There is one universally beloved uniform kit in franchise wardrobe of the Toronto Blue Jays: the jerseys famously worn by the 1992-1993 World Series Champions.
The classic home whites – the road greys – even the blue alternates which were introduced in 1994. I’ve never encountered a single soul who doesn’t love these Blue Jays uniforms. They’re classic, timeless and the original Blue Jays logo is one of the most beautiful logos in sports history.
However, there are other kits from the franchise’s history that are devoid of fondness and admiration. The “angry Jays” era is a time most would rather forget. The short-lived T-Bird logo didn’t age well and most fans are ambivalent about the blue-sleeved numbers worn at various points from 1999 to 2003.
There is one uniform set of Blue Jays yesteryear which is a bit of a polarizing subject; the powder blues worn from the club’s inception in 1977 until the 1988 season. Those uniforms also returned for a brief three-season stint as a part of “Flashback Fridays” from 2008 to 2010. Now that the powder blues have been off the radar for a few years, there’s a groundswell to bring them back.
One man who wants to see the powder blues make their triumphant return? Marcus Stroman. He said so much during a recent interview with Mark Daniell of the Toronto Sun.
“My favourite, present, is all-grey, the road greys, top and bottom. But if we’re talking about ever, it’s gotta be the baby blues, the powder blues. I wish they brought those back soon.”
Stroman may be onto something here. With the “old is new” philosophy in MLB uniform design, this seems like the perfect time for the Blue Jays to add the powder blues back into their uniform rotation.
You’re either a fan of this classic baby blue set, or you aren’t. Out of all the kits worn by the Blue Jays, it stands out as the most eye-catching of the bunch, which can either be a good thing or a bad thing.
We saw last year that the special Sunday red uniforms wore out their welcome very quickly. The players ditched those uniforms the very first opportunity they got. Wearing those jerseys every Sunday home game made the novelty wear off extremely quickly.
If you might recall, the Blue Jays revived the powder blue uniforms for a three-season run from 2008 to 2010 during their “Flashback Friday” promotion. The retro uniforms coincided with bringing back various Blue Jays alumni for autograph signings and in-game introductions.
By the end of “Flashback Fridays”, the players in the clubhouse reportedly grew tired of the promotion and jokingly created “Turn the Page Tuesdays” as a retort to all the attention paid to the days of old rather than the present-day Blue Jays.
As with anything, a brief reprieval has made the heart grow a little fonder for the powder blues. I for one would love to see them return in some capacity; whether it’s once a season or for an entire weekend series. The novelty immediately wears off once the Blue Jays parade these uniforms out more than one occasion a year, so if they’re going to do it, the powder blues should return under the condition they’re worn sparingly.
Most recently, the Philadelphia Phillies brought back their old powder blue uniforms to go along with their old burgundy caps and I have to say, I’m digging this retro Phillies look, too.
Looked great, played great.#RingTheBell | #BeBold pic.twitter.com/s8Pa8T9O6A
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) April 20, 2018
Along with the Phillies, the Cardinals have dabbled with baby blue uniforms in recent years. The Royals and Rays already wear powder blue uniforms as part of their 2018 uniform set.
So, how about it, Blue Jays – why not drag out those old powder blue uniforms from the back of the closet for a game or two every year? If players like Stroman are championing the cause already, it shouldn’t take too much more convincing from others to revive these old classics.
Not to nitpick, but the blue alts were introduced in 1994, after the glory years.
Prior to that, blue tops were used for BP.
Also, glad I’m not the only one who prefers the road greys to the other uniforms. Not sure why, but I love that set.
As someone who loves the powder blues, I say do it. Just make sure they actually fit properly this time, the flashback friday uniforms were so baggy they just didn’t look the part.
On a related note, can we discuss why the Jays haven’t switched to the white panel helmets at home full time? I assumed after they used them on opening day last season this wrong was finally righted, yet here we are…..
As someone who owns not one but two white panelled hats (both the current and retro versions), I fully endorse white panel batting helmets at home games.
I mostly liked them as a “Well, at least they’re not the black jerseys” option. They look fine on the field, but they’re not a jersey I would ever buy.
I’m in.
I’d like to see flat finished batting helmets, I like how they look
Just go all-in and do flocked helmets.
Love KC and TB’s take and always kinda felt it was a missed opportunity – jersey and white pants only. The all-blue is a little gauche and I didn’t enjoy the greenish hue of the 08-10 scheme.
Then again, I’m quite thankful that the Jays aren’t one of those teams with 4-5 regular uniform combos like Texas or Arizona.
Nah. It’s a fun bit of history but the 3 choices we have right now are solid. You can do a lot with those without having to resort to the powder blues while other teams are doing the same thing.
I am 62 years old and this is my first time using the internet.
I really don’t care if they bring back the powdered blues. I never liked the look, and they were almost universally despised back when they were the actual road uniforms, but I do like a bit of nostalgia — if, that is, the powdered blues in question were throwback unis, and not a powdered blue version of the current uniforms.
But what bugged me about the use of the throwback blues was that the original powdered blues were a road uniform, yet the Jays wore them for home games. It seemed like a punchline rather than nostalgia. If the Jays ever do throwbacks again, I would love to see them wearing the home white pullovers, which, if memory serves, they only wore as a throwback once in 1997.
Also, if the Jays do throwbacks to the pullover era, they should go all the way and use the elastic waistbands. Using real belts is cheating.