Brewer Uniform Idea

[Warning Track Power]

I bring this up every offseason as my mind wanders over the Brewers and all things Brewers but I thought this is a good fun read:

 

Best and Worst Uniforms: Milwaukee Brewers

 

Perhaps I'm just fickle but I changed my mind from my original thinking about the current uniforms. I agree with the guy who wrote the article. Our current look has become kind of bland to me; regardless of what i said earlier in this thread http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/laugh.gif Our 1980s version is best. And I thought about why I like that uniform best. It's not because it was our "Glory Days" and I long for those days. It was because this was the uniform I saw the Brewers in when I was a kid and fell in love with them. I remember seeing the ball and glove on the early days of SportsCenter and getting excited. Plus I think it's just an awesome look. Put me firmly in the camp of returning to our roots and ditching the current logo and colors and returning to this uniform.

 

What are the possibilities that the Brewers return to the look?

 

As a side, does anyone know where I can get a replica gray away jersey from the late 80s that looks like the one in the concept below? (i know the barrelman wasn't on our late 80s jersey) :

 

Brewers Retro Concept

[RockCoCougars]

I may be an old fart, but I think the ball and glove should have never been dropped. It's always rated one of the 'best sports logos' ever. Based on merchandising, I think the Brewers and MLB realize this too, also look at how many people you see wearing it at the games (almost as many as are wearing the 'new' stuff'), it's popularity is evident. Frankly, I think the current uniforms are crap. Not as bad as the 'Mickey Mouse' logo from the late 90's or the Notre Dame rip-off from the mid-90's, but still crap.

[patrickgpe]

i agree the current ones may be bland but i like them, the uniforms from 94-99 are much worse.

[Invader3K]

I like the current unis and logo. I think they look classy but distinctive. I could see using the retro logo a bit more, though. Maybe do an alternate cap in the current color scheme or something.

[kestrel79]

I like the current uniform as well. Now that we have "Milwaukee" on the road jerseys there's not much more I'd like to see done or altered. The only thing I can think of is"Milwaukee" on grey road jerseys as well. The road alternates look so good it would be only natural to put it on all the road jerseys.

 

Another tweak I could see is pinstripes on the home uniforms. Brewers have long had pinstripes and I think it would be cool to bring them back with the current colors and logos.

 

Also I wouldn't mind seeing the original Brewers / Braves logo block "m" with the current color scheme. I love that hat! I love super old, simple baseball hats. That would be the ultimate retro Brewers uniform.

 

Some trends I hope NOT to see on new Brewers uniforms:

 

- Black alternate jerseys. This is soooo 2003. Lets all listen to Nu Metal and have add black to our color scheme! Mainly seen in nba and nfl, but I recall the Mets and Royals, and Reds doing this more recently.

 

- Secondary color is made into a primary color on alternate jersey. This has been a more modern uniform trend. While on most teams I like it (orange SF unis come to mind, or on NFL teams), but on the Brewers because of Gold being our secondary color it doesn't work that well. Check out the Milwaukee Allstar game NL jerseys (shudders). I could see the brick red maybe being used as a Brewers alternate, but then we'd look like the Astros, or even worse, those red Pirates uniforms from a few years ago.

[Warning Track Power]

Just from my informal observations at Brewer games, bars and places like the Clubhouse store at Brookfield Square, as well as my travels around Wisconsin, the ball and glove logo and player name t-shirts, replica jerseys and fan paraphernalia with that logo and colors overwhelmingly outnumber that of the current logo. Simply from a business standpoint, when the demand of the fan base screams the past is better than the present, why haven't the Brewers made the switch? I can't for the life of me (and I have a master's in business) understand this. I'd love to be proven wrong because I genuinely feel if the Brewers do one thing right, it is the marketing of the team. Even if the reason for not switching is because of the dollars associated with having two different sets of logos to purchase, I still don't feel that really answers the issue. Marketing the less popular current logo as the main logo sure does seem bass ackwards.

 

I'm curious if anyone has heard from the Brewers doing a formal research project to determine the fan response and viability to switching to the old logo and color scheme because my informal research tells me they are missing the boat. Any insight?

[Invader3K]

I could see the brick red

 

I've always wondered if they might try this someday. The brick red is so subtle in the logo that I think most people would go, "What the hell?" Probably best left untried, really.

[Schlitz001]

that logo and colors overwhelmingly outnumber that of the current logo.

I live outside of Wisconsin and it is literally impossible to buy the new logo anywhere in my state. I have tried. I have to order my hats online or get them when I travel to Wisconsin.

 

I'm a fan of the new logo, but I think it would be a big success if they reintroduced the old logo with the new uniforms and used the new colors. I'd buy that hat.

[Invader3K]

Just realized they've been using the "new" logo for 10 seasons already. Seems weird to think about.

[BrewCrewForever]

I like the old ball and glove logo and all that it represents. But I think it is a bit overrated. I really enjoy the current color scheme and logo and most of my Brewers gear is the new stuff. I do own a few things with the retro logo though.

[TooLiveBrew]

One thing I loved about the ball & glove era uniforms was the home pinstripes. I just always loved that look.

[owbc]

The Brewers marketing department must love the continued discussion about the logo. If they change back to the old logo, there's no going back. Better to keep both logos and feed the debate with little modifications every few years. I certainly own more Brewers stuff than I would if they only had one color scheme/logo.

[BrewCrewForever]

One thing I loved about the ball & glove era uniforms was the home pinstripes. I just always loved that look.

The home pinstripes are quite good and classy looking. I will say that about the retro uni's.

[pitchleague]

the thing that makes the old ball and glove logo so great, and, in my mind, not at all over-rated, is that there are literally thousands (probably even more) baseball fans that have only recently been made aware that it is an "m" and a "b" and then still even more thousands that don't even know about it and just see a ball in a glove. It is pure genius.

 

And I'm not just talking about in Wisconsin. I'm talking about across the country and even world-wide. There are probably big baseball fans in Switzerland that don't "see it" for what it really is.

[sbrylski]

I don't think the team should switch back to the old logo permanently, but I do think our current uniforms need to trend away from what I would call "elegant" (shiny gold trim, thin and pointy script) towards a more classic/simple and "square" look, exemplified in the early uniforms of the franchise.

 

That would accomplish two things: (1) Make the uniforms better, IMO. (2) Make the integration of the old logo easier. I just don't think it fits in with our current font and overall look.

 

I could go either way with pinstripes. But the shiny gold trim has to go, and I would like to see a script change and a "M" logo redesign. Something designed with the ball and glove logo in mind, but with the intention of keeping it an alternate logo and a merchandise cash cow.

 

EDIT: Google search of "think script font" yielded this quick result...

 

http://blog.youdesignit.com/images/stitch_2_opt.gif

 

I'd like to see our script look a little more like that. Sort of these two fonts put together:

 

http://www.sportslogos.net/images/logos/53/1477/thumbs/rn3gjcl13iqes66hoo2qsf5en.gif http://www.sportslogos.net/images/logos/53/1477/thumbs/igsm9vaqn7odfecf5foahzjce.gif

 

I'm not quite sure what the perfect "M" hat logo would look like, but something based on a thicker script.

[Patrick425]

When I was in Vegas a couple of weeks ago I was wearing a Brewer cap with the new logo at a blackjack table. The dealer was looking at my hat and asked if went to the buffet there. I didn't know what she was talking about. She thought it was the logo for the M Casino in Vegas (http://www.themresort.com/). I explained to her it was for the Milwaukee Brewers.

 

At first I thought, well, she's probably not a big baseball fan and it would not be unusual for a non-baseball fan not to recognize the Brewer's logo. Then she started talking about the Yankees in great detail...about what their needs are, who they should go after in the off season, etc. I was then a bit bothered by the fact that she did not recognize the Brewer's logo.

