Unified

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Episode 6: How to Handle Retired Numbers Mar 11, 2021

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There have been some unusual NFL and NBA developments regarding retired numbers, so in this episode Paul and Chris discuss the ins and outs of retired numbers, including what sorts of rules or guidelines teams should follow.

Plus they talk about recent NFL jersey leaks, the NBA All-Star Game, MLB’s upcoming Lou Gehrig Day patches, whether team success (or lack thereof) should dictate uniform choices, and more.

Here are are photos and links regarding some of the things discussed in this episode, in the rough order that they come up:

Here are the four NFL jerseys that leaked on Sunday.
If the NFL lifts the one-shell rule next season, the Browns could wear their new 1946 throwback uniforms with white helmets, just like the real ’46 Browns did.
Here are the Pacers-themed uniforms worn in the NBA All-Star Game (even though the game took place in Atlanta, not Indiana.)
Here’s MLB’s announcement of Lou Gehrig Day, which will be held annually on June 2, the anniversary of Gehrig’s death.
Looking back, here’s the ALS-awareness patch that all MLB teams wore on July 4, 2009 — the 70th anniversary of Gehrig’s famous “Luckiest Man” speech.
And here’s the patch that MLB teams wore five years later, to mark the 75th anniversary of Gehrig’s speech. Note that the design included the Yankees’ interlocking “NY” logo.
This is Marshall Goldberg, the Chicago Cardinals running back whose retired No. 99 is being brought out of retirement by the Cardinals (now based in Arizona, of course, but it’s the same franchise) so newly acquired defensive lineman J.J. Watt can wear it.
Some Mets fans think the team should retire No. 24 for Willie Mays, who played the final season-and-a-half of his career with the team. Paul thinks the Mets would be better off retiring No. 7 for Ed Kranepool, who played in each of the team’s first 19 seasons and was a much more important figure in Mets history than Mays was, even though Mays was an immortal player and Kranepool was not.
Here are some questionable number retirements, including the Angels’ No. 26 for former owner Gene Autry; the Knicks’ No. 613 for former coach Red Holzman’s win total; and the Wild’s No. 1 for their fans.
Here’s a shot of the Canucks wearing their (in)famous “Flying V” uniforms against the Islanders in the 1982 Stanley Cup Finals. If Vancouver had won, would that uniform get more respect today?

Episode 5: How to Fix the NBA Uni Mess Mar 04, 2021

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In this episode, Chris and Paul discuss the mess that the NBA uniform scene has become, and possible ways to fix it.

Plus they talk about NBA All-Star uniforms, the potential uniform implications of J.J. Watt signing with the Arizona Cardinals, whether all the teams in a given city should wear the same colors, and more.

Here are are photos and links regarding some of the things discussed in this episode, in the rough order that they come up:

Chris had the fun of signing a copy of his book about hockey uniforms, Fabric of the Game, at a local bookstore.
The NBA All-Star Game will take place this Sunday in Atlanta. The game was originally scheduled to take place in Indiana with Pacers-themed gear — some of which, like this T-shirt, the league has been selling, even though the game location has been changed.
From 1997 through 2002, NBA All-Stars wore their regular team uniforms — one conference in white and the other wearing their team colors.
If Cardinals wide receiver Larry Fitzgerald plays another season (he hasn’t committed to that yet), he and newly signed defensive lineman J.J. Watt would both wear the Walter Payton Man of the Year Award jersey patch next season, marking the first time an NFL team has had two Payton patchers on the roster simultaneously.
The Yankees’ new memorial patch for Whitey Ford is a simple black circle with white numbering. That’s a common patch format for most teams, but, somewhat incredibly, this is the first time the Yankees have ever used that patch design style.
On Feb. 26, the Hawks and Thunder showed up wearing red and orange, respectively — a brutal color combo that caused so much confusion that the Thunder had to change to white uniforms at halftime.
Here are the Bulls’ and Trail Blazers’ latest “City Edition” uniforms. Designs like these, which have no visual connection to the teams’ usual uniforms, often leave fans scratching their heads.
The Jazz’s popular “red rock” alternate uniforms (which they got to wear for three seasons instead of the usual one) evolved into this season’s “dark mode” design.
The Heat’s various “Miami Vice” designs, topped off by this season’s so-bad-it’s-good gradient design, has served as a good alternate identity for the team.
Here’s Paul’s article on the Cavaliers’ new creative director, Daniel Arsham, who says he’s looking to appeal to overseas fans who might care more about the NBA as a lifestyle brand than as a sports league.
As mentioned at the end of the episode, we now have T-shirts and stickers! You can check those out here.

Episode 4: Heroes of Zero, Plus NFL and NHL News Feb 25, 2021

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With the Mets almost ending up with Marcus Stroman and Taijuan Walker wearing No. 0 and No. 00 on the same team (Walker ended up going with No. 99 instead), Chris and Paul take a deep discussion dive into the unusual power of these unusual uniform numbers — zero and double-zero.

Plus they discuss the Jaguars’ redesignation of teal as their primary jersey color; the news that the Washington Football Team won’t have a new name until at least 2022; Adidas’s decision to sell off Reebok; and which of the NHL’s Reverse Retro uniforms deserve to be upgraded to primary status.

Here are some photos of things discussed in the episode, in the rough order that they come up:

Here’s the gold-trimmed Mark Brunell-era Jaguars uniform that Paul wishes the team would go back to.
The 1985 Blue Jays are the only MLB team to have a No. 0 (Al Oliver) and a No. 00 (Cliff Johnson) on the roster simultaneously.
Taijuan Walker opted not to wear double-zero because that number is already worn by the Mets’ costumed mascot, Mr. Met.
Walker isn’t the first player to butt uni-numerical heads with Mr. Met. Back in 2003, Tony Clark briefly wore No. 00, but fans complained that he “stole” the number from Mr. Met, so Clark changed to No. 52.
Benito Santiago famously wore No. 09 for the Marlins and Padres. He said he did it because he didn’t like the way the vertical strap of his chest protector cut through the single numeral, so he switched to the two-numeral version.
It’s unusual for MLB pitchers to wear single-digit numbers. But Marcus Stroman has now worn three different single-digit numbers during the past few seasons.
Paul loved it when the Rays and Dodgers both had single-digit pitchers during Game Six of last year’s World Series — Blake Snell for Tampa Bay and Julio Urías for L.A. It was the first time that’s ever happened for both teams in the same Series game.
More than a dozen NBA teams have had 0 and 00 on the roster simultaneously (more on that here). That includes the current Trail Blazers, who have wearing Damian Lillard wearing zero and Carmelo Anthony wearing double-zero.
Nos. 0 and 00 are not currently allowed in the NFL. Decades ago, however, they were worn by Obert Logan, Ken Burrough, and Jim Otto.
0 and 00 are currently illegal in the NHL as well, but those numbers have previously been worn by Neil Sheehy, John Davidson, and Martin Biron.
In 1969, when college football was celebrating its 100th anniversary, a handful of players wore No. 100 (you can learn more about that here), including Kansas kicker Bill Bell.
Regarding our listener-submitted Question of the Week, Chris would like to see the Kings’ purple Reverse Retro uniform upgraded to primary status, while Paul would like to see the same for the Bruins’ yellow Reverse Retro design.

Episode 3: What’s on Tap for MLB 2021 Uniforms? Feb 18, 2021

Show notes

With pitchers and catchers reporting to spring training this week, Chris and Paul go over the upcoming uni changes for the 2021 MLB season, and also list some MLB uni updates they’d like to see.

In non-MLB news, they also discuss the Vegas Golden Knights’ gold helmets and, in the first installment of what will be a regular feature, answer a question submitted by a listener.

Here are photos of some of the things discussed in this episode:

Here’s a look at the Golden Knights’ new gold helmets which they recently started wearing with no advance fanfare or promotion.
All MLB teams are using the same spring training cap designs that they used last year, except for Cleveland (de-emphasizing the word “Indians”) and the Padres (eliminating the logo that inadvertently looked like a swastika). Here’s a look at those two teams’ 2020 and 2021 designs.
The Giants are adding player names to the back of their home jerseys, so we’ll no longer see scenes that look like this.
The Dodgers gave us a peek at their new memorial patches for Tommy Lasorda and Don Sutton when they introduced new free agent signing Trevor Bauer.
The Cardinals will be wearing a memorial patch for Bob Gibson. He died on Oct. 2, which was also the date when the Cardinals were eliminated from last year’s playoffs, so they didn’t get a chance to uni-memorialize him last season.
In a similar situation, Whitey Ford died on Oct. 7. The Yankees wore a memorial “16” for him on Oct. 8 and were promptly eliminated from the playoffs in that game. They will almost certainly carry over the “16” to this season (but not the “HGS” patch that they wore last year for Hank Steinbrenner.)
The Braves will be wearing a 150th-anniversary patch on one sleeve and an All-Star Game patch on the other. They’ll also presumably be adding memorial patches for Henry Aaron, Phil Niekro, and possibly Don Sutton, although that hasn’t been announced yet.
The Angels are adding a 60th-anniversary patch to their caps (but not to their jerseys.)
The Indians have announced that they’ll be changing their team name after this season, so 2021 will be the final year that we’ll see this chest insignia.
There’s a lot of chatter about the Mets possibly bringing back their black jerseys for a game or two. A good time for that would be on the 20th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks, when the Mets will be hosting the Yankees (marking the first time the two New York teams have played each other on Sept. 11). The Mets will likely wear first responder caps as well.
Here are three MLB uni details that Paul would change — the Orioles’ upside-down apostrophe (grrrr), the Astros’ super-boring and lopsided chest lettering, and the Reds’ black drop-shadows.
Chris, meanwhile, would like to see changes to the Marlins’ uninspired set (they don’t even wear their team name on their home or road jerseys, and the black jersey is illegible!) and the Rays’ same-same set (add a yellow jersey and change up the chest lettering!), and would also like to see the Twins bring back the pinstriped road greys.

