• The history of baseball team’s uniforms goes back to the 1849 New York Knickerbockers and their unique outfits
• The Cincinnati Red Stockings were the first to wear knickers in baseball uniforms history
• Baseball uniform design has gone through some outrageous manifestations including multi-colored and satin outfits

Here, at Electro-Mech, we not only provide you with electronic baseball scoreboards but also with news on all things baseball- team uniforms included.

History of Professional Baseball Uniforms

Baseball uniforms history has gone through many transformations over the years. Teams have experimented with the colors, the style of pants and jerseys, logos, and the type of hat. In today’s baseball market, jerseys bring in so much revenue that teams are looking for ways to increase sales by changing the baseball uniform design. But many, many years ago, there were no uniforms on the baseball field. Not until 1849 when the Knickerbocker Base Ball Club of New York took to the diamond wearing blue pantaloons, white shirts, and straw hats.

In 1868, in what would become the first of many changes to the baseball uniform design, the Cincinnati Red Stockings began wearing knickers. In addition to comfort and agility, the knickers showed off Cincinnati’s trademark red stockings. In 1882, a rule change was implemented that became one of the most outrageous baseball team’s uniforms of all time. The rule required each position to wear a different colored uniform. For example, the shortstop was required to wear a maroon uniform while the first baseman may be decked out in stripes although both were on the same team.

These multi-colored professional baseball uniforms were a flop with the players and fans alike and were soon thrown on “the worst baseball uniform design” heap. This didn’t stop owners from experimenting with their baseball team’s uniforms. The Brooklyn Bridegrooms took to the old ball diamond in checkered uniforms in 1889. Brooklyn was at the forefront of baseball uniform designs, trying everything from the checkered uniforms above, to pinstripes and even to satin cloth. They are also on the record as the first team in baseball uniform history to wear numbers on their jerseys.

In 1938, the American Association All-Star team wore shiny satin red, white, and blue uniforms to sparkle under the lights of a night game. Other teams in baseball uniforms history would experiment with satin outfits but they were abandoned for good in the 1940’s. It was around this time that the Chicago Cubs began wearing a flannel vest over a knitted shirt. It gave the players an expanded range of motion and became quite popular with many different teams over the years.

Even politics entered into baseball uniform history in 1954 when McCarthyism was at its peak. Anti-communist fervor caused the Cincinnati Reds to change their name to “Redlegs” and remove the word “Reds” from their uniform. It was the first time since 1912 that Cincinnati’s professional baseball uniforms did not feature “Reds.” By 1961, McCarthyism had died down and the nickname was added back to their uniform.

The 1960’s brought with it the popularity of color television and televised games were becoming popular. With this in mind, the owner of the Kansas City Athletics came up with a colorful baseball uniform design. He outfitted his team in gold and green uniforms while experimenting with different colored pants.