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Meet the Ex-Rays (Part I)

Rays Redesign 550

By Phil Hecken

A couple of weeks ago, reader R. Scott Rogers came up with a genius idea for a contest to design new uniforms (and come up with a new name) for a baseball team if the Tampa Bay Rays were ever to move from their current home. All the details are in the link above. I received more than 30 submissions (34 to be exact, with one submitter who sent some files I couldn’t open — they’ll be added if I receive new submissions).

So, without any further ado, and in alphabetical order, lets take a look at the first half of those submissions. Part I runs today, Part II runs tomorrow. We’ll have voting both days — the top 3 vote-getters for each day will have a run-off to decide a winner next weekend. Most submitters gave some description (I had asked they be kept to 50 words or less, but some went over), while a few did not. I love the variety of the names and descriptions, and even the submissions themselves — those hand drawn ones (and there are several) are always a blast to see.

Descriptions follow the pictures. Click on each to enlarge.

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Bierbaum, Tom - Brooklyn Devils 2

Tom Bierbaum – “Brooklyn Devils”

Bierbaum, Tom - Brooklyn Devils 1

BROOKLYN DEVILS: A celebrated Union Army unit during the Civl War was known as the Brooklyn Red Legged Devils and that seemed too baseball-ish to pass up, so here are some new red legged devils. See details on my blog. Tom Bierbaum, Erie, Pa.

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Britt, David - Carolina_Highlanders_Home_Alt

David Britt – “Carolina Highlanders”


Britt, David - Carolina_Highlanders_Home_Alt

In NC, we’re Braves fans, but I’d love to have a team of our own. I also want a name that makes some regional sense. I went with navy, blue, and green tartan colors. Never a huge fan of the Rays’ plaid hats, but it makes sense here on alts.

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Callahan, Kevin - Havana Perfectos

Kevin Callahan – “Havana Perfectos”


Named for cuban cigar type, “Perfectos” has a classic ring to it. I am proud of incorporating the smoke curl into the “H”. Red, white and blue are the national colors and I added cigar band gold. Cool, white unis for the tropical heat and Cuban red for the road.

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Castro, Marco - Florida Hunters

Marco Castro – “Florida Hunters”


My idea is the Florida Hunters. I know that the prompt mentioned a city and perhaps a franchise located out of the region but many people felt that they were left without a team after the Marlins “relocated” to Miami. This team could play in either Orlando or in the city of Tampa itself (not St. Pete). The primary logo is a target meaning that the organization is focused on its goals both on and off the field. The secondary logo is the sleeve patch that is placed on the left side of the jersey.

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Cheung, Hank - New Orleans Fusion

Hank Cheung – “New Orleans Fusion”


Introducing the New Orleans Fusion

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DaSilveira, Sergio - Montreal Maroons HOME

Sergio DaSilveira – “Montreal Maroons”

DaSilveira, Sergio - Montreal Maroons AWAY

DaSilveira, Sergio - Montreal Maroons RED ALT DaSilveira, Sergio - Montreal Maroons BLACK ALT

If the Rays move I think that it is inevitable that they move to Montreal; though sadly, I highly doubt they would use the name I proposed. That being said, It is still nice to play around with the idea of such an identity. My goal was to utilize an old classic name with a retro & semi modern treatment. I hope you like it!

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Desimine, Dylan - Vancouver Monarchs Home

Dylan Desimine – “Vancouver Monarchs”

Desminie, Dylan - Vancouver Monarchs Road

I couldn’t think of a better city for a baseball team than Vancouver (Except maybe Montreal). Purple and gold is risky, but a good way to form an identity quickly in a Blue Jays & Mariners dominated market. The “VM” hat is inspired by an old Vancouver Mounties hat.

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Fansler, Drew - New Orleans Brass

Drew Fansler – “New Orleans Brass”


Your recent challenge for new MLB teams got me thinking about one of my favorite places in the whole wide world. The Brass is like its hometown: vintage flair, bold and a little flashy. The hardest part was staying away from that third Mardi Gras color that none of you like (and to be fair, neither do I.)

