Back issues of TSN. Check 1962, around June, maybe. Was a fun cartoon (Willard Mullen-type) about new trends in unis…nylon, tighter pants, higher stirrups, etc. Was on front page. Had the clipping for awhile but can’t find that sucker anywhere.
3. Oldis Twins ‘68 “throwback”? Well, if it happened, it happened right under my nose, which certainly could have happened, I had a busy summer in ‘68, including meeting and dating my first wife, lol. Oldis WAS a coach with the Twins in’68, and he WAS #5 (source: NOW BATTING, NUMBER… by Jack Looney).
Later, gang.
–Ricko
#6 by Jim on 07.28.08 8:56 am |
I love how she’s padded up like she’s going to get hit with a cannonball…. but her forearms are totally exposed. lol nice.
#7 by Kbutler3 on 07.28.08 9:06 am |
I thought the RIP 45 on Ortiz’s helmet was for the 45 days he was on the DL …
#8 by Jim on 07.28.08 9:08 am |
Here’s a jersey I bet not a lot of people have…
http://cgi.ebay.com/...
#9 by +JohnnyBoy- on 07.28.08 9:08 am |
Inconsistency at its finest: The Sox wear their beach-blanket throwbacks last week, complete with helmets, which I pointed out to my sisters. But the Negro leauge throwbacks… black socks and black helmets. As one of my sisters said, “No wonder nobody in Chicago likes them. That looks like hell.”
#10 by Jeremy Brahm on 07.28.08 9:10 am |
Those are definitely not numbers, those are their family names for the little leaguers.
The kid reaching into the blue basket on the far left is Fujiwara.
#11 by LI Phil on 07.28.08 9:14 am |
from the ‘how to field a ground ball’ section of your fielding 101 manual:
legs bent? check
glove open? check
top hand ready to trap errant hop? check
eyes closed? check
wait…what?
#12 by Jim on 07.28.08 9:16 am |
All this effort for a foul ball? check
wait… what? Damn it!
#13 by LI Phil on 07.28.08 9:22 am |
just another lazy man who couldnt take what was his
#14 by fiesta on 07.28.08 9:27 am |
What an odd eBay scam. Minneapolis (along with the state of Minnesota) is only celebrating its sesquicentennial this year, having achieved statehood (and cityhood) in 1858. Certainly not 1768.
Nice looking flannel, though.
#15 by Scott on 07.28.08 9:30 am |
Nice to see some love for the taquila sunrise uniform. It gets ridiculed here, but truly is one of the great designs in all of sports. Frankly, it’s what’s RIGHT with sports, especially baseball … which is chock full of bland, blue “same” designs across the board. Cheers to this fella for bringing the Astros alive. A for “effort” with the Indians uni from above … anything but another blue/gray combo.
PS - The funny thing about the NFL logo creep … some art director probably got paid a few thousand to come up with and execute that idea. “A lightning bolt, that’s what we need, show it to me.”
#16 by Joe Hilseberg on 07.28.08 9:33 am |
So I popped open my Hockey News this week, and the contents page showed Brian Rolston’s nameplate being applied,”
Uggghhhhh! Looks like the names are pre-fabricated on a transfer paper then applied to a nameplate that appears to be already attached to the jersey…this makes no sense! Not only does this defeat the purpose of a nameplate, it saddens me that the names are not placed by hand any more. Where is the pride in the craft?
#17 by Walaitis on 07.28.08 9:34 am |
I came back last Tuesday from a week-long second honeymoon in Paris, and learned (during an entire week without internet access – gasp!) that the “obsessive” part of the Uniwatchblog banner for this sight does, absolutely, speak of me.
While I was there, a number of things struck me as interesting – things that I couldn’t WAIT to get back to the states and share with the Uniwatch faithful:
The “classic” Adidas logo is everywhere in France (Sorry no pictures, but here’s a link
to shoes like I’ve seen – I bet I saw the old logo at least 50 times a day while we were there.
