COLORFUL UNIS AN ACQUIRED TASTE
These might not be for everyone.
“I like them,” Padres relief pitcher Nabil Crismatt said. “I don’t think these are for my dad.”
That is the idea with the pink, gold, green and white City Connect jerseys the Padres unveiled Friday morning and will wear for the first time on the field for their game July 8 against the Giants — and then every Friday home game for the rest of the season.
“We did a lot of work when we changed to the brown and gold uniform set (after the 2019 season) that we felt was what the fans were asking for,” Padres CEO Erik Greupner said. “Now we felt, as it’s intended to be, this is an opportunity to go out of the box a bit and come up with something that can reach a young and diverse fan base.”
The Padres know there will be people vehement in their dislike of the City Connect uniforms. The team is also confident many people will enjoy the boldly colored jersey.
Primarily, the thinking is forward.
“There will be both current fans and those who will
become fans of the team that will look at the uniforms and will love them,” Greupner said.
The City Connect program, a partnership between Nike and MLB that began last season, is intended to connect a team with the uniqueness of its region. The Padres’ City Connect uniforms are the result of more than 18 months of collaboration with Nike’s design team.
“We went pretty aggressively in the direction of celebrating our blend of cultures in San Diego between San Diego and Baja California,” Greupner said.
The colors, design and font are a nod to the coastal community and the artwork and architecture both north and south of the border. The pink and yellow are also meant to evoke the region’s spectacular sunsets, as well as San Diego’s surf and skate culture.
Padres players generally reviewed the uniforms positively while also acknowledging an unmistakable Miami Vice vibe. Some have already been wearing cleats designed to match the uniforms. Others will debut them July 8.
“Those are sick,” pitcher Mike Clevinger said. “I can’t wait.”
Replicas of the City Connect jerseys are on sale at the Padres team store and on the Nike.com and MLBshop.com websites.
“They look better on us,” second baseman Jake Cronenworth said. “Yeah, they look better on than just when you look at them.”
Manny sits
A day after returning to the lineup as a designated hitter, Manny Machado did not start Friday’s game against the Dodgers.
“We’ll see where we are each and every day, but he feels pretty good,” manager Bob Melvin said. “I think it all went well.”
Machado did strike out as a pinch-hitter in the eighth inning and finished the game at third base.
Machado went 1-for-4 with a double Thursday in his first game in 11 days. Machado continues to deal with the effects of a left ankle injury suffered after he slipped crossing the bag running out a grounder on June 19. He has declined to specify the exact nature of the injury.
He took grounders at third base Friday afternoon, looking more fluid moving in every direction than he has since the injury occurred.
Melvin said that playing third base might even be better for him than being active merely for his four plate appearances over the course of a game.
“Being out on the field, you keep it loose,” Melvin said. “But (the question is), is three hours too much at this point? So we’re literally trying to take it day-to-day and see how he feels and see what tomorrow brings.”
Alfaro still limited
Jorge Alfaro has caught five of Blake Snell’s seven starts but was not doing so Friday night. With Snell’s propensity to bounce breaking balls, the Padres felt it was better to not have Friday be the day to test Alfaro’s balky right knee. So Austin Nola started a third straight game for just the third time this season.
Melvin said Alfaro was available to pinch-hit Friday, could be the DH today and possibly could catch MacKenzie Gore on Sunday. (Yu Darvish is pitching Saturday, and Nola always catches him.)
Said Melvin: “I think every day that we give him I think gives us a little bit more confidence in him going back behind the plate.”