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Filipczak, Alan - Indiana Grays

Alan Filipczak – “Indiana Grays”


The Rays relocate to the Crossroads of America and add a G to their nickname. Like the Colts and Pacers, the new Indy franchise thrives in this small-yet-stable Midwestern market. The Grays have a minimalist aesthetic””with graphite, cream, and white for team colors. The corn cob alternate logo/sleeve patch is inspired by the 1970s Braves’ feather emblem.

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Hatfield, Brent - Memphis Rivermen

Brent Hatfield – “Memphis Rivermen”


The Tampa Bay Rays will locate to Memphis, Tennessee. The Memphis Rivermen of the American League East will start play in the 2016 Major League Baseball season.
The City of Memphis: The greater Memphis metropolitan area, including adjacent counties in Mississippi and Arkansas had a 2010 population of 1,316,100.
The Name Rivermen: Memphis is the largest city on the Mississippi River.
The Colors: River Blue, Defiant Gold, White

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Hill, Aaron - Brooklyn Bums Home

Aaron Hill – “Brooklyn Bums”

Hill, Aaron - Brooklyn Bums Road

Hill, Aaron - Brooklyn Bums Alt

I write to enter UW’s Rays Design Contest with the Brooklyn Bums – bringing baseball back to NYC’s most populated borough and drawing on days when Willard Mullin’s Brooklyn Bum was the yearbook cover of the Dodgers. NNOB. Pants match the piping of tops. Thanks!

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Ivie, Brady - SeagullsHome

Brady Ivie – “Salt Lake Seagulls”

Ivie, Brady - SeagullsAway Ivie, Brady - SeagullsAwayAlt

Ivie, Brady - SeagullsHomeAlt Ivie, Brady - Seagulls4thJuly Ivie, Brady - SeagullsSecondaryLogo

Ivie, Brady - SeagullsCaps1 Ivie, Brady - SeagullsCaps2 Ivie, Brady - SeagullsInauguralPatch

Ivie, Brady - SeagullsPrimaryLogo

Here’s my concept for relocating the Rays to Utah, where they would become the Salt Lake Seagulls.

* Sky blue, Vegas gold, and brown
* FSU number font on primary uniforms, Reds number font on alternate/NOB font for all uniforms
* Cream on home uniforms (pinstriped primary, pullover blue Monday “Family Night” alternates)
* Gray primary road, brown alternate road/pitcher’s choice
* Mandatory “Stars and Stripes” 4th of July uniform included
* All hats available at retail, only hats shown with uniforms used on field
* Shoulder patch used only for inaugural season, would be replaced for second season
* “SL” secondary logo colors interchangeable, but blue/gold/brown preferred use
* Indians to AL East, Rangers to AL Central, Rays/Seagulls to AL West

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Kilerlane, William  - San Antonio Fastdraws

William Kilerlane – “San Antonio Fastdraws”


My team is the San Antonio Fastdraws. Their colors- brown, red & tan with tan visitor uniforms- symbolize the Old West.

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Kilerlane, William - Carolina Crocodiles

William Kilerlane – “Carolina Crocodiles”


My second entry is the Carolina Crocodiles. Their colors are forest green & red/orange with olive drab visitor uniforms. This scheme is meant to depict a tropical look.

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Mandel, Brian Mandel home uniform

Brian Mandel – “O’ahu Tiki”

Mandel, Brian Mandel away unifrom

Mandel, Brian Mandel alternate uniform Mandel, Brian Mandel Primary Logo

O’ahu Tiki

Why not bring a MLB franchise to the main island. The primary colors are brown and red with accents of black. The number and letter fonts are supposed to recreate wooden planks nailed together that are on fire. It is suppose to have a tribal feel.

