Mets should revert to black and white times

It is the first impression of your team when they run onto the field following the Star Spangled Banner. It is scattered throughout the stands and on the backs of men, women, and children. The jersey of a team provides a uniqueness that strives to separate the wearer of the jersey from the rest. Make no mistake, the uniform of the New York Mets certainly does that. It is unique however in the fact that the team’s colors were derived from the original National League clubs that resided in New York. As the old tale goes, the Mets brought in the blue from the Brooklyn Dodgers and the Orange from the New York Giants.

On the primary home jersey, the Mets feature pinstripes on a classic white body. Whether or not one believes that this is an homage to the Yankees, it is hardly an original concept. The Mets have switched things up, and strayed from the original pinstripes before. They have done this with success in the 1980’s, when they featured their “Racing Stripe” uniforms. They also did this with failure in 1993, when they played in the awful “Swoosh-Tail” look. In a heated argument with a friend of mine recently, we argued about the Mets jerseys from our childhood.

The Mets in the 2000’s possessed a simple, but fresh look. Their home jerseys, the “Powder Whites” were basic, but offered a clean, modern version of a baseball jersey. Their alternates, a black take on the “Powder Whites,” were even more desirable to the eye, especially when paired with the two-tone caps that the Mets liked to break out. For some reason, after finding success in not only style but popularity as well, the team phased out the black and white uniforms, and now are back to the pinstripes, in addition to a blue alternate jersey that they never seem to win in.

It is time for the jerseys of the 2000’s to come back. While the players in the uniform certainly matter, a change in the uniform could be good for the team as well. The Mets are truly looking to change the culture of the club to win-now, something very similar to when the likes of Carlos Delgado and Carlos Beltran roamed Shea Stadium. The abandonment of the pinstripes would be showing that they are moving on from these past two seasons, and that they are starting to compete again.

In addition, it would create some form of separation from the New York Yankees. While the pinstripes have been on Mets uniforms since their establishments, they will always be synonymous with the Yankees. This should have been reason enough to ditch the pinstripes, but they still remain.

Of course, beauty always lies in the eyes of the beholder. My friend, the same age as me (20), simply detests the “Powder White” and black look. With new faces on the team, and more likