Archive for the ‘Baseball’ Category

Vintage Baseball Uniforms – A New Trend

Tuesday, November 18th, 2008

As a manufacturer of custom made baseball uniforms and a long time coach and fan of the great game of baseball there is a movement afoot that I find very interesting. Our company has been approached several times in the last year or two about manufacturing “vintage” style uniforms; like those worn by baseball players in the late 1800s.

Apparently this is not just a phenomenon but a growing movement in the US. There are sanctioned leagues and organizations whose members must at least dress like the “old time” players and in some cases even use the authentic equipment and original rules. As I have researched this I can assure you that baseball is a much different game when played with this inferior equipment and with the rules that the game was originally played with. I would actually love to see some of the young men that I coach give this game a try with equipment and uniforms like the ones I describe. I have a feeling that I would hear a lot less complaints about (more…)

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Digital Umpiring & An Old School Vote

Tuesday, October 14th, 2008

As I write this I am watching a Major League baseball playoff game and will later be watching the NFL Monday night game. I watch these games on my flat screen television with all the accompanying remote control devices nearby. To those of you who are middle age like me I’m sure you remember the days when we actually had to walk to our television sets to change the channel. And I wonder why I have trouble managing my waistline these days.

While enjoying the technology that is bringing the games to my family room it has occurred to me how much technology has changed the games themselves. In the baseball game a simulated “box” that indicates each batter’s strike zone can be superimposed on the screen as well as (more…)

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Baseball – America’s Forgotten Game

Monday, September 8th, 2008

I had tryouts for my 2009 summer baseball team this weekend – ALREADY – and it has occurred to me how much things have changed over the years. For the record, the players that I coach are now high school juniors and seniors.

When I started this coaching odyssey some twenty years ago baseball was a much different game. At that time, it was a mainstream sport. Soccer was played in the fall only and lacrosse was a “secondary” sport. When I registered my own sons for baseball at the local recreation council back then we needed to arrive several hours early to make sure that we were far enough up in line to get a spot. That same recreation council no longer has a baseball program today. (more…)

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Baltimore’s Baseball Uniforms Get Out-of-Town Identity

Thursday, July 31st, 2008

Our local baseball team, the Baltimore Orioles, has finally done the right thing concerning the name on their away uniforms. For years, the Orioles have been one of the few major league teams that don’t show their city name on their away jerseys. The thinking was, so we were lead to believe, that a sizable portion of the fan base viewed the Orioles as a “regional” team and having “Baltimore” on the front of the baseball uniforms may alienate fans in the surrounding areas who don’t consider themselves from Baltimore.

The Nonsense

This was nonsense of course. A good, quality, well-marketed professional sports franchise will attract fans from hundreds of miles; regardless of the name that’s on the front. It took several years after the Nationals began playing in Washington for Orioles management to realize that they were actually alienating their core fans. In an effort to reinvigorate their once impressive attendance, the Orioles brass is now (more…)

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