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Marconi, Sven - Havana Cubanos

Sven Marconi – “Havana Cubanos”


This is the uniform scheme of the Havana Cubanos. There are 5 schemes total:
Grey: This is the “standard” road uni.
Black: This is the road uni worn for series finales on the road.
White: This is the “standard” home uni.
Red: This is the home uni worn for home series finales when the fianale is not on a Sunday,
Burgundy: This is the home uni worn for home Sunday series finales. Unlike other uniforms, there is no high-sock variant- the long pants must be worn by all players. This uniform is based on Florida jai-alai uniforms, and also a Havana uniform displayed at the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown, NY.
In the postseason, the red alt is dropped. The scheme is flipped, whereby the finale alts are worn for the first road game and first home game, with the standards worn for all other postseason games.

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OK there you have it. Now it’s time to vote: You may vote for up to three designs (and you may vote once per day).

+ + + + + + + + + +

Rays Redesign Contest-Part I

 
pollcode.com free polls

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Big thanks to all who submitted, and I’ll be back with the second half of the entries tomorrow. If you like one (or more) — let the submitters know (and lobby for them if you’d like) in the comments below. Thanks also to Scotty Rogers for coming up with the idea for the contest!

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classic scoreboards splash

Classic Ballpark Scoreboards

I’m pleased to continue with a favorite weekend feature here at Uni Watch, “Classic Ballpark Scoreboards,” which are created by Gary Chanko. You probably know Gary best for his wonderful colorizations, but he has been a solid contributor for many years, and this is his new project. This segment will appear every Saturday on Uni Watch.

Here’s Gary (click on image to enlarge):

. . . . . . . . . .

Classic Ballpark Scoreboards – Series II
by Gary Chanko

Previously in Classic Scoreboards we toured past ballparks of the Houston Astros. In this edition we head to north Texas and the Dallas-Fort Worth area to visit (Old) Arlington Stadium.

Arlington Stadium_UW

Arlington Stadium


Home of: Dallas-Fort Worth Spurs (1965-71), Texas Rangers (1972-93)
First MLB Game Played: April 21, 1972
Last MLB Game Played: October 3, 1993
Demolished: 1994

Originally known as Turnpike Stadium (1965-1971), Arlington Stadium was home to the Texas Rangers for their first 21 seasons. The ballpark began life as a minor league field in 1965 with just a 10,000 seating capacity. With Rangers arrival the ballpark was expanded to 35,000 sun baked seats, a third were bleachers spanning the entire outfield.

Arlington Stadium unfortunately appears on many “worst ever” lists when rating ballparks. In addition to the blistering heat (most games after May typically forced to play at night), Arlington Stadium was a product of the multi-purpose, doughnut shaped school of ballpark architecture common during the early 70s. Even with an “upper deck” addition in 1978 and refurbishment after the 1983 season, Arlington Stadium never quite overcame the limitations inherent with the ballpark’s minor league bones.

Arlington Stadium’s one distinctive feature was the electronic scoreboard with the prominent state of Texas outline. Located in back of the bleachers in left field, it measured 200 ft. long and 60 ft. high. The scoreboard had messaging capability in addition to displaying the game line score and other AL game scores. After the 1983 season, it was replaced by a wall of Diamond Vision scoreboards ranging across the outfield.

This scoreboard illustration depicts a Rangers victory over the Yankees played on April 30,1983 – a night game of course!

A Few Things to Know

• The scoreboard wasn’t completely constructed for opening day in 1972.

• The American League adopted the (dreadful!) Designated Hitter in 1973, one season after the Rangers move to Arlington. The scoreboard designers (in 1970-71?) were apparently unaware of the possible rule change because the scoreboard electronics were not configured to display “DH” for the team lineups. This is an educated guess based on the scoreboard photos I’ve seen. All have the DH position left blank on the display.

• Arlington Stadium was reportedly the first major league ballpark to sell nachos back in 1974. Maybe so, but more interesting is the actual origin of nachos.