I don’t know if there’s any real connection here, but while at the Louvre museum, my wife and I stopped and looked at “Winged Victory”, also well known as “Nike”. What I found on the lower part of this monument (the front of a ship) shocked me. Coincidence? I think not.
But the REAL unicentric jewel of my journey came when we visited Chartre Cathedral an hour outside of Paris. While touring with incredibly gifted and intelligent (yet horribly pompous and arrogant) tour guide Malcolm Miller, we learned that when the church was being built in its current form around 1200 A.D., there was a great deal of cost to be absorbed. In the gothic style of the church, the builders chose to use stained glass to tell the stories from the bible, but to offset costs, they allowed (drum roll please) the earliest form of logo creep in recorded history. I apologize for the quality of some of these photos, but taking pictures of windows three stories high with a $300 camera and no tripod in a church lit almost exclusively by dirty stained glass windows is not an easy task.
Example #1: This window
This window tells the story of Adam and Eve. It was “sponsored” by shoe-makers who, in return for paying for the window, got their images included in the bottom corners of that window’s stained glass story.
Example #2: The windows in this picture were sponsored by the baker’s guild. While it looks in these blurry shots more like buckets of popcorn in the lowest part of the second and third windows, I assure you those are baskets of bread strategically placed as a nod towards those who paid for the making of the windows. Here is a sign
in a different part of the church confirming what our tour guide had already explained to us in regards to these windows.
Example #3: Some windows with medieval logo creep had some cross-merchandising behind them. this window, which portraits the story of Noah’s Arc, was sponsored - fittingly enough - by the carpenter’s guild .
#18 by Steve on 07.28.08 9:35 am |
Regarding the fedora tradition for Atlanta homicide cops, I only have one thing to say…..
How freaking cool is that?!
#19 by Ditchfarmer on 07.28.08 9:36 am |
Are you sure the logo a Big Papi’s bat isn’t just gold with the red reflecting from the jersey and the green relecting from the grass?
#20 by Robert on 07.28.08 9:40 am |
Thanks for so quickly pointing this out. I was getting ready to do some searching on the issue, because there was just no way that the cities had been in existence for so long.
#21 by Rob Ullman on 07.28.08 9:40 am |
If it was just the lightning bolt, I might actually think it’s kinda cool…but that logo…cripes, it’s everywhere!
I’ve been wondering when I’m going to get excited about the Steelers upcoming season…usually by the time training camp opens I’m itching for some football. But this year, nothing. I suppose it has to do with the Pens success last season…hockey is all I can think about! Say what you will about how they run the league, etc., but I think the NHL makes the NFL seem so overexposed, boring and corporate.
#22 by Jim on 07.28.08 9:45 am |
Now you know how I feel 24/7. Always pumped for hockey to start.
#23 by Kek on 07.28.08 9:48 am |
Rob, let me third the motion! This is the least excited I’ve been for an NFL season and the Steelers and I think it has everything to do with the Pens.
#24 by El Rey on 07.28.08 9:48 am |
I do agree that a logo on the green dot is too much, but here’s a thought. It could be to prevent tampering. I could go to an office supply store and buy a whole package of green dots. I could conceivably switch the dot for whatever deceptive purpose I may have. Perhaps with the radios going to both sides of the field the NFL came up with a inspection process. Maybe an NFL official goes in with his logoed stickers and says give me the radio helmet, inspects it, and put the NFL seal of approval. Just like a ref siging a boxer’s gloves. Just a thought.
#25 by El Rey on 07.28.08 9:51 am |
Or maybe they got tired of people emailing them and asking, “What’s that green dot on the helmet?” The lighting bolt clears everything up.
#26 by Gabe on 07.28.08 9:58 am |
Everyone expand the “Got Logo Creep” pic and check out the shoulder of the swimmer…..she’s got fingers growing out of her shoulder!
#27 by Greg V. on 07.28.08 9:59 am |
My thought exactly. Has anyone ever asked Joe Skiba or Rob Roecker (Bengals) what kind of security measures are protecting green dot tampering? Just curious.
#28 by DJ on 07.28.08 10:02 am |
The tampering point makes a lot of sense - plus, is it really that big of a deal? It’s a little sticker, on the back of a helmet, of 2 players - let’s not blow it out of proportion.
#29 by interlockingtc on 07.28.08 10:05 am |
“…do these people have the NFL logo tattooed on their dicks or what?”
lol
#30 by Pat on 07.28.08 10:06 am |
Just citing the source you stole that joke from.
#31 by u2-horn on 07.28.08 10:09 am |
…and the tall track guy in the middle has no right arm
#32 by Juan Grande on 07.28.08 10:13 am |
If the NFL was really worried about tampering, then you’d think they’d use something better than a green sticker. Maybe include the green circle into the “paint” of the helmet where the green wouldn’t come off?
#33 by Juan Grande on 07.28.08 10:14 am |
“Does the lightning bolt mean the helmet is electric?” [/sarcasm]
#34 by LI Phil on 07.28.08 10:16 am |
*insert straight face icon here*
#35 by Gabe on 07.28.08 10:18 am |
Or I just noticed the fact that she has freaking fingers growing out of her shoulder….And I am sure Deadspin isn’t the only website to have noticed this….
#36 by RS Rogers on 07.28.08 10:22 am |
Minneapolis and St. Paul both predate statehood in 1858. Fort Snelling, the Army post around which permanent white settlement eventually formed, was founded in 1819. Both St. Paul and Minneapolis — originally a suburb of St. Paul — came into being after Fort Snelling. St. Paul, then called Pig’s Eye, made the leap from “group of huts” to “town” in the 1830s, and Minneapolis was organized by the territorial legislature in the 1850s. In addition, there were white explorations of, and ongoing presence in, what is now Minnesota long before 1768. Part of Minnesota became U.S. territory in 1783, part became U.S. territory in 1803, and the rest in 1818. So 1768 just isn’t a date with any significance to the region.
#37 by Jim on 07.28.08 10:26 am |
Probably wouldn’t do the paint thing due to players subbing in and out / getting injured where they’d have to switch who gets the head set in the helmet. If someone unexpectendly has to wear the headset it’s easier to replace a sticker than paint.
#38 by Jim on 07.28.08 10:27 am |
BTW, that has to be one of the freakest pictures used as the headline pic I’ve seen…
#39 by Alex on 07.28.08 10:31 am |
The Miami Dolphins offense wore blue pants on the first weekend of training camp. Is this a sign of things to come for the upcoming season? They haven’t worn the blue pants in a while. Additional pics here.
#40 by Joe D on 07.28.08 10:34 am |
I remember playing a very obscure football trivia video game in the early ’90s. I still remember one question “How many times does the NFL logo appear on the uniform?” The answer was 3 (helmet, jersey collar, pants hip of course).
With “NFL Equipment” gloves, wristbands, armbands, bandanas, towels, undershirts, towels, and now green dots, I wonder what the answer to that question would be today?
#41 by Jeremy P. on 07.28.08 10:36 am |
I was going to bring up the tampering issue about the NFL stickers, but others have done it better than I.
Or, perhaps someone in the NFL front office has a sticker printing business on the side?
And on that Mets hat, dude, I’m a size 8 - how much you want for that? I like the look of the drop shadow NY and the blue brim.
#42 by Joe D on 07.28.08 10:38 am |
WOW
Anyone see the Edmonton Swastikas photo yet?
http://sports.yahoo....
#43 by LI Phil on 07.28.08 10:40 am |
somewhere men are laughing, and somewhere children shout
…i mean…what HOF ceremony would be complete otherwise?
#44 by Kek on 07.28.08 10:43 am |
Not to be a stickler, but I would argue that the answer to that question would be the same today. The gloves and everything else you name are accessories, not part of the uniform. You have a different answer for nearly every player in the league.
#45 by Jim on 07.28.08 10:43 am |
Beautiful…
http://sportsillustr...
#46 by Jeff on 07.28.08 10:45 am |
I never thought I’d see the day when a Norb (pardon my laziness in looking up the proper “o” {and, just for giggles, I’ll be using multiple nested parentheticals [in different styles, no less (the man influenced me years ago and I can’t seem to shake him)]}) namedrop in a sports blog.
