MLB jersey rankings

Posted on August 26, 2013 by Kurt Schwerman

My MLB jersey power rankings:

1. St. Louis Cardinals

Best logo, and maybe the best color scheme in baseball. True classic jerseys.

2. Detroit Tigers

Their logo is as original as you’ll find. Their home whites are simple, but great. The away jersey may be the best in the MLB.

3. Atlanta Braves

I love their logo and colors. Their alternate white jerseys are one of the best alternates in the game, not to mention their reds ones as well.

4. Pittsburgh Pirates

Great colors, classic jerseys. That’s all that needs to be said about the Pirates’ uniforms. Their alternate black jerseys might be my favorite in baseball.

5. Oakland A’s

I’ve always liked the green and yellow/gold. Especially on their home jerseys. Great hats as well.

6. New York Yankees

They probably have the most recognizable logo in sports, and rightfully so. It’s a great logo. I really like their home, pinstriped jerseys, as they are as classic as you can get, but the away jerseys don’t do much for me.

7. Chicago Cubs

The home whites with the pinstripes are great. It’s the away jerseys that I’m not a huge fan of. Their alternate blues somewhat help make up for the grey jerseys.

8. Baltimore Orioles

Good colors and pretty original jerseys. I’m a fan of their throwback hats.

9. Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim

They use a good font on their jerseys, and I like how the “A” in Angels features the halo.

10. San Francisco Giants

These jerseys have never changed, and that says a lot. True originals.

11. Boston Red Sox

The whites are good, clean, classics. I’m not a huge fan of their away jerseys. I understand that they are throwback jerseys from the 1920’s, which is a cool idea, but they don’t look very good. Still, they’re better than most grey jerseys. They need to ditch their red and navy blue jerseys.

12. Texas Rangers

Good colors and solid jerseys. The only problem with Texas is the fact that they have so many jerseys. I can’t keep track sometimes.

13. Cincinnati Reds

Another old, classic logo here. Their home jerseys are much better than their greys and reds.

14. Chicago White Sox

There isn’t much to complain about with these. I like the cursive font on their away jerseys. Their black ones are pretty solid as well.

15. Los Angeles Dodgers

I love their home jerseys. They haven’t changed in a very long time. I really dislike their away ones. That’s why the Dodgers are this low.

16. Toronto Blue Jays

I thought about ranking the Jays higher, but I couldn’t put them ahead of classic jerseys like the Dodgers, Reds, etc. Their new jerseys, as of 2012, are a big improvement from their previous uniform set.

17. New York Mets

I don’t dislike the royal blue and orange, but I’m not a huge fan of it. I get the fact that it’s a combination of the Brooklyn Dodgers’ and New York Giants’ colors, which is creative, but it doesn’t do a whole lot for me.

18. Seattle Mariners

A decent color scheme and font. Good, but not great uniforms.

19. Arizona Diamondbacks

These look too much like they belong in an independent league or something along those lines. It’s tough to read “Arizona” on the front of their away jerseys.

20. San Diego Padres

Very generic, somewhat boring jerseys.

21. Minnesota Twins

Good home jerseys, but terrible away jerseys.

22. Tampa Bay Rays

Again, these are kind of boring. Not much going on here.

23. Kansas City Royals

I feel like the Royals could improve these jerseys, but I’m not sure how. I liked their jerseys from 3-4 years ago better than these.

24. Milwaukee Brewers

The more I see these jerseys, the more I begin to dislike them. Part of me feels like they’re too bland, but part of me disagrees. These could be higher on my list, but for now they’ll stay right here.

25. Cleveland Indians

When they had the navy blue trim on their white jerseys, those were possibly my favorite jerseys in baseball. I loved those. Now without the trimming, I’m not a fan. Their greys just look plain bad.

26. Washington Nationals

I can’t help but think of Walgreens every time I see their logo. Their away jerseys are very similar to Minnesota’s, which is not a good thing.

27. Colorado Rockies

I have to give them credit for their pinstripes. But the rest of their home and away jerseys are bad. They have bad alternates too.

28. Philadelphia Phillies

I’ve never been a fan of their logo. I also don’t really like red pinstripes. The red and grey on their away uniforms look pretty bad.

29. Miami Marlins

Well, what else would you expect from Miami? Just like their new stadium, the colors chosen for their new jersey color scheme are terrible. Horrible logo(s) as well.

30. Houston Astros

I don’t like their new jerseys. The font is bad, that shade of orange is bad…….they’re just bad.

NHL jersey rankings

Posted on August 23, 2013 by Kurt Schwerman

With the 2013-14 NHL season slated to begin in less than two months, I thought I’d rank all the NHL jerseys from best to worst. Here we go…

1. Chicago Blackhawks

The reds are often regarded as the best jersey in sports, and the indianhead logo is also considered one of the best in all of sports. These jerseys speak for themselves. I only wish that they’d bring back their alternates from 2010.

2. Boston Bruins

Their logo has hardly changed over time, and their jerseys are one of the most classic in sports. Tough to not like these.

3. Toronto Maple Leafs

Again, this logo has rarely been changed, and the jerseys are simple, yet great. True classics.

4. New York Rangers

The diagonal lettering on the front of their jerseys has been the Rangers’ signature look forever. I love the stripes going across the front and back sides of the shoulders on their away jerseys. Their third jerseys are one of the best in the NHL.

5. Edmonton Oilers

I was quite happy when they finally dropped their navy blue look and went back to their classic colors from the Gretzky days.

6. Detroit Red Wings

This has to be one of the more recognizable logos in sports. The winged wheel has not really changed at all over time, nor have the jerseys themselves. The arched lettering/font used on the nameplates is truly unique.

7. Vancouver Canucks

Much like the Oilers, the Canucks made a good move in ditching their navy blue look. The green and blue on these jerseys go together really well.

8. Montreal Canadiens

The Canadiens’ logo has been pretty consistent throughout time, but their jerseys have changed a bit more frequently. Still, a real classic look.

9. Pittsburgh Penguins

Honestly, I’m not a huge fan of their logo, but the jersey as a whole looks good. I’d be in favor of bringing back their old yellow and black look form the Mario Lemieux era.

10. Buffalo Sabres

A couple years ago Buffalo decided to use their original logo and colors again. That was the best decision they have made in a long time, because the jerseys they had before these were horrendous.

11. Los Angeles Kings

I might actually like their whites better than the blacks. The logo isn’t very creative, but the overall look of these jerseys isn’t bad by any means.

12. Minnesota Wild

They wore their green alternates at home in the playoffs this past spring, which make up for their pretty weak away jerseys. The home red unis are pretty nice in my opinion. If they could figure out a way to make their whites more interesting, I’d have the Wild higher on my list.

13. Washington Capitals

In yet another instance of a team bringing back their classic look, the Capitals’ current uniforms are the best they’ve had.

14. St. Louis Blues

These jerseys haven’t changed much over the past decade. The two shades of blue, black, and yellow/gold all go well together. Their alternates are some of the best third jerseys in hockey.

15. New Jersey Devils

The Devils’ jerseys are rather simple and unchanged in a long time. I see no reason for them to change their look anytime soon.

16. New York Islanders

Again, just another example of a team bringing back its classic colors. Even though I have the Islanders in the bottom half of my rankings, these jerseys are much better than what they were wearing just a few years ago.

17. Colorado Avalanche

I don’t like the white/blue trim that cuts down the jersey from the shoulders to the waist. I hate when the “C” or “A” patches are placed over trimming. The logo is a bit weak as well.

18. Winnipeg Jets

I’m not saying that these jerseys are bad by putting them at number 18. The reason they are this low is because they could have been better. When the Jets came back to Winnipeg 2 years ago, they could have modernized their original look instead of creating a whole new logo.

19. Columbus Blue Jackets

I’ve seen enough of this look since the Jackets came into existence just over a decade ago. I really don’t like the red pants/white sweater look.

20. Phoenix Coyotes

The Coyotes have tried multiple times to make their uniforms/logo look better, and this is probably the best look they’ve had. Still, there’s not much to it.

21. Carolina Hurricanes

The Hurricanes will be wearing a new uniform set this year, as you can see in the pictures. These new jerseys just look too bland for me. I liked their unis from the past few years better.

22. Tampa Bay Lightning

Tampa Bay decided to switch up their jerseys heading into the 2011-12 season, and that slightly strengthened their appearance. They’re still nowhere near the best in the league.

23. Calgary Flames

Here’s another case of me liking their road uniforms better than their home uniforms. I think the Flames should just make their alternates their permanent home uniform.

24. Ottawa Senators

The logo isn’t bad, but the rest of the jersey is pretty weak. It’s time they switch up their look in Ottawa.

25. Florida Panthers

A pretty typical Florida uniform set. Really bright colors that don’t look very well on a sports jersey.

26. Philadelphia Flyers

I’m going to assume I’m in the minority on this one, but I don’t like the Flyers’ uniforms. The different-colored nameplates just look bad, and the stripe going down the sleeves doesn’t look good.

27. Nashville Predators

My first instinct when I saw their home jerseys for the first time was, “Are they serious?” I don’t know why anyone would ever consider making their jerseys yellow like Nashville did. Their whites aren’t bad, however.

28. San Jose Sharks

These are the new jerseys that San Jose will be wearing this year. They’re awful. They look like practice jerseys. Why they decided to ditch their previous look confuses me. Even with those (and the new ones), I don’t understand why their primary logo needs to be present on the jerseys in 3 different spots: the chest and both shoulders. Couldn’t they develop a secondary logo by now?

29. Dallas Stars

This is the third new set of uniforms that we’ll be seeing this season, and I have to ask, what was Dallas thinking? These look like they belong in the AHL or some junior league.

30. Anaheim Ducks

Easily the worst jerseys in hockey. I’ve hated these since day one. Their third jersey should become their new home jersey, and they should design a white one based off of that look.

Predators trying to “Keep the Red Out”

Posted on August 19, 2013 by Kurt Schwerman

The Nashville Predators announced last week that they have placed restrictions on tickets to Predators home games against the Blackhawks. In an attempt to lessen the amount of Chicago fans that attend Predators – Blackhawks games in Nashville, the Predators are not allowing any fans, Predators or Hawks fans, to purchase single-game tickets to these games. If anyone wants to see the Predators take on the Blackhawks in Nashville, they must also purchase tickets to at least one other Predators home game. This plan has been named “Keep the Red Out” by the Predators.

I believe there are a few ways of viewing this move by the Predators organization.

First, this will in fact most likely lessen the amount of Blackhawks fans that attend games in Nashville. Unless someone is truly a die-hard hockey fan, the only people buying tickets to an additional Predators home game will be actual Preds fans. I don’t think any Chicagoans want to be purchasing tickets to a Predators game that doesn’t involve the Blackhawks.

Second, if you’re a Blackhawks fan like me, you might feel a bit proud of this whole ordeal. The fact that Hawks fans have made an opposing NHL team adopt a plan like this is pretty impressive. We should be proud of ourselves for how well we represent the Blackhawks on the road.

Third, and from a casual fan’s perspective, this plan almost seems like it will hurt the city of Nashville when it’s all said and done. If you’re familiar with how many people from Chicago flock to Nashville when the Blackhawks or Bears are in town, then you have an idea as to how much additional revenue Chicago fans provide for the local hotels, restaurants, and bars. By trying to keep Blackhawks/Chicago fans out of Nashville, the Predators are in fact hurting the local economy. Obviously the economic affects of this plan over an an entire year won’t be much at all, but those affects will be noticed when the Hawks are in town and not as many of their fans are.

If you were planning on traveling to Nashville this season to see the Blackhawks take on the Predators, there are still ways of getting single-game tickets. Websites like StubHub, for example, will still be selling single-game tickets to these game. The only downside of using the secondary market to buy tickets is that they will probably be more expensive than their face value. Personally, 90% of the sports tickets I buy are from StubHub anyways, and I’m sure I’m not the only one like that.

My prediction is that a large number of Blackhawks fans will still migrate to Nashville when the Hawks are in town. Because of the increasing popularity of the secondary ticket market, I feel that plenty of Blackhawks fans will still find their way into Bridgestone Arena. I hope I am right, because I would love nothing more than to see this Predators’ plan fail.

Cue the Dagger

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Monthly Archives: August 2013

MLB jersey rankings

NHL jersey rankings

Predators trying to “Keep the Red Out”

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