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

If anyone is interested in purchasing a digital copy of these posters, Gary is working on an online purchase option. In the interim you can contact him directly at Classicscoreboards@gmail.com.

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Uni Watch News Ticker:

Baseball News: The Buffalo Bisons have their Star Wars night next Saturday, 7/18. “As a manager there I can looking forward to seeing that motley collection of people dressed up in all sorts of characters,” writes Matthew Wilcott. “Anyway, the jerseys this year are Jedi-robed themed which completely beats last years odd and overwhelming R2D2 unis. Recently the team put out a link with all of the jerseys for Star Wars night since they began the even in 2009.” … I think we reported on this before, but just in case: The Atlantic League set to introduce red, white and blue baseballs (h/t Phil Rossi). … Here’s a look at A.J. Burnett’s custom-made Batman cleats from 3N2 he will wear at the All-Star Game next week (via Harry M.). … In preparation for the All Star Game, here’s what Cincinnati’s Carew Tower in downtown Cincinnati looked like Thursday evening (from Frank Bitzer). … Nice piece from Todd Radom on the best and worst of the All Star Game visuals. … This is pretty brutal (from Jason Felicio), who writes, “Pretty funny gaffe with grammar on ESPN advertising the all-star hats. Thought you may want to see.” … Reader Michael Kemezis works as an archivist for an engineering university in Worcester, MA, Worcester Polytechnic Institute. They have a great sports photo collection which no one seems to know about. “Just wondering if we could get a quick shout out in the ticker for our Flash Back Friday post featuring the 1929 WPI Baseball team.” … Beautiful photo from Bruce Menard of JFK and Stan Musial chatting at the All-Star Game (Washington, D.C. 7/10/62). … Speaking of DC baseball and All Star Games, here’s a look back at some of those games (good find by John Muir). … This is cool: check out how the video board will look during Game 1 (Back) & 2 (Future) of tomorrow’s ‘Back to the Future’ DH for the Toledo Mud Hens (h/t Dylan Cramer). … The Pirates are selling these at the team’s store @ PNC. He was the guy who got trapped (h/t Mike Slavonic). … Here’s one for Paul: check out the stirrups on the Indians Francisco Lindor from last evening (via Cody The Chicken). — Several players went with red ‘rups, which was a Jim Thome tribute (via ”@ObieMassillon). Not everyone played along (you can see more photos from the game here). … On Saturday, July 18th, the Fresno Grizzlies will be wearing Tequila Sunrise jerseys (and giving away a bunch to fans too). Thanks to Jared Buccola.

NFL/College/Football News: Someone has gone to the trouble of ranking the best five Rutgers football uniforms. … Ohhhh, check out this photo of Ken Stabler at Alabama with the “Snake” designation on Stabler’s hip pad (nice spot by Karl NewKirk). … Here’s a great photo of Fred Biletnikoff, sent in by Bob Vaught, who adds, “Back when jersey costs were significant.” … I think we may have noted this before, but it looks like the Iowa State Cyclones have longer UCLA stripes this year (via CyclONE Nation). … Virginia has some new Nike gloves (from Matthew Althoff). … Tweeter Ryan Campbell asks, “Impact sensors? Every player on San Jose’s Arena Football Team has one.”

NBA/Basketball News: Elk Mound High School was asked to remove its gym floor design that was modeled after the Milwaukee Bucks logo, according to Elk Mound Superintendent Ron Walsh (from Don Schauf). … Here’s a look at the Orlando Magic Summer League caps (from Dave Doop). … If you ever wondered what the NBA would look like with football helmets, you’re in luck. … A Redditor has created a GIF Showing Evolution of Every NBA Team’s Logo (thanks to Andrew Rader). … According to SI, Nike style will permeate basketball from head to toe.

Hockey News: Tweeter J. Walker was checking out Google Images (which he loves), and notes that one stumbles on the strangest of things. Case in point: Check out this images of two guys in Winnipeg Jets uniforms (the original ones) in what appears to be a magazine of some sort (with lots of ads). Anyone know more? “Pokey & The Bandit”?

