After months of complaints from fans and players, Nike is expected to change several elements of Major League Baseball's new uniforms by the start of the 2025 season, according to a memo obtained Sunday.
The MLB Players Association's memo to players states that after weeks of conversations with the league and its official uniform supplier, Nike, the union “has received…[d] “Indicators” The following changes will be made: Return to larger lettering on jerseys and on pants, bringing back the previous stitching options, stitch counts and high-quality zippers that existed in 2023.
In addition, as Nike previously said The athleteNike is working on solutions to teams' mismatched gray uniforms and sweat stains that appear through jerseys, the memo said.
“This was a Nike-wide issue,” the memo said. “In essence, what happened here is that Nike was inventing something that didn't need to be invented.”
It is worth noting what a memo is and what it is not. It is, first and foremost, not a direct commitment from Nike. (Nike did not respond to a request for comment.) The federation is updating players on notable progress toward that end. It's also not a promise to return to previous seasons' uniforms. The Nike Vapor Premier is here to stay, in terms of fabric and overall jersey design.
Nike introduced the Vapor Premier this spring, after debuting it at the 2023 All-Star Game, and it was met with immediate backlash. Fans have ripped off some of the design designs, most notably the strange little lettering with the name on the back. Players criticized the fitting process of the pants and the cheap feel of the fabric.
Once the season started, sweat stains appeared, and road grays with different colors and pants were recognised It started blowing Along the seam – apparently due to the change in the number of stitches. (One issue not mentioned in the memo is the see-through nature of the pants, because, as previously reported, informed sources say the fabric of the pants has not changed this year, although some smaller details like zippers and belt loops have.)
“Nike warned us of various changes when they previewed them in 2022, especially regarding pants,” the memo read. “It was MLB, and it was aware of our concerns as well. Unfortunately, until recently, Nike's position was basically that there's nothing to see here, players will need to adapt.”
MLB and the MLBPA declined to comment.
In blaming Nike, the MLBPA continued to support Fanatics, the uniform manufacturer. For months, as more and more issues arose with the new uniforms, the fanatics generated much public anger for their chaos. The MLBPA has publicly exonerated the Fanatics on several occasions, which it did again in a memo on Sunday: “The Fanatics have been, and continue to be, a great partner with the players and have been making uniforms for the past eight years without issue.” Aside from its partnership with MLB and Nike, Fanatics also has a lucrative licensing deal with the players union, and the MLBPA has invested in Fanatics.
The fanatics refused to comment.
“Fanaticals have been, and continue to be, a great partner to the players and have been making uniforms for the past eight years without issue,” the memo said. “Fanatics understand the vital importance of getting player feedback, getting player buy-in, and not being afraid to have tough conversations about jerseys or trading cards.
“We hope Nike moves forward with a similar approach.”
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(Photo: Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
