The D-backs on Thursday unveiled their '16 uniforms, which will include eight distinct options, including the reintroduction of one of the franchise's original colors, teal, as well as a bold gray on the road. In addition, a sublimated diamond pattern adorns the shoulder, back, sleeve and pant leg on various uniforms, a subtle reference to the club's name, snakeskin and diamond shape of a baseball field (D-backs). In Phoenix, Andrew Joseph notes the D-backs are "choosing to go with a look" that MLB fans "have never seen on the diamond." D-backs President & CEO Derrick Hall "was at the forefront of a design project that started nearly two years ago." The team’s design staff "collaborated with its players and uniform supplier Majestic to come up with a final product." The comparison to Oregon football "isn’t far off with these uniforms." Recent designs from Oregon "served as an inspiration for the look." The snakeskin pattern that extends to the shoulders, back and bottom of the pant legs "will raise eyebrows in baseball circles." It is a design that "just hasn’t been introduced in baseball." The eight total jerseys "will be the most in the major leagues." Hall said that they "got it down to seven new ones because it was difficult to eliminate those final options." They were "considering nine jerseys before settling at seven." Most of those jerseys "maintained the current Sedona red and black color scheme, which doesn’t force fans to change their wardrobe." But the team "revisited its past with alternate jerseys that include a brighter shade of teal." The fonts and nameplates "have also changed." The design team "experimented with matching the old colors to the new colors." But Hall said that purple and red "just didn’t work." Players "gave their input on the uniforms throughout the process," and the away uniforms "were a product of a player’s suggestion after finding inspiration from football" (ARIZONA REPUBLIC, 12/4).
DIAMONDS ON THEIR BACKS: ESPN.com's Paul Lukas wrote whether fans "love 'em or hate 'em," the uniforms "definitely represent a departure from many established MLB norms." The use of sublimation "feels gimmicky." Lukas: "Let's see how it looks on the field. The biggest problem is that the snakeskin runs down the sides of the jerseys and creates the illusion of a shoulder yoke, both of which are the kind of tacky design elements that should be reserved for batting practice jerseys" (ESPN.com, 12/3). CBSSPORTS.com's Mike Axisa wrote, "I can't take my eyes off that snakeskin design on the shoulders and the back of the calves. It's ... different. That's for sure." The home alternates' snakeskin "makes its way from the shoulder down to the back of the jersey." Axisa: "So now the Diamondbacks literally have diamonds on their backs. ... I give the D-Backs credit: They went for a bold design. They could have gone with something more boring and conservative. I don't love the snakeskin design on the shoulders and pant legs, but maybe it'll grow on me" (CBSSPORTS.com, 12/3).
