Swash Shirts

I RECENTLY BEGAN designing a series of swash shirts. What's a swash? A swash is the underlined portion of a logotype often used by teams such as the Los Angeles Dodgers or the Baltimore Orioles to add an element of flair. Some of the shirts are meant to reflect individual personalities, attributes or baseball titles, such as Big Country, Pest and Pudge, while others are meant to be worn at a ballgame. The Sayonara! and Fore! shirts were created as bleacher-appropriate attire (ie, at Wrigley Field), particularly if you're someone who has that habit of standing up on each and every flyball like myself.

These shirts are produced by CafePress. I've already received an order of shirts from them and will be posting a review shortly.

The shirts can be viewed in more detail here.

Out With the Losing, In With the Red!

A FEW YEARS AGO, a study came out showing that when two equally matched opponents faced off against each other, athletes wearing red were more likely to win. In the baseball world, we need look no further than last year's World Series Champion Philadelphia Phillies to begin the debate. But wait, that's not all. In 2007 the Boston Red Sox won their second World Series in four years, having introduced red alternate home jerseys in 2004. In fact, since 2002 when the Anaheim Angels switched over to red as their primary color and won their first World Championship, teams wearing red have won it all five out of six times when there was a red-colored team. The lone red loser was the Houston Astros in 2005 when they lost to the Chicago White Sox, albeit wearing a darker brick red.

The trend is now in full force with team marketing departments going on red alert. That's why we saw the Atlanta Braves sporting laser red alternate home jerseys the last couple of years as well as the Washington Nationals with their red tops. The Angels also added a red alternate top to their wardrobe, while the Arizona Diamondbacks shed the purple and gold of their lone 2001 championship season in favor of a darker red color scheme.

Perhaps the most interesting application of this study was the decision by the Pittsburgh Pirates to introduce a red alternate vest top (w/ black sleeves) worn on friday home games last season. As absurd as that may sound to Bucs fans who live and die with the yellow and black, something needed to be changed in Bucsville. That's for sure.

Like it or not, the "red phenomenon" is here to stay for awhile and will go down as a major influence on baseball uniforms of the 00's.

Remember Those John 3:16 Signs?

YOU SELDOM SEE THEM at the ballpark or on TV anymore, but during the 80's there was always someone in the stands behind homeplate holding up a 'John 3:16' sign, originally started by the Rainbow Man. Some people scratched their heads wondering what it meant, but most people recognized the biblical reference:

"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish but have everlasting life."

Over time 'John 3:16' went from part confusion and annoyance to acceptance in becoming a part of baseball culture and its' history.

So in light of the sign, I sat down not too long ago and thought about the phrase 'Jesus Saves' that essentially summarizes the verse. And that's when it hit me. After drawing a sketch of the robed Messiah in sandals, including his beard and long hair, throwing a baseball, Jesus the Closer had not only saved mankind but also a baseball game. I really felt that the robe and sandals were necessary or else he would be indistinguishable from guys like Bruce Sutter or Al Hrabosky. Actually, those two are exactly who he ended up looking like, his face that is, which is fitting since they closed out games during the John 3:16 era. These days, most closers are either clean shaven or sport a mere goatee. Back then, man, they had it all.

In any case, whether you're Christian or non-Christian, just remember that 'John 3:16' and 'Jesus Saves' has a place in baseball history.

The initial sketch:





The final design:


If you're interested in purchasing a shirt with this design, please visit the OCTOBER MOMENTS CafePress Store. Read the product review of this shirt.

Safeco Field: A Well Rounded View

KNOWN AS A PITCHER'S PARK, Safeco Field, home of the Seattle Mariners, in this picture, is vast yet intimate. This fish eye lens shot not only gives us that sense of peering into a ball game, it also captures the wonderful tension between a warmly lit ball field and the cool weather above. There are many wide angle shots of stadiums out there, but the majority of them are taken behind homeplate. This one is refreshing because the shot was taken relatively high up, thus making the shot less claustrophobic, and because the vastness of the outfield grass is at center stage rather than the infield. It effectively makes the ballpark seem larger to the naked eye.

In addition to the field itself, my eye is naturally drawn to the man with the cutoff tee and grey cap. Isn't Seattle too cold at night to be wearing short sleeves? Or is this one of those rare warm summer nights we've been hearing about up there? Whatever the case may be, the man looks comfortable and engaged in the game, and his proximity makes me feel like I'm there next to him watching the ball game.

(Photo credit: flickr/ArtBrom)

Why?

Do you enjoy watching vintage baseball games?
Do you enjoy examining baseball photos?
Is Field of Dreams on your Top 10 movie list?
Do you frequent Mitchell & Ness or Ebbets Fields Flannels?
Do you read old issues of Sports Illustrated?
Did you ever hang up a baseball poster in your room as a child?
Do you still hang baseball pictures on your walls?
Do you paint or draw baseball subjects?
Do you draw or paint baseball subjects for a living?
Are you into Vintage Baseball?
Does black-and-white baseball film footage leave you feeling unsatisfied?
Have you ever wished you could watch the 1960 World Series in color?
Do you wish you could have seen Babe Ruth play ball?
Have you ever wondered what colors Walter Johnson's uniforms were?
Do you collect old baseball cards?
Do you collect old baseball photos?
Do you own any MacFarlane baseball figures?
Do you own any vintage baseball gloves?
Is your preferred choice of attire a classic baseball shirt?
Have you ever sat around designing baseball t-shirts?
Do you get goosebumps walking into a baseball stadium?

If you answered 'yes' to many or, dare I say, all of the above questions, I hope you enjoy the site.

Thanks for reading,
Peter