The Mets Police

So as Mets fans (and announcers) continue to complain about the black uniforms, and rumors are swirling of changes coming next year, I thought I'd give my two cents on how the Mets can make new alternate jerseys, and still keep baseball traditionalists happy (and even buying them!)

In order to not make it seem gimmicky (As the blacks do. Do we really want to seem as desperate as the Marlins, A's or Blue Jays?) keep the uniforms as an homage to New York's baseball past, as the Phillies and Indians pay homage to their past. This will show that New York has a rich National League baseball history, AND make everyone want to buy one.

So what to do? Here's my suggestion:

Since our home uniforms (since we wear them the most, I'll refer to our home uniforms as the "snow" whites with blue caps, script lettering) seem to pay homage to the Dodgers of old, and the away uniforms (greys with black caps, "old style" lettering) seem to pay homage to the Giants, switch them up a bit. Make an alternate home that pays homage to the Giants, and an alternate away that pays homage to the Dodgers. The trick is to make them both more "Mets" than Giants or Brooklyn.

Let's start with the homes. Since the Giants still wear the same uniform that they have since the 50's the Mets can't go back and wear those. So I suggest we go back even further to the blue and red New York Giants uniform, which they wore in the 1940's .

This Friday the Binghamton Mets will hold a Star Trek Night when they host the Connecticut Defenders. Here is the press release -

Star Trek Night, June 5
"Star Wars" promotional nights have been steadily growing in popularity over the past several years; is it now Star Trek's time to shine? The B-Mets sure think so, as they are celebrating the enduring sci-fi series Friday. The team will wear sleek and stylish Star Trek-themed jerseys during the game, perhaps signifying the players' desire to get "beamed up" to a new level of play. All in-game contests will be Trek-themed, and head shots on the videoboard will be doctored so that the players resemble characters from the series. Perhaps most hilariously, the B-Mets' staff will wear replica "Star Trek" uniforms of various colors so that fans can immediately determine their rank in the front-office hierarchy.

To be honest, I am completely torn by this. For the most part I hate themed uniform experiments. Most come off looking ridiculous (see Mercury Mets, or any Hawaiian Night promotion). However, I will admit I am a big Star Trek fan and so there is a part of me that loves this.

Minor league teams ultimately get more leeway when it comes to quirky promotions than major league teams. That's what the minors are all about really.

I will say that I appreciate that the jersey is not over-the-top. They could have easily gone with pullovers that looked like Star Fleet uniforms. By limiting the design changes to the lettering and the small Star Fleet insignia I think they struck a good balance.

And yes, I do want one.

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@metspolice

If you've spent any time ever here at Mets Police you've probably noticed that I get picky about what the Mets wear.

I not only hate the black uniforms, I hate when stupid numbers are assigned.

If Rey Ordonez asked me for a zero I would have punched him in the face.

This year's offender is Jose Valentin.  He's walking around camp wearing a #99.   99 is a football number.  99 is Wayne Gretzky.  Even the Yankees who barely have 25 available numbers left don't need to use 99.

The always awesome Mets by The Numbers has a list of players and numbers in a posting today.

Why 99?

Why not 8?  What's that you say - 8 is being held for Gary Carter?  You may have a point - they haven't given it out since 2002, and they don't hand it out to every Tom, Dick and Fernando like they do with 17.  (Again check out this awesome site:  http://mbtn.net/number/8)

How about 24?  The Mets need to get over this 24 avoidance they have.  Either retire it or use it.   (They have a Willie Mays fetish, just letting you younger kids know).

31?  If you're holding it for Mike Piazza day then just have Mike Piazza day and be done with it - but you better have Keith Hernandez day first.

45.   Why are they holding 45?  Do they want to honor the bad half of John Franco's career?  Is it a tribute to a pitcher that really did nothing for the franchise after June 6, 2006?   Do they think Pedro is going to wow them in the WBC?  Knowing this franchise they'll probably have Pedro Day before the 17 goes up on the fence.

Fine, you want to hold on to all those, fine.  How about 51, 52, or 55?

Lose the 99.  Wear 51 until you either get cut or make the team and then can steal a number like 30 from Rocky Cherry.  Yes the Mets have someone named Rocky Cherry.


www.metspolice.com

The Bisons announced these today.

You may find the NY interesting.

I enjoy the road font.



www.metspolice.com

Well, that rumor was quickly shot down - knew it was way too good to be true. Mets By The Numbers corrects the error:

Turns out you can't trust everything you read on the Internet. Who knew?
The below item about rumors of a uniform change was shot down this week by a source in the know. Not only are the Mets not ditching road greys for charcoal greys, but the black will continue to be an (unwelcome) element in caps, drop shadows and jerseys. The only changes, our source assured us, will be a sleeve patch advertising honoring CitiField, and the removal of the black road NEW YORK jerseys from the lineup, allowing the team to suit up in the same black Mets jerseys at home or on the
road.

Can this be true? This was posted over at Mets By The Numbers:

Wondering just what the 2009 team will look like might be tricky
considering rumors of uniform changes have arisen again. Dave from Michigan
passed along chatter from Chris Creamer's Sports Logo website saying the Mets as
expected are phasing out black (hooray!) in favor of blue but have the
biggest changes in mind for their road uniform, said to be completely
re-imagined in a charcoal gray (uh, OK?) with Mets in script (boo!). The
message continues:

Interestingly there is absolutely no black on this uniform
whatsoever - and I was told that the blue/orange/white
color combination jumps off this uniform with incredible success.
Blue/Orange/White piping will also be on the ends of the sleeves, down
the front of the jersey, and down the pant legs as well.

PLEASE PLEASE PLEASE let this be true. And are those racing stripe styles in the description??

Faboulous job out of Uni Watch.

Look closely at Santana's sleeves.

Awful.



(Definitely visit http://www.uniwatchblog.com/)

About a week and a half ago we published who are the real and the fake owners of numbers 1 - 4 for the Mets http://themetspolice.blogspot.com/2008/04/whos-1.html

As this is an angoing series, here are numbers 5 through 10 (once again thanks to Mets By The Numbers):

5
Rightful Owner(s): Davey Johnson & David Wright
Rent-A-Met: John Olerud

Comment: Wright will never be the only owner of tha number regardless of what he does. As for Olerud, most of that 1999-2000 team was rented.

6
Rightful Owner(s): Al Weiss & Wally Backman
Rent-A-Met: Daryl Boston

Comment: Sadly Wally is still persona non grata in most MLB circles. As for Boston......nop, got nothing

7

Rightful Owner(s): Ed Kranepool & Jose Reyes
Rent-A-Met: Juan Samuel

Comment: I still cringe when I think about all we gave up for....ugh...Juan Samuel. Hell I still remember where I was when I heard the news (on a train between Limerick and Galwayin Ireland. I think I screamed.)

8

Rightful Owner(s): Nobody
Rent-A-Mets: Yogi Berra & Gary Carter

Comment: Yogi was and always will be a Yankee. Gary - as much as he may have loved NY and was the final piece of the 86 puzzle - was an Expo.

9

Rightful Owner(s): Todd Hundley
Rent-A-Met(s): Joe Torre & Todd Zeile

Comment: Torre the player was a Brave - Torre the manager was a Yankee. The fact that he transitioned as a Met doesn't make him a Met.

10

Rightful Owner(s): Rusty Staub
Rent-A-Met: Nobody

Comment: Rusty wore 4 with his first stint, but was in 10 much longer. And yeah, he was an All-Star 6 times elsewhere and never with the Mets - but he played more years here than anywhere else.

11 through 15 next week.