Baseball Musings: Nothing is Obvious to the Uniformed.

August 31, 2007

Nothing is Obvious to the Uniformed.

The uniform police are out in force. During Wednesday's game, MLB officials pulled Francona out of the dugout to check to see he was wearing a uniform top under his jacket. This is a league wide crackdown:

Wearing team apparel instead of a uniform top is not uncommon among coaches and managers across the majors, and MLB will fine personnel for violations.
"I got a letter warning me," Yankees manager Joe Torre said. "You'd think there'd be more important things to do this time of year than do Mickey Mouse stuff like that. It's a farce, I think, I really do."

Francona said he has had good conversations with Watson about the issue and was just surprised with the timing of the uniform check.

"I have never seen anything like that before in my life," Francona said. "Middle of the game you've got the fashion police. This is incredible."

Where do I start? I suppose MLB thinks that there's a slippery slope from uniform abuse to steroid use. My college roommates and I used to joke that coaches in other sports should wear a uniform as well. We wanted to see Tom Landry in shoulder pads or Don Nelson in shorts.

Truthfully, however, Francona's lack of a uniform top bothers me. He looks too casual, like he's getting ready for the game, not in the game. (I don't like this look on NFL head coaches either, for the same reason.) Now, that's just my personal preference. How someone manages a game is much more important to me than how he looks. Certainly, pulling him out of the dugout in the middle of a game situation is the height of lunacy, and you would think Major League Baseball would know better. I'm glad baseball is concerned about the appearance of personnel on the field, but you would think 130 year after the founding of the National League they would have figured out a better way to enforce their image.

Posted by David Pinto at 08:48 AM | Uniforms | TrackBack (0)

Comments

I've seen other managers wearing the same type of top. I'm a bit skeptical of Francona's reason for not wearing the uniform top; how does wearing it impede his circulation, and if he doesn't like all the layers then stop wearing the jacket.

Still, it is something you check on before or after the game or at the very least between innings. It should not be during an inning.

Posted by: rbj at August 31, 2007 10:17 AM

I think Francona does have a valid reason with his DVT diagnosis. The uniform top and undershirt doesn't keep him warm enough, which can effect his circulation. So, he always wears a warmer fleece top. So why does he need to wear the uniform top underneath the fleece top? My personal opinion is MLB should worry about more than what the coaches and managers are wearing.

Posted by: mpeter at August 31, 2007 10:33 AM

I think people are making too big of a deal out of this. Also, they are called uniforms for a reason.

Posted by: Tom at August 31, 2007 10:46 AM

i think the big issue is that the security (an employee of the NYPD) stopped tito in the middle of an inning WITH A MAN ON SECOND to check his uniform, and REFUSED to wait until the end of the inning. that's crazy.

Posted by: amos at August 31, 2007 01:16 PM

Maybe mlb is worried about a different slippery slope: "I don't want to get too personal. There are times when I get cold," Francona said. "There are times when I don't want to be tucked in. ... I don't want to get into sob stories, but all the stuff I wear underneath, I feel cooped up. I have two pair of tights. I get a little claustrophobic."

Tucked in?

Tights?

Posted by: Rodger at August 31, 2007 01:24 PM

Francona has a medical issue, as noted above. He wears that warmup even in July, during a day game. He apparently also eschews the regulation belt due to his circulation problems, also a violation.

If MLB wants to insist that he wear his jersey (even underneath the warmup) I suppose that's within their rights, but bothering him in the middle of a game with men on base was an outrage.

Posted by: Mr. Furious at August 31, 2007 02:14 PM

The NFL is notoriously picky about uniform standards. Maybe MLB thinks that's the key to football's success, and so they're trying to imitate the League. Otherwise, it makes no sense whatsoever. Why do managers wear unis at all? Why not suits, like in basketball or hockey? Belichick won 3 Super Bowls in a hoodie, for God's sake.

And don't tell me it's because managers go on the field. Hell, they don't make Ronan Tynan wear a uniform when he sings "God Bless America," do they?

Given how big they are on marketing team merchandise, I'd think MLB would try to cash in on a distinct line of Managerwear. Something else to sell to the fans, eh? "Dress Just Like Tito!"

Well... maybe not.

Posted by: jvwalt at August 31, 2007 05:08 PM

Paging Mr. Mack, Mr. Connie Mack.

Posted by: Joe in Philly at August 31, 2007 10:49 PM

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