Soccer News: The Beach Soccer World Cup began Thursday, notes Saurel Jean. However yesterday’s matchups had some notable uniform news. “Brazil seems to have stitched over the 5 stars of the to display their own 4 BSWC wins. Russia added two stars for their back-to-back beach soccer championships.” … Polish side Wisla Krakow SA unveiled their new uniforms yesterday (thanks to Ed Å»elaski).

Grab Bag: “Tour de France leader Tony Martin wasn’t able to start Friday’s stage 7 after breaking his collarbone Thursday,” notes Sean Clancy. “But new race leader Chris Froome did not wear the yellow jersey Friday as Martin was still considered to be in the race until the start of stage 7.” … Here’s a look at the new World Cup rugby jersey for Uruguay (from Eric Bangeman). … Just exactly what is this sock? According to Mafia News, they are “5 Water Socks,” — water resistant socks. The socks use patent-pending RainArmorâ„¢ technology for water resistance and breathability. … Interesting article entitled, “Historians say fleur de lis has troubled history.” Submitter Nolan Jones asks, “Where does it end? Any chance this makes a movement to change the Saints?” … Did you ever wonder why female beach volleyball players wear bikinis? Wonder no more. … “Here’s a cool longform interview with the costume designer of the 1988 film Coming to America,” says Mike Chamernik. “The woman, Deborah Landis, had to create the traditional garb of a fictional African nation.” … Brendan Gaughan went with a red Green Bay Packers helmet in last night’s NASCAR Xfinity race (via Blake Hatfield). Turns out it’s actually a Bishop Gorman helmet (h/t XFINITY Racing). … Now that Michigan is going back to Nike, here are a couple of recent blog posts regarding which shade of yellow should be the official “maize” (from Steve Ceruolo).

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That’s going to do it for today, folks. If you haven’t already, don’t forget to cast your vote(s) for Part I of the Redesigning the Rays contest. Again, big thanks to all who submitted, to Scott for the idea, and also to Gary for the Scoreboards. Hope everyone has a great day. As for me, a bit of reflection, introspection and sadness, as today marks the 4th anniversary of my father’s passing. Miss ya Pop!

I’ll be back tomorrow with the second half of the Contest, so make sure you check back then!

Follow me on Twitter @PhilHecken.

Peace.

.. … ..

“The UCLA jersey style doesn’t remind me of tire tread. More like the razor wire you see atop prison fences.”

–James G.

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Comments (57)

    The Pokey and the Bandit magazine cover was the name of the Winnipeg goalie tandem of Pokey Reddick and Daniel Berthiaume (who was nicknamed Bandit). The tandem’s name was, of course, a play on the popular movie series “Smokey and the Bandit” starring Burt Reynolds and Jackie Gleason.

    Are you sure it’s a magazine cover? With all those ads on the bottom and no actual magazine title, it looks like a legal sized give-away promo poster . Pretty common event back in the day.

    BTW, “Pokey” is also Eldon Reddick’s nickname.

    SB

    Yeah, that’s almost certainly a giveaway poster.

    I remember when Reddick played briefly for the Florida Panthers during their first season. Berthiaume was also an expansion-team goalie, playing for the Ottawa Senators in their inaugural year.

    Oh man, those are some awesome concepts all around. If I could vote for every one, I would. I like nearly all the names, and it’s refreshing to see such interesting and diverse colors and logos.

    Minor minor quibble, but only because I love the idea so much: If ever a team called out to be named after its state, not its city, it’s Oahu. And in the Hawaiian language, “tiki” is Ki’i. The plural form would be Na Ki’i. That said, I really dig Brian’s entry!