[Warning Track Power]

One thing I loved about the ball & glove era uniforms was the home pinstripes. I just always loved that look.

My absolute favorite off all is the late 1980s to early 1990s away jersey. Best Brewer jersey of all time. I wish they would go back to these.

 

1993 Yount Away Jersey

 

 

[kestrel79]

Those are also my favorite. Gray with the old Milwaukee script. They are really hard to find, unless you want a Sheffield jersey...if anyone knows where to get one let me know.

 

I also really like the early 90s home uniforms, the 3000 hits Yount era jerseys, with the Brewers script on pinstripes. I was really hoping to see those last season on a throwback night but those uniforms seem to be forgotten by the team.

[sbrylski]

One thing I loved about the ball & glove era uniforms was the home pinstripes. I just always loved that look.

My absolute favorite off all is the late 1980s to early 1990s away jersey. Best Brewer jersey of all time. I wish they would go back to these.

 

1993 Yount Away Jersey

 

Those jerseys in the new colors, plus a redesigned "M" for the hat would be perfect.

[hawing]

Just realized they've been using the "new" logo for 10 seasons already. Seems weird to think about.

Actually, the Brewers just completed their 11th season with the current logo. 2000 was the first year of its use. I agree that it's weird to think about.

 

Also - TLB is correct; not everyone who favors the ball-glove logo does so because they cling to the past.

[DannoMac21]

hawing wrote:

Also - TLB is correct; not everyone who favors the ball-glove logo does so because they cling to the past.

Agreed. I'm 20...and I really first started becoming a "huge" fan of the Brewers (per growing up and living here) was when I was like 5 or 6. And that grey road jersey posted above, as well as the jerseys before those, are definitely my favorites.

If they went to the ball and glove full time, I'd be in full support.

[Zycho32]

I would wager I'm the only guy on the entire forum who prefers the 90's Design- stuck in the period of pure loserville.

 

Anyhow- my thoughts:

 

 

Present Design: More or less Bland, though that seems to be the style with most baseball uniforms- exceedingly colorless and without any intriguing details. But in this case, the navy and wheat gold simply don't strike a chord with me. The colors themselves are dried up, and the gold itself is mainly a thin accent all around anyways. Can't really object to the text or the numbering, and maybe the logo is nice, but the colors don't do proper justice.

 

Classic Design: Not really digging it- but then I JUUUUUUUUST missed those old days. I tend to think people just have their 'Nostalgia Glasses' on when Retro Night comes around. Though I wouldn't object to the old logo making a comeback myself- you can still play around with the basic design.

 

Potential Upgrades;

-Add a Third Color. In this case, I prefer Green. Green was a second accent alongside gold for the 90's unis, and while people seem to gag over the overall look, the reality is the design looks considerably more colorful with that third color in place.

-Make gold a bit more prominent. You just don't see it very well on the present design- it's so dry it can't stand out and gets swallowed up by the navy.

-Try revolutionizing the old logo. You may have noticed some logos- mainly NFL Helmets- making subtle updates in order to look sharper. I'm thinking Cardinals, Seahawks, Lions. The glove can potentially be re-fitted in the same manner, or at the very least given a re-coloring that better matches the present color palette. A white or gold glove doesn't sound so bad.

 

 

And on a final note- you only hate the 90's look because the Brewers were losers during that same stretch.

[Invader3K]

Zycho, you make some interesting points. However, I hated the '90s look because it was just generic and boring. A Notre Dame ripoff lettering on a logo that basically just says, "Hey, we're a baseball team!" Not exciting or interesting at all.

 

I did sort of like the lettering on the jerseys, though.

 

Overall I'm fine with the current logo and unis. Maybe a few tweaks would be fine, but I think the current look is good one. Professional and sharp, and identifies with the city and state.

[dlk9s]

Those 90's unis were the absolute worst.

[RyDogg66]

those 90s uni's were some of the worst and least imaginative I have ever seen. The logo was terrible and uninspired and the colors made me want to vomit.