Episode 2: Super Bowl Recap and Anniversary Patches Feb 11, 2021

Show notes

Paul and Chris begin with a quick Super Bowl recap (from a uniform perspective, of course) and then talk about the Cleveland Browns’ newly released 75th-anniversary logo, which leads them into a deep discussion of the surprisingly nuanced world of anniversary patches.

Here are some of the patches that are covered in the discussion:

This is the Browns’ newly released anniversary logo.
From 1925, the National League’s “Golden Jubilee” patch.
From 1951, the American League’s “Golden Anniversary” patch and the National League’s 75th-anniversary patch.
From 1953, the Yankees’ “50 Years” patch — the first patch of its type ever to be worn by an MLB team.
After the Yankees’ patch, it would be another 23 years before a team celebrated its own history with a patch. That was the Cubs, who marked their centennial with this patch in 1976.
In the NHL, the 1948-49 Boston Bruins celebrated their 25th anniversary with their jersey crest, instead of going with a separate patch. That anniversary crest became the basis for their famous “spoke-B” logo.
A quarter-century later, the Bruins also became the first NHL team to wear a separate anniversary patch, as they celebrated their half-century benchmark.
We didn’t get around to discussing this in this episode, but it’s worth noting that the NFL’s first team-anniversary didn’t appear until 1982, when the Steelers celebrated 50 seasons.
Teams sometimes get mixed up about the difference between anniversaries and seasons. The 1986 Mets, for example, wore a patch marking their “25th anniversary,” but it was actually their 25th season (and thus their 24th anniversary.)
Similarly, here’s Chris’s Blue Jays “10th anniversary” pocket schedule, which was actually for their 10th season in 1986.
Anniversary patches have become a very detail-specific design category, as seen in this insanely detailed infographic that the San Jose Sharks recently created for their new 30th-anniversary patch.
Here’s a good example of a team using a big Roman numeral “X” for its 10th-season patch.
Basketball jerseys don’t leave much room for patches, so the NBA had teams wear this (very large) patch on their (very short) shorts to mark the league’s 35th anniversary in 1980-81.
Last but not least, here’s Chris drinking out of his SportsLogos.net 20th-anniversary coffee mug, with Blue Jays-style inlined number (but no Roman numerals!)
You can read more of Paul’s thoughts about anniversary patches in this Uni Watch blog post from 2016.

Episode 1: Welcome to Unified Jan 31, 2021

Show notes

Batter up! In our inaugural episode, Paul and Chris talk about how they first got hooked on uniforms and logos when they were kids, and how that early passion led them to pursue their unusual career paths.

They also discuss their friendship, why they decided to start this podcast, and what their plans are for this new collaborative project.

Here’s a photo of Chris and Paul’s epic visit to Katz’s Deli in 2014, which cemented their friendship.
Chris is from Canada, where McDonald’s outlets have a maple leaf at the center of the golden arches.
Here are the 10 issues of Paul’s zine, Beer Frame: The Journal of Inconspicuous Conumption, which he published from 1993 through 2000.
As a kid, Chris thought the Toronto Marlboros’ logo was actually a Maple Leafs logo with a crown that was only visible in person, not on TV.
The very first Uni Watch column appeared in The Village Voice in 1999. For the most part, it was a short column in those days.
Chris has always been annoyed by the orange shoulder striping on the Anaheim Ducks’ uniforms, while Paul is annoyed by the Pittsburgh Pirates’ “P” logo because the upper-left corner isn’t pointy.

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