A Quick Note on the World Series: Celebrating Two of the Best Uniforms in Sports

Never change, Yankees and Dodgers

There’s something comforting about baseball. Even though viewership has been declining since the 1990s, it’s nice to know that it’s there, that each year, from spring to fall, 30 teams from coast to coast, large markets and small, will suit up and play 162 games followed by playoffs and the World Series. It’s coformting to know that despite evolving rules here and there, the sport doesn’t really change. It’s like the seasons, part of a common social fabric that is so rapidly eroding.

I hate the New York Yankees. I always have. To me, they’re the bad guy. The evil empire. I can’t stand the team. But I’m thrilled they’re in the World Series playing against the Dodgers, another iconic franchise. It’s good for the sport, it’s good for sports—it’s an epic, historical matchup that I desperately hope the Yankees lose.

I get a secondary pleasure from watching a Yankees/Dodgers World Series: the uniforms. The Yankees and Dodgers’ uniforms are everything that’s good about sports: unchanging, traditional, reflecting the identities of the teams and the cities in which they play. They are pleasing to the eye, but also provide a sense of stability and purpose, a common understanding.

The Yankees have the best uniforms in all of sports. Two colors. A minimal, iconic logo. The pin stripes. The nameless jerseys. The road uniforms, gray and dark navy, are utilitarian, tough, and uncompromising. They are like a New York subway rat, in the best way possible. The home uniforms, white with navy pinstripes, are no-nonsense and businesslike. They say, we’re here to work and win, nothing else. And we’ll never change.

While the Yankees’ uniforms could only represent New York, the Dodgers’ uniforms are quintessentially Los Angeles. When they left Brooklyn, trimmed the flourishes from the Brooklyn Dodgers’ ‘B’ and replaced it with the clean lines of the ‘LA’ logo, they became a California team: new, modern, promising a bright future. The pop of the Dodger Blue is all California, and the red of the front jersey numbers, too. That red is such a crucial detail. There’s no other red on the uniforms; it’s just those numbers. A little flourish of color, an accent, small but bold. Different.

These two uniforms belong in the canon of perfect sports unis, along with the Lakers, Celtics, and Bulls, the Red Sox, Pirates, and Tigers, the Bears, Steelers, Packers, Raiders, and Niners, the Rangers, Maple Leafs, and Canadiens, to name some of the other untouchables.

It’s good to know that no matter what happens in this world, as long as those teams are still functioning, playing games in their unchanging attire, winning and losing championships, inspiring passionate fans and haters alike, society hasn’t completely collapsed.

So, in conclusion—die, Yankees, die. But please, never change.

Mitch

Question? Comment? Suggestion? Caught a typo? Email me at mitch.moxley@gmail.com