Uproar after release of MLB jerseys nothing new
Hall of Fame football player Deion Sanders once said, “If you look good, you feel good, and if you feel good, you play good.”
MLB players, however, are not feeling too good at the start of spring training following the release of Nike’s new Vapor Premier uniform, which has been slammed by many players and the MLBPA for its poor quality.
“They cheaped it, cheap, cheap, cheap all the way down,” pitcher Rich Hill said on the “Baseball Isn’t Boring” podcast last week. “The quality has just gone out the window and I think that’s unfortunate.
The MLB is the latest professional sports league in the headlines over a jersey controversy, but it is not the first uproar over new uniforms and certainly won’t be the last. Here’s a look at some other uniform controversies:
● MLB’s jerseys, “see-through” pants look “cheap.”
The MLB unveiled its new Nike uniforms last week and they received less than stellar reviews. The jerseys, manufactured by Fanatics, are “engineered to improve mobility, moisture management and fit,” MLB said, but the threads have drawn criticism over the cheap look, small lettering and limited customization options.
“It’s something that players have earned the right to work their entire life to get to this point and now just to be kind of a jersey off of the rack,” Hill added. “There’s no difference between the average consumer buying that uniform and the major league player wearing that uniform, especially when it comes to certain measurements that the player should have.”
Philadelphia Phillies veteran reliever Jeff Hoffman compared the new jerseys to “a T-shirt or a gym shirt.”
“It looks like a replica,” Los Angeles Angels outfielder Taylor Ward added, per The Athletic. “It feels kind of like papery. It could be great when you’re out there sweating, it may be breathable. But I haven’t had that opportunity yet to try that out. But from the looks of it, it doesn’t look like a $450 jersey.”
It’s not just the top half of the uniform that is drawing controversy. Another layer — or lack thereof — was added when players began to sport the full uniform for photo days, where it was easy to see the tucked in part of the jersey through the pants.
“A lot of the rhetoric is confirmation that the pants are see-through,” MLBPA executive director Tony Clark said Thursday. “It’s been an ongoing conversation where each day has yielded something new that doesn’t seem to make as much sense as you would like it.”
● NBA’s sleeved jerseys “ugly,” “awful,” “not good.”
The NBA rolled out sleeved jerseys in 2013, but the new uniforms didn’t have the support of the league’s biggest star. Lebron James said he’s “not a big fan of the jerseys” because they limited his range of motion and restricted his shot.
“Every time I shoot it feels like it’s just pulling right up underneath my arm. I already don’t have much room for error on my jump shot. It’s definitely not a good thing,” James said in March 2014 following an off-night in the Heat’s 111-87 loss to the San Antonio Spurs, where he shot 6for-18 from the field and 0-for-three from three.
His displeasure for the sleeved jerseys carried into the next season after he returned to the Cleveland Cavaliers. This time, however, James didn’t need words.
After missing a three-point shot during the Cavaliers’ home matchup against the New York Knicks in November 2015, James ripped the sleeves off his form-fitting jersey. Cleveland went on to win 9686, but James shot 9-for-23 from the field and 1-for-5 from three.
James isn’t the only one who took issue with the sleeved jerseys.
Golden State Warriors star Stephen Curry said they were “ugly jerseys” in 2013. Dirk Nowitzki didn’t hold back on social media, writing on Christmas Day 2013, “Call me old school but these jerseys with sleeves are awful.” Later that night, Robin Lopez said there “needs to be a mass burning of these sleeved nba jerseys.”
The sleeved jerseys, which were created to boost merchandise sales by appealing to fans who opted for a comfortable, T-shirt feel versus a sleeveless jersey, were phased out in 2017 after the NBA’s partnership with Adidas expired and the league signed with Nike.
● NFL’s contoured jerseys give lineman “big ole love handles.”
The NFL signed a partnership with Nike in 2012 to supply jerseys and apparel for the league following the league’s deal with Reebok. Nike created a “bodycontoured fit” jersey, which featured fabric with “four-way stretch capability providing players with a shrink-wrap type fit,” a Buffalo Bills press release said.
Although the new jerseys were designed to increase speed, they didn’t go over well with NFL lineman.
“There’s not too much you can do with a tight jersey and tight pants,” Green Bay Packers’ DT B.J. Raji said at the time.
San Francisco 49ers guard Alex Boone added, “I hate them. They are built for thin guys. It makes me look like I have big old love handles. It makes me look fat, and I’m not fat.”