Phillies
The “long-awaited” Phillies City Connect jersey were officially unveiled on Friday, and over a hundred fans lined up outside of the New Era team store at Citizens Bank Park to "be among the first to grab one of the new jerseys," according to Gabriela Carroll of the PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER. Some Phillies fans "love the new, unique look," but others "are still wary after the full release" (
PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 4/5). Phillies fan Angel Figueroa, who works for the Philadelphia Sheriff's office,
said, “I think it’s sick. It screams Philly.” The PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER’s Josh Tolentino noted the team store had City Connect jerseys for 10 players available for purchase. Phillies VP/Business Affairs Howard Smith said it has been “three years in the making.” Smith: “When our owner, John Middleton, came back and told us it was approved, it was about tapping into a new audience, primarily younger” (
PHILADELPHIA INQUIRER, 4/5).
DELIVERY NOT MADE: USA TODAY’s Gabe Lacques wrote MLB’s uniform problem “faces yet another hurdle: Availability.” The Rangers and Brewers typically wear the popular City Connect uniforms for Friday night games, per their "end-of-week customs." There “was just one hang-up: Fanatics,” the company responsible for producing the Nike-designed uniforms, “has not delivered them.” Officials from the Rangers and Brewers intimated to reporters that missing deliveries accounted for the jersey scrambling. Friday marked the ninth day of MLB's regular season. According to Fanatics, the missing jerseys “should not have come as a surprise.” The company measures players for uniforms during spring training and then “asks teams to prioritize which uniforms they'd like delivered first, with the first of six windows coming March 18 and the last on May 27.” With scrutiny of the new Nike-designed jerseys at a high level, players, fans and media have “identified at least five teams who have not yet worn City Connect or other alternate jerseys on their traditional days of use” (USA TODAY, 4/5).
