Uni Watch: Minor leagues on the cutting edge of catching gear

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For generations, catcher’s equipment has been known as “the tools of ignorance.” But it may soon be known as the next frontier in baseball graphics and team branding.

The Atlantic League — an eight-team independent minor league based primarily on the eastern seaboard — has teamed up with the sporting goods company Rawlings to outfit its catchers in new team-branded chest protectors, shin guards and hockey-style masks. As is often the case with minor league graphics, the designs on the equipment are somewhat cartoonish and eye-poppingly bold, although the basic concept could just as easily be used with more conservative designs. If the idea catches on and spreads to the majors, as the Atlantic League and Rawlings anticipate, it has the potential to provide a significant jolt to the sport’s look, especially given the large amount of airtime catchers get from the standard center-field camera shot during television broadcasts.

“We believe this will exert a strong influence on the way catchers are dressed on the field at all levels of baseball,” said Atlantic League president Rick White, who came up with the idea about a year ago after seeing a catcher wearing gear that didn’t match his team’s colors. “That started me thinking and I realized, ‘Wow, there’s a really a blank canvas there.’ It was startling to realize nobody had ever done this before.”

The new gear will make its on-field debut Thursday and is expected to be worn for the balance of this season. Atlantic League catchers who prefer to wear the traditional-style mask, which doesn’t allow for graphics, can continue to do so, but they’ll still wear the new chest protectors and shin guards.

Skye Design Studios

The designs center on team-themed graphics that are sure to draw attention. For the Sugar Land Skeeters, for example, the mask and chest protector feature the team’s cartoon mascot character, Swatson — a ferocious mosquito — and the shin guards show brightly colored sugar cane; the York Revolution’s gear features a hard-charging eagle who appears to be crashing through an iron-plated chest protector; and so on. The designs will be used on T-shirts and other fan apparel, in addition to appearing on the catching equipment. (Mock-ups and photos of all the designs can be seen here.)

Several MLB catchers throughout the years have worn patterned gear for special occasions such as the All-Star Game or Independence Day, including Sandy Alomar Jr., Jason Varitek, …

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