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Nike Vapor Premier MLB uniforms garnering mixed reviews from Guardians, other teams
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- Nike Vapor Premier MLB uniforms garnering mixed reviews from Guardians, other teams
GOODYEAR, Ariz. — Arguably the biggest story around the league's many spring training facilities this year doesn't have anything to do with the players themselves — it's the uniforms they're wearing.
And some of the reviews are not pretty .
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In spring training complexes from Florida to Arizona , some complaints from players were noted almost immediately, specifically with the seemingly lower quality than what they have worn in years past.
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The 2024 spring training uniforms are Nike's Vapor Premier. They're engineered and designed by Nike and manufactured by Fanatics. Some players around the league have noted they feel lighter and airier. Others have said they look more like replica jerseys than official uniforms.
Some pitchers have also reported less customization with sizing, leaving it to teams' tailors to do the job.
Guardians pitchers Triston McKenzie, Carlos Carrasco and Shane Bieber throw a bullpen session as the team's spring training facility in Goodyear, Ariz.
Los Angeles Angels outfielder Taylor Ward told The Athletic the uniforms feel "papery." The St. Louis Cardinals clubhouse seems rather unhappy as well, with starting pitcher Miles Mikolas telling the St. Louis Dispatch , "Everyone should write about it."
The Nike Vapor Premier uniforms feature smaller lettering for players' names, and at times odd spacing. Some four-letter names — like Sosa or Vogt — sometimes seem to be incorrectly spaced in the middle of the name. But other names, like Verlander , are oddly wrapped around the number.
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The logos and names also appear to have more of a steamed-on look than stitched.
MLB, Nike team up to use Vapor Premier uniforms in 2024
MLB recently announced that all 30 clubs will use the Nike Vapor Premier "chassis" (template) for their home, road, alternate and City Connect uniforms this season. It's the first year Nike has used the Vapor Premier template with MLB.
The material is described by Nike as softer, lighter, stretcher and more breathable. Some players, from Jason Heyward to Ronald Acuna Jr., say they're fans of the new uniforms.
Some in the Guardians clubhouse said it isn't that big of a deal. But some of the choices just seem "weird," and there still might be room for improvement.
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"The fabric itself is OK. My only concern is the lettering is maybe a little small — cramped," said new Guardians reliever Scott Barlow while pointing to some of the uniforms around him in the team's main clubhouse in Goodyear, Ariz. "You see on social media, you see the comparisons from last year to this year and you put 'em next to each other, [the difference with the letter spacing is] pretty blatant. … I saw Verlander had this crazy horseshoe."
Infielder Tyler Freeman noted the name and logos aren't as stitched as they used to be, but understood the goal was that it would make them feel lighter.
"I know they're getting a lot of talk on the last names, but I don't think it's as bad as everyone thinks," Freeman said.
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Austin Hedges referred to Cincinnati Reds and former Cleveland catcher Luke Maile 's comments.
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"I'm pretty sure Luke Maile said it best: 'It's like changing your toilet paper. You notice at first, then you realize it's just toilet paper," Hedges said.
The comment was meant to articulate that the changes are noticeable now simply because they're new, and that players will get used to them, just like anything else.
The question is if some of the initial reviews from around the league prompt any changes from Nike at some point down the line. Or, as Hedges and Maile said, players will simply get used to it and move on like business as usual.
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Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis1@gannett.com. Read more about the Guardians at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/cleveland-guardians. Follow him on Threads at @ByRyanLewis .
This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: New Nike MLB uniforms drawing mixed reviews in 2024 spring training
