This is Pastor Tim’s weekly article which appeared in the Evening Leader on Monday, April 12, 2021
I have no fashion sense, and any of you who have ever met me know this already. When it comes to clothing for me, it is function far over form. I may not be able to tell you the latest styles, but if you want to know brands of running shoes, cargo shorts, or athletic gear, I am your man. My theory has always been that if you don’t like the way I look, don’t look at me.
However, I need to dedicate this article to my most recent confirmation that the apocalypse is upon us. I am not usually one to tell you it is time to run around with your hair on fire, but today we have evidence of societal breakdown that I feel deserves a complete overreaction.
Apparently, in 2019 Nike signed a contract with Major League Baseball to provide uniforms. Seriously, do I even need to tell you anything more? If there is a despicable company out there, Nike has to be one. Additionally, Nike shoes are complete and utter garbage (see the first paragraph of this article). Nike is going to be introducing what they called “The City Connect” series of jerseys. According to ESPN, The City Connect jerseys are to represent the community of the home team. Apparently, the current uniforms don’t do that. No explanation was given as to why.
Look, we all know what this is. it is the same thing as those hideous uniforms the NFL wore on those Thursday night games where they all looked like they glowed in the dark. This is all just a scheme to sell jerseys. I don’t want to hear anything about city pride or some kind of representation nonsense. This is to come out with a new jersey to sell because, even though I did not check, I am sure they cost as much as a regular jersey, if not more.
My annoyance level with this City Connect controversy came from the fact that they had a sample of one of these Jerseys. The sample was a Boston Red Sox Jersey and it was….wait for it…..powder blue and yellow. In the April 17th match-up between the Boston Red Sox and Chicago White Sox, the team whose name is the RED Sox will be wearing uniforms with no red on them. I think that the White Sox should wear another pastel color like Pink or something so that both teams can look super manly out on the field.
I guess I am just going to count my blessings. At least baseball means that spring and warmer weather has arrived, which is something I am truly grateful for. I probably don’t have any right to complain about these jerseys because I literally don’t remember the last time I watched a sporting event on TV. I am just tired of how much of a cash grab the whole thing has gotten to be.
Am I the only one who remembers a time when we just did things for fun? We wanted the home team to wear the hometown colors so we could cheer for our team. I have no idea how anyone from Boston feels about rooting for their powder blue wearing team. Maybe they are ok with it.
At the end of the day, it really doesn’t matter what color the Boston Red Sox wear. My concern is how far are we going to allow this to go before we decide it has gone far enough? Is there anything from the past that we honor anymore? This is how tradition is born, and contrary to popular belief, not everything from the past is bad. There is a blessing in things that are familiar; that connection to what we know is far more important than the inevitable sales of jerseys Nike is going to get.
You can call me old fashion, but I think that the Boston Red Sox should have red in their uniforms.