The Hunt for a Pink October

Well everybody......... The hunt is over, and just in time to show your support for Breast Cancer Awareness Month or better said in the sports terminology world as "Saving Second Base". What else would look better than fighting for a W in pink camo while standing up to the fight against Breast Cancer at the same time? Don't worry I can wait........(nothing).......... cause I can't come up with a better look than this Elite Camo Rama package. Plus choose your style by showing off the team as "On the field vets" in three color traditional  or "Leaders of the new school" in four color digital. Either way you look at it, its a win-win. You're standing up for a good cause and looking good as you do it.


 

Elite Camo Rama 

Color ways for the guys who

 want to feel "Pretty in Pink" too

while showing some support

Here's a idea for the fall ball players and teams that will be playing in October; For the whole time during Breast Cancer Awareness Month DON'T steal second base in support for the fight our close friends & love ones are going through.

 And it doesn't have to stop there with only the uniforms,

                                                 up the ante with accessories to match.

Mizuno Organizer Bat Pack

Mizuno Premier G3



Jennie Finch Headband 

Rawlings 2 Tone Coolflow



Welcome to the Jungle!

Recently, the use of animal print in team sports apparel has exploded!

Zebra print softball jersey

Tiger print softball jersey

Leopard, zebra, tiger, elephant, alligator, OH MY! - all now viable decoration options. The ability to customize with sublimation technology (dying the patterns directly into the fabric) has definitely helped bring this type of uniform style to a whole new level! And it's not just the uniforms that are getting the jungle makeover - accessories, such as socks and hats have also been spotted with wild prints.

And it's all across the board - not just one sport that is diggin' animal style in their jerseys. Bikers and wrestlers are already known for having very eccentric and flashy styles, but this trend seems to be transcending into other traditional sports, such as basketball, softball, baseball, volleyball, cheer and even football! Check out some of the unusual and creative applications of animal prints below:

Baseball with Leopard print?

Cyclists have all the fun!

Elephant Print on basketball jerseys - very interesting to say the least!

I wonder if players from back in the day EVER imagined that teams would be donning jungle-inspired patterns in their uniforms.

 I'll be curious to see how animal print jerseys evolve over the years or if this is just a passing trend.

Do you like to see wildlife prints in team uniforms?
	YES - love it!
	NO - it's hideous!

 

The Soft Slap - Amy Hillenbrand

Amy Hillenbrand explains and demonstrates the Soft Slap batting technique.

Softball Uniforms - Style Over Substance...Or Not

As I'm sitting in the frozen tundra that is my office, I find it difficult to realize that spring's fastpitch softball season will be here before we know it. I may have to go through a massive thawing out period between now & then. But the latest styles in fastpitch unis...(with an homage to Paris Hilton)...They're HOT!

Fastpitch uniforms have undergone a dramatic stylistic surge in the past 5-6 years. Long gone are the days when female athletes were reduced to playing in what were essentially men's bar league-esque knock-offs or baseball unis with drawstring pants. Manufacturers have awakened from their "style slumber" to seriously address the unique needs & desires specific to fastpitch softball played by female athletes.

But have they sacrificed "substance" at the altar of style?
There's no denying the fact that female athlete's have --in general-- a greater interest in wearing stylish uniforms than their male counterparts. That's not to say that ALL female athlete's are so sartorially inclined, nor that there aren't many male, uniform divas. It's just an demographic assessment culled from my decade or so of seeing the unis for thousands of fastpitch teams.


I will admit that I have sat through more than one viewing of the movie "A League of Their Own". I can't say that it was because I was a huge fan of the WWII era uniforms featured therein. No, this was back when I still found Madonna mildly interesting and Rosie O'Donnell almost bearable. (That's so 1993!) My how timers have changed. (Did Geena Davis fall off the planet?) Any way...

The fastpitch unis of today (and certainly for this upcoming season) have performance fabric options, a broad swath of color options & honest to god attention to the needs & interests of the female athletes, both young and, er, older athletes who actually play the sport.

Example: Low-rise sliding shorts. These very popular items did not exist just 5 years ago. That's progress.

But is it style over substance? I think not.

Another case in point: Jerseys with a racer back cut. Granted, they look good on some players and, well, maybe not so good on others. But the intention of the design is to improve the athlete's performance. In others words, substance.

Kind of anti-intuitive but true is the fact that the biggest "stylistic" growth has been in stock uniforms. Many manufacturers now offer a wide selection of unis with trims, piping and braiding in their "off the shelf" styles. Again, 5 years ago, the words "stock softball uniform" were synonymous with "Plain Jane". That is simply not the case ---not at all-- these days. Again, that's progress.

Add to this the increased interest in & usage of sublimated unifoms. Here multi-colors abound. And team emblem designs are limited only by one's imagination.

That's a potent mix of style and substance.


Sports Uniform Guy
TeamSportsPlanet.com

Softball Uniforms: Shorts or Long Pants?

Here's a link to a cool little video about softball uniforms where they look at shorts versus long pants: Softball Uniforms: Trend Change



Sports Uniform Guy
Fastpitch Softball Uniforms - TeamSportsPlanet.com