    The Pirates are selling these at the team’s store @ PNC. He was the guy who got trapped (h/t Mike Slavonic). is missing the link

    How anybody could think that the “Nashville Pickers” would fly in today’s racial climate is beyond me. I think people are too easily offended nowadays but I could see this offending people with ease. The tagline with the uniform was music, cotton and baseball (I think, I don’t remember the 3rd one) is pretty outrageous. If the redskins gets all the heat it gets, how would this be received? People are out of their “cotton picking” minds. Lol.

    Picking also applies to music. When you play a banjo, you ‘pick’ it. Also, a lot of honky-tonk involves ‘picking’ a guitar.

    Also, “picker” as a nickname for antique collector/dealers has lately gained currency, and the Nashville area is kind of a center for that subculture.

    Someone who can “really pick it” is a very good infielder. I agree though, there are some racial connotations that I don’t enough about the South to comment on.

    I have to say that on a website that somewhat prides itself on it’s anti-Redskin stance the promotion of black athletes as cotton pickers was quite surprising. To the other posters who mention banjos (which were included in the logo,) trash pickers and good infielders I claim shenanigans.

    Had the cotton boll been omitted from the logo you banjo aficionados might have a point. It wasn’t. As to the other uses of the word – NONE of them are referenced in the concept as presented. Goose, meet gander.

    Slaves did pick cotton, slaves also built the White House. So thank goodness the Washington team isn’t called the Builders.

    Why not show black athletes? Rarely do baseball uniform concepts use black skin, typically it is white, but personally I am a fan of the Umpa Loompa orange used with that Havana Perfectos concept. Although, weren’t Umpa Loompa’s fictonal slaves? Really, the Havana team should show black athletes if they chose a real skin color since the majority of Cuban’s population and the Cuban national team is black.

    Slaves picked cotton in Cuba, but I liked the Havana Perfectos Cuban tobacco concept, I guess if it was the Havana Rollers, instead of Perfectos, and showed black athletes then it under the discussed criteria would be the same. Unless, since it has to do with slavery in another country, American’s usually turn a deaf ear, because in America we love our slave labor iPhones.

    But I get the other Kyle’s statement, the odds of the MLB approving the relocation and re-branding of the Tampa Bay Rays as the Nashville Pickers is 0%.

    I would just like to point out that the Cotton Museum is in Tennessee. It’s history. Yeah, slaves picked cotton. So did white people. Cotton is still picked today, though it’s mostly done with machines. Why can’t cotton picking simply be a job, making the hypothetical team equivalent to the Steelers? Why does race need to come into it at all? If the only thing you can think of is slavery when you think of picking cotton, you’re the one with a problem.

    Careful where you tread in the historical aspect, if you remember there are ongoing debates about that now in the south….besides I agree with most of the analysis above, it is in bad taste.

    Anyway better get back to topic as Im sure we’ll be slammed for these comments and told how it “really is”

    The real problem with using cotton in the logo is the connection between Nashville and cotton is a rather tenuous one. Sure, some was grown there, but the soil there is nowhere near as fertile for cotton as in West Tennessee and parts south and west of there. That’s where King Cotton ruled, and it’s 200+ miles southwest of Nashville.

    Good point – Memphis makes more sense. Here is an update: I made the models skin white and swapped the cotton out for soy.
    link

    Not as iconic as the Oscar Gamble fro, but this Pokey Reddick jhei curl card is pretty great!

    link

    Montreal, because Montreal baseball anything for this Expos fan. But can we get the classic number font back?

    Too much other good stuff to mention, but I’ll just jot off:

    Salt Lake SL intertwine mark. Vancouver Maroons shoutout. And I remember the hockey New Orleans Brass, which still works.

    Re Arlington Stadium: I knew nobody loved it, but that photo with soooo many bleacher seats, and not a single seat anywhere covered up against the sun, is staggeringly demostrative.

    “Maroons” would be a no-go; the team name would presumably need to appeal to both the French- and English-speaking communities. After all, the Maroons hockey team was meant to appeal to the English-speaking community.

    The obvious candidate is, of course, “Expos.” As is “Sounds” for a Nashville team, as opposed to the abominable “Pickers.” Really, if you were going with the guitar-playing meaning, go with bright, lurid colors that suggest the spangly suits of old-time country music artists. Not black and white and a cotton-based logo.

    And I must be overly sensitive and looking to be offended this morning…but an African-American “model” for the (Cotton) Pickers?

    The shot of Stabler is also shows the old color on color game that AL and TN used to play- wouldn’t it be great if they would return to that? *sigh*

    It would, but Alabama apparently is declining to play along. They won’t wear Crimson in Knoxville and won’t allow Tennessee to wear orange in Tuscaloosa.

    That logo with the devil swinging the trident by Tom Bierbaum is sooo cool. It would look amazing on a hat… on anything really. I’d love to see it vectorized.

    Bierbaum never disappoints.
    His opposing team concepts are just as creative as his primary submissions; his offering this time is no exception.

    Agreed. I didn’t vote for that one, mostly because I wouldn’t want to have a second “Devils” franchise, especially one that plays so near to the first. Generally I’d like to keep the team names in different leagues different (with a grandfather clause for the likes of “Giants” and “Cardinals”). The uniform design was solid (although not necessarily my favorite in a strong field), but, yeah, that batting devil logo is wonderful and deserves to be used somehow somewhere!

    I like the New Orleans Brass ones… Looking forward to tomorrow’s round 2. Can “kind of” get a peek in that cover photo.

    Wow, these concepts are solid. I kind of wish we had two divisions, “hand-drawn” and “computer drafted.” Some of those hand-drawn ones have a lot of imagination.

    I went to a day game at Arlington while visiting my sister in Dallas. They actually gave something called Dr Goody’s headache powder in small packets as you came in. It was 1986 and they were playingmy Red Sox iin their ill fated WS season.

    Ooh, some of these are great. Others, not so much.

    The Perfectos would probably be my top pick. Love the old school-sounding name, the simple but effective color scheme and the Cuban flag patch. Only nitpick is the logo kind of looks like a turd.

    The Rivermen, Brass and Maroons are also fantastic. Some of these suffer not from poor designs but from poor choice of a template.

    The “Maroons” have a real college feel to ’em but I like it. The “Highlanders” would be real nice if not for the tartan bill. I don’t understand the choice of pink for the “Hunters.”

    As for the people voting for the Cuban teams, do you really think that’s a viable option or are we just ignoring the impracticability?

    Moving any existing team to any other city in North America is so ridiculously impractical right now that I could not argue with a straight face that a Cuban team is significantly more impractical than, say, a Charleston team. Montreal is pretty much the only actual move-in-ready MLB-less city in the hemisphere right now. Other than Montreal, might as well be Havana, setting side only a few, likely temporary, legal barriers. Though in all honesty, while I firmly believe that a Cuban MLB team is inevitable, it’s certainly not likely for at least several decades. Mexico will probably have a team first.

    “pokey” for a goalie ranks up there with Garth butcher and Dave Tippett for great hockey names.

    Pokey’s brother was nicknamed Smokey. Hockey used to have the best names in sports, now they’re all Braden/Jaden/McKenzie/Jordan/Hayden/insert dog name here.

    Suggested new design contest idea: When the New York Yankees or Boston Red Sox inevitably flee their respective metro areas for more hospitable locations capable of better supporting MLB.

    You may say I’m a dreamer, but I’m not the only one.

    Liked the Arlington Stadium piece- was there for the first season in 72. Yeah, I’ll bet it was hot, too.

    After reading the scoreboard feature, I’m thinking of a concept for a team called the Nachos.

    Maroons. FastDraws. Crocodiles. I’d. Wear. Those.

    I want to know who the second team is in Tom Bierbaum’s Brooklyn Devils submission. And based on the horizontal stripes all the way around the second team’s batting helmet, Can I surmise that they wear pillbox caps in the field?