#47 by Kwik on 07.28.08 10:47 am |
Well, as the article notes, all those teams played BEFORE World War II, and at that point, the Swastika had a farily positive meaning. Now, if this photo was taken in, say, 1974, well then that would be a lot different.
#48 by LI Phil on 07.28.08 10:50 am |
paul did a whole lead story on this not too long ago…
unfortunately the search function is busted (still) and i can’t seem to find the story in the archives (something about marge schott, if i recall)…
#49 by Juan Grande on 07.28.08 10:55 am |
Apparently, Lil Phil, there is joy in Mudville tonight.
#50 by Chris on 07.28.08 11:02 am |
The logo on Ortiz’s bat is a standard logo from Nokona, his bat manufacturer. A number of major-leaguers use Nokona bats (they’re better known for their baseball gloves - in fact, Paul links to a story about their Texas baseball glove factory above - the bats are actually made in Massachusetts).
As someone else said above, the bat has a foil stamp that reflected some colors, making it look multicolored.
See nokonawreckingcrew.com for more information.
#51 by Juan Grande on 07.28.08 11:02 am |
Native Americans in the Southwest considered the swastika symbol to be good luck. However, their symbol was the mirrored-image of the Nazi swastika. The US 45th Infanty Division in WWII originally had a yellow swastika on a red diamond as it’s shoulder patch. The 45th was orginally OK, AZ, CO, and NM National Guard units so the swastika was chosen to represent their southwest heritage. As you could imagine, US troops going into battle with a swastika on their uniform wasn’t a good thing so the patch was changed to a yellow bird on a red diamond. The division was then named the “Thunderbirds”, still keeping with Native American heritage.
And that’s our history lesson for today kids!
#52 by oeo on 07.28.08 11:08 am |
The Sox had blue socks w/ a white band on top, if you opened your eyes you’d see it. As for no one liking the Sox in Chicago, that sounds like an ignorant comment from a typical Cub fan.
#53 by LI Phil on 07.28.08 11:09 am |
FOUND IT!
#54 by Marty Met on 07.28.08 11:13 am |
Geno Espineli is showing too much white with the stirrups.
#55 by Giancarlo on 07.28.08 11:25 am |
I’ve been looking into the Twin Cities 1768 mystery. There was a guy named Jonathan Carver who was travelling in the area around that time & writing in his diary about it. One source suggests he was the first person of English descent to be there; obviously there were Indians & French settlers there already. Carver, however, lived a while with the Indians & received from them a grant of territory “between the Mississippi and St. Croix rivers,” which would indicate the land that later became St. Paul. Wikipedia’s timeline places this transaction in 1766, though.
#56 by noonan on 07.28.08 11:26 am |
Did anyone else notice the NOB for the sample Japanese volleyball unis? “Takeshita”- I thought it had to be a joke, but, she’s actually the team captain.
http://www.fivb.org/...
#57 by Mike on 07.28.08 11:34 am |
OK, I can’t take it anymore. I’ve put off this post for sometime, but today is the day after Paul’s link to Geno Espinelli’s “picture-perfect stirrups.” First let me say I’m a big fan of the site and applaud Paul’s pro-stirrup stance since I also hate the pants over the shoes look. That said (and I think Paul may actually agree with me), Paul’s take on the correct way to wear stirrups is just his opinion and not necessarily the “right” way.
Here’s my take on Paul’s preference - Paul probably grew up watching the bulk of his childhood baseball in the 70’s. That’s when Paul’s preferred stirrup look was in fashion. I say in fashion because it really was a fashion statement. Think of all the pictures we’ve seen of players of that era who modified their stirrups to be longer. It was a fashion statement no different than today’s players who want the low look.
If you look back in history, most early sock styles showed very little white. This site even explained at least once that stirrips only existed because the dyed wool socks would be too bulky to wear in one’s shoes so the toes and heels were cut out. Sanitary socks only existed because the dye was toxic and not for any fashion reasons.
