Baseball uniform facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

A baseball uniform is the special clothing that baseball players wear when they play games. Just like other uniforms, it helps everyone know which team the players belong to. Most baseball uniforms have the players' last names and numbers on the back. This helps people easily tell each player apart.

A baseball uniform usually includes a shirt, pants, shoes, socks, a cap, and a helmet. Players also wear gloves, but these are not officially part of the uniform because players can pick their own. Most uniforms have different logos and colors to show off the team's identity.

The first baseball uniforms were worn by the New York Knickerbockers Baseball Club in the 1800s. Their uniforms were blue wool pants, white flannel shirts, and straw hats. Since then, uniforms have changed a lot! New items and ideas have been added, and their style has slowly changed over time.

History of Baseball Uniforms
Today's Uniforms
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History of Baseball Uniforms

How Uniforms Started

On April 4, 1849, the New York Knickerbockers were the first team to use uniforms. In 1882, teams started adding different colors to uniforms and stockings. These colors showed the different playing positions of each player.

In 1888 and 1889, teams like the Detroit Wolverines and Washington Nationals added stripes to their uniforms. By 1900, all players in Major League Baseball teams were wearing uniforms.

Home and Away Uniforms

Jeff Tesreau wearing the uniform of the New York Giants around 1912–18.

By the late 1800s, baseball teams began to have two different uniforms. They wore one uniform when they played in their own stadium. These were called "home games". They wore a different uniform when they played at another team's stadium. These were called "road games".

It became normal for teams to wear white uniforms at home. For road games, they usually wore gray, solid dark blue, or black colors. In the 1970s, some teams even used light blue for their road uniforms.

Pinstripes and Numbers

Pinstripes are long, thin vertical stripes on uniforms. They first appeared on some major league baseball uniforms in 1907. The pinstripes were made widened in 1912 so people could see them more easily.

The New York Yankees are famous for their pinstripes. They first used them in 1912. The Yankees' pinstripes have become a symbol of the team.

Manny Ramirez wearing loose-fitting pants.

Numbers were first added to uniforms by the Cleveland Indians in 1916. In 1929, the New York Yankees and Cleveland Indians started putting numbers on the backs of their uniforms. By the 1930s, it was normal for all baseball uniforms to have numbers. The Yankees were one of the first teams to wear uniform numbers. This was often based on their batting order. For example, Babe Ruth wore number 3, and Lou Gehrig wore number 4.

By 1932, all major league baseball teams had numbers on their players' uniforms. The numbers were on the backs of the shirts. The team name or logo was on the front. In 1952, the Brooklyn Dodgers were the first team to put numbers on the fronts of their uniforms.

When players started having their own numbers, teams began to "retire" numbers for special players. This means no one else on that team can wear that number again. Some teams, like the Houston Astros in the 1970s and 1980s, even put numbers on the fronts of pants pockets!

The Philadelphia Athletics in 1874 wearing their baseball uniforms.

Patches on Uniforms

Shoulder patches on baseball uniforms are often worn to honor something special. The first patches were used by the Chicago White Sox in 1907.

In 1939, a patch was worn on all 16 major league uniform sleeves. This was to celebrate the grand opening of baseball’s Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. Another patch was worn by all teams in 1969 to celebrate 100 years of professional baseball.

Teams also use special patches for ballpark anniversaries. When someone important to the team dies, teams often wear patches instead of the older tradition of black arm bands.

Baseball Cap Styles

A Texas Tech Red Raiders baseball cap.

From the 1840s to the 1870s, baseball players wore many kinds of hats, including straw hats. Caps, or other headgear with eye shades, have been part of baseball uniforms since they started. They help protect a player's eyes from the sun.

In 1860, the Brooklyn Excelsiors were the first team to wear what would later become the baseball cap. Before that, teams often wore full-brimmed straw hats or no cap at all. By the early 1900s, rounded top parts of a hat became the normal fashion.

Baseball caps have changed very little in recent decades. Over time, the sun visor (the front part of caps) has become bigger. The main reason for the cap stays the same: to protect the player's eyes from the sun.

Baseball Shoes

In the late 1800s, baseball players started wearing soft but strong leather shoes. Soon, removable spikes were designed for shoes. These spikes were used until 1976, when they were banned from baseball games. After that, white shoes, as well as solid reds and blues, became popular.

As artificial turf was used more on baseball fields, changes to shoes were needed. In the 1800s and 1900s, baseball shoes were mostly black. The Kansas City Athletics designed new white shoes in the 1960s.

Team Stockings

A photograph (left) and painting (right) of Cy Young wearing a red stocking on his uniform.

The colors of a team's stockings were a way to tell teams apart. In 1900, stockings were made of heavy wool and went up above the knee. The part covering the foot below the ankle bone was white or natural wool. This often made it look like players were wearing stirrups.

In 1868, the Cincinnati Red Stockings started playing in short trousers so their stockings could be seen. This led to the team's nickname. Teams were often called things like the Chicago White Stockings or the St. Louis Brown Stockings because of their stocking colors. Some teams wore "candy cane" stockings with stripes in the 1920s.

Alfonso Soriano wearing traditional knee-breeches.

Graphics and Logos

From the beginning, graphic designs were used to tell different teams apart. An Old English letter was often worn on the front of baseball uniforms on the chest. This style is still used today by the Detroit Tigers, who have a Gothic style "D" on their home uniforms.

Road jerseys often showed the city the team was from. For example, the Tigers wore the word "Detroit" on their road uniform shirts. Early examples of logos include a small red tiger on the black cap of the Detroit Tigers in 1901. The Chicago Cubs had a bear cub logo on their uniforms by 1907.

In another famous example, the Boston Americans used the Nationals' red stockings in 1908 after the Nationals stopped using them. They have been called the Boston Red Sox ever since.

Baseball Gloves

An example of today's baseball glove made of leather, with laces and a web.

A baseball glove is a leather glove that baseball players wear. They are used to catch a baseball that is hit by a batter or thrown by an outfielder. When baseball gloves were first made, not many players used them. Many players who first wore gloves were often teased and taunted.

The first baseball glove was worn by catcher Doug Allison in 1870. Allison's hands were sore from catching in earlier games. He decided to wear something to protect his hands. His teammates laughed and mocked him for it.

In 1875, first baseman Charlie Waitt also wore a glove for protection. His teammates also laughed at him. But when famous baseball player Albert Spalding started using baseball gloves, more players began to use them too. Soon, all baseball players started wearing gloves.

In 1920, Bill Doak, a pitcher for the St. Louis Cardinals, asked for a web to be placed between the first finger and the thumb of the glove. This was for more protection because baseballs were being thrown harder. This design was soon added to gloves, and webbed gloves became common.

In the 1940s, gloves started having laces to tie the fingers together for more control. The most recent idea added to gloves was making the pocket deeper. This also included making small baskets in the glove so pitchers could hide how they were holding the ball for different pitches.

Baseball Helmets

Baseball helmets are hard hats that baseball batters wear. They protect their heads from a baseball that might be hit or thrown at them. Roger Bresnahan made the first batting helmet after he was hit in the head during a game. After that, more players started wearing helmets. Finally, from the 1970s, players had to wear them. Usually, the helmet design matches the team's home cap. The same helmets are used for road games, even if the soft road cap is different.

Today's Uniforms

Baseball uniforms have changed a lot over time. However, many parts of old baseball uniforms are still used today. For example, baseball numbers are still on the backs and fronts of uniforms, just like they have been since 1932.

Often, a team will have several uniforms:

A home uniform
An away uniform
A "Sunday game" uniform
Uniforms worn only during batting practice
Uniforms worn only for special events

Recently, throwback uniforms, which look like older uniforms, have become very popular. Current Major League Baseball uniforms must follow certain rules. For example, there are no advertisements on uniforms, and all players must wear their number on the back of the uniform.