Baseball has a well-deserved stereotypical image as the league that champions teams, not individuals, choosing rather to celebrate the deeds of the many over the individual personalities and eccentricities of the few.
Well, at least on one particular weekend, that’s going to change.
Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports has reported that the league and the players union have negotiated an agreement which will allow players to add more personal flair during the league’s new “Players Weekend,” scheduled for August 25-28.
Specifically, players will have permission to personalize the name on the back of their jerseys, though the name the players choose will still require league approval. Players will also get to don colored spikes and wristbands of any color, other than white, as long as the color doesn’t affect the umpire’s ability to properly officiate.
In addition, players will get to wear patches that honor people, clubs, organizations, or groups which helped the player develop into a major leaguer. One interesting thing to see is whether a team like the Yankees who don’t allow player names on their jerseys at all, will allow their players to put names on for that weekend.
In any event, if the fans and players really have fun with the personalized uniforms in August, it might cause MLB to loosen up some restrictions in the future.
Follow Dylan Gwinn on Twitter: @themightygwinn
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