You could argue that if sock making “technology” was then what it is today, we never would have had stirrups. If desiginers of the 1800’s had their way, teams would just be wearing full socks like many of today’s players - ironically a fashion look Paul hates!
Just my two cents…
#58 by BuckeyeMark on 07.28.08 11:35 am |
the green sticker looks dumb (like someone went to Office Depot and bought the first sticker packet they saw) but I’m not sure printing the NFL shield on it means Western Civilization has ground completely to a halt…
#59 by LI Phil on 07.28.08 11:42 am |
@ marty
@mike
all true
that being said…gino espineli’s stirrups are perfect
#60 by DGL on 07.28.08 11:49 am |
Hey, it could be worse. The green dot on the radio-equipped helmet could have the Motorola logo.
#61 by who cares on 07.28.08 11:49 am |
I’m no computer whiz and I could whip up a counterfeit of that green sticker with the lightning bolt and NFL logo in about 2 minutes flat so if it is an anti-tampering measure it’s a pretty crappy anti-tampering measure. A hologram, sticker with an RFID tag, or referee signed sticker would work much better.
Logically though, these stickers seem to assume that the cheating will come in the form of players who are entitled to go onto the field with radios in the helmets choosing to go onto the field without radios. If they are concerned with tampering by having several players out on the field at one time with radios it would be better to inspect all the non-radio helmets before the game and put a mark on them and assume any non-marked helmet is live.
#62 by kyle. on 07.28.08 11:54 am |
tall track guy? he’s standing on a huge box. i’m pretty sure that’s bryan clay who is only 5′10″ and is, according to his site, the smallest elite decathlete by far.
#63 by Jim on 07.28.08 11:55 am |
I think if a pitcher and a catcher can understand each other with hand signals, so can a quarterback and a coach.
#64 by Marty Met on 07.28.08 11:56 am |
Perfect if you’re Keith Hernandez. Too much white otherwise.
#65 by Josh Petty on 07.28.08 11:56 am |
That’ll be next season, when the NFL realized that they can sell ad space on the green dot
#66 by Josh Petty on 07.28.08 12:11 pm |
The ticker the other day mentioned not recalling times where anniversary logos replaced the regular ones. I knew of a couple off of the top of my head, and came across several more (complete with pictures) while searching for pictures of the ones I already knew about. So much for helping out.
#67 by Jason on 07.28.08 12:14 pm |
During his Dodger debut, Casey Blake was still sporting his black Indians cleats and navy blue Mizuno wristbands with his old number…
http://d.yimg.com/a/...
Sunday afternoon he still had the black spikes, but he had colored over the #1s on his wristbands…
http://d.yimg.com/a/...
http://d.yimg.com/a/...
#68 by Robert on 07.28.08 12:40 pm |
I agree with Marty on this one. I prefer the Reds’ 1970s low stirrups.
This would be a fun topic on which to have a poll taken among the Uni Watch readers. Weren’t the powers-that-be looking into a poll function on the site at one point?
#69 by Curtis on 07.28.08 12:41 pm |
does anybody remember eddie murray playing for the angels when they had those god-awful disney uniforms because here’s a picture of him in them
http://mlb.mlb.com/m...
#70 by Kek on 07.28.08 12:50 pm |
Apparently you have no idea how complicated an NFL offensive scheme is these days. Gone are the days of “I-formation 31 trap.” Even watching some of the Arena Bowl yesterday with coaches/QBs miked you can hear how complicated the terminology is.
With all the different formations, shifts/dances, motions, check-with-mes, etc, you’d damn near create a new sign-language!!!! And good luck sending in the play with a player, he’d forget the entire line before he got to the hash.
I know, I know, the radio can malfunction but that’s not best case scenario. Sure there’s a backup plan but surely it’s scaled down.
Pretty much an apples/oranges comparison to pitchers and catchers having “1″ for fastball, “2″ for curve, “3″ for change, slider or whatever along with signals for stepping off and throwing to first.