    Judging by the colors and, especially, the sleeve patch, it looks like the Montreal Expos.

    link

    Steve — Right, that was a Montreal Expos concept playing against my Brooklyn Devils — I figured the concept itself had to be for an original team, but there was no reason the opposition team couldn’t be a revival of the old Expos. And yes, BvK1126, this particular design would include a pillbox cap. Also thanks to those who complemented my logo of the devil swinging the trident / bat, which I put on the home jersey (though it’s a little hard to see in the drawing).

    For the San Jose Sabercats, every Arena Football team wears the impact sensors. The league made it mandatory that every team outfit their players, so they can say they were the first league to do such a thing. lol

    This contest should be over already. That Salt Lake Seagulls is better than at least half the actual MLB uniforms. And you guys always cry about wanting a team in brown, well there you go. And he managed to mix it with the ONLY acceptable color to match – baby blue.

    Of course I go to vote and see he is severely behind, SMH. The leaders are Montreal & Havana. I wonder how many voted for them based on the location and not the actual uniform?

    The FastDraws also had brown in their color scheme, and I voted for them. Cut me some slack.

    The Seagulls got more votes than they did, so cut me even some more slack, man.

    Yeah, I voted for Montreal, too, but not for the locatiion. I dig the unis. That’s all that matters on this site.

    I normally don’t go negative, but if I could vote against a design it would be the Indiana Grays with the “Corn” secondary logo. As a native Hoosier who’s never once lived on or near a “farm” I’m a bit tired of the stereotype. Do we have a lot of farms here, yes. But then so does every stinking state in the country! I live and work in Indianapolis, the 12th largest city in the US and there are no farms in the city last time I was there which is NOW.

    As a life long resident of St Pete (1961-2015) and baseball, I can only say be careful of what you wish for… With the economics as they are for baseball, NO community can possibly give enough tax support or fan cash to satisfy the mlb barons and their lap dog entourage. Remember Milwaukee, NYC, KC, SEA etc. And don’t forget the years in SD, ATL, SF, CHI (WS), SEA, MINN that made them the poster cities that needed to be whipped into shape with threats of relocation or elimination by the insatiable MLB gods. No stadium deal is ever good enough anymore (see ATL & ANAHEIM) while teams make the actual venue utility even shorter in a cynical move they claim is necessary to maintain “fan” interest and convenience. So go ahead and line up Charlotte, Montreal, Las Vegas, New Orleans, Memphis, Nashville, San Antonio, Indianapolis, Orlando, et al for your municipal shake down. And be prepared that once you get your carpet bagging club to hear from MLB’s parasitical sports writers how your city really isn’t a sports town because you can’t buy enough $50+ seats 81 times a year to support your professional franchise. Watch as the franchise valuation keeps increasing but your city can’t build schools, pave roads, pay cops or keep the library open (which btw hasn’t happened here but it has occurred elsewhere ). The Rays used to be something that made me feel proud. Now it just makes me feel used and abused.

    I can tell you that it will never happen in Indy. Has nothing to do with city or market size, it has everything to do with location. Reds, Cardinals, Cubs, White Sox, Tigers all draw ticket buyers from Indy… and they (especially the Reds) don’t want that money leaving their pockets.

    I’d hesitate to support a team called the “Maroons” because isn’t that old school slang for a dumb or gullible person? I could swear I remember hearing Bugs Bunny use that once or twice.

    Pokey and the Bandit were the two Jets goalies in late 80’s. Pokey Reddick and Daniel Berthiaume.

    You might not think so by looking at photos, but Arlington Stadium was a pretty sweet place to watch big league baseball. Not so much from the outfield bleachers, but it was almost always easy to walk up and get good seats along the base paths. Had a view of Nolan Ryan punching out Robin Ventura, like it was in my living room. Concessions and bathrooms were convenient. I was sad to lose it, but (I’m still calling it) The Ballpark’s excellence made up for it. I didn’t grow up in Texas and moved away since, but have good memories of baseball there.

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