As an editorial aside, let me state for the record, I’m not saying this is a good thing. I think the pro game is needlessly complicated and has a bunch of coaches that try to hard to out-think the other guy. I’m just stating what I see is a sign of the times.
Unrelated, didn’t the NFL experiment with a speaker that amplified the QBs voice in certain “crowd noise” situations? What ever happened to that?
#71 by Joe Hilseberg on 07.28.08 12:50 pm |
Article in the Baltimore Sun today - The Flip Side: 10 most unwearable sports jerseys
http://www.baltimore...
#72 by who cares on 07.28.08 12:56 pm |
Bayern Munich has an interesting way to unveil their new kits.
http://withleather.u...
#73 by bigmak2500 on 07.28.08 1:02 pm |
Interesting NOB here (courtesy of Johnny Garfield) — note that it’s “Miller, M.” instead of “M. Miller.” Anyone know more about this? …
not sure if this is why they did it, but in 1979, the Browns had both Mark Miller, QB and Matt Miller, the aformentioned Tackle, so that might be why you’d have a Miller, M. jersey
#74 by TheCloser on 07.28.08 1:20 pm |
Imagine if Manny Ramirez played in the No-Fun-League. How much in uniform fines would he rack up for “Manny being Manny”. As much as I don’t really like the overly baggy uniform and ridiculous headscarf thing but you have to give MLB credit for not acting like big brother and imposing dress codes (NBA), introducing wide-sweeping uniform changes unsuccessfully (NHL) or fining you for not wearing the required 25 league logos or having them slightly out of place (you know who you are)… I know, I know “uniform” means, well uniform but cmon guys…
#75 by Mark in Shiga on 07.28.08 1:22 pm |
Just wanted to add to Jeremy’s comment about the Japanese little leaguers with their names in giant characters on the backs — that’s standard in youth baseball for practice uniforms. There’s a generic all-white uniform, complete with white cap, sold in sporting goods stores everywhere. Here’s one made by Descente, who also made some of the 1970s Pirates uniforms. There are no numbers on the backs — those are reserved for the people who actually get to play in games — so guys will draw their surnames on the backs. Most surnames are two or three characters, so you can write them vertically and they fit just right. Other players will write inspiring slogans, such as this “It’s going beyond one’s limits that makes a person develop” shirt.
And something does need to be done about the low-riding numbers on the Giants. It’s everywhere — the Cubs suffered from it when they had number-only jerseys a few years ago. Some people say that it’s because the manufacturers leave space for a name even when the team doesn’t want one, but I think the problem is that they base their centering point around the most massive players. Check out the The guy on the right looks fine, but the two on the left don’t. Just move the number up a few inches — it wouldn’t look any worse on the Chris Youngs and Richie Sexsons, but would look a lot better on the 5-7 Mike Fontenots.
#76 by Ricko on 07.28.08 1:41 pm |
re: Number on back out of position.
It’s because they put the numbers in the same place they’d put them if a NOB. It’s like that postion has become the standard number postion whether NOB or not, no matter how “off” it is, visually
Certainly some manual work, or resetting computers/machinery necessary, so I imagine they just don’t bother with it. Especially if teams don’t tell them to bother with it.
Just look at how high NFL numbers on back were before room had to be allowed for the nameplate.
#77 by PhillyFan on 07.28.08 1:41 pm |
JOCKTAG IS UPSIDE DOWN ON Eagles PRACTICE JERSEY
Go to sixth photo in this series:
http://www.philadelp...
What’s with the half-shirt hem on the practice jerseys?
#78 by Lose Remerswaal on 07.28.08 1:47 pm |
There’s actually a couple of pirate references in the Red Sox bullpen
http://farm4.static....
http://farm4.static....
#79 by JC on 07.28.08 1:55 pm |
Regarding the man with the unusual Mets hat… Are there more of those for sale? Or was that the only one of it’s kind at that store? Is he willing to sell it, because that is my size…
#80 by JC on 07.28.08 1:58 pm |
Oops, I see now that it was the only one…
#81 by ScottyJ in WV on 07.28.08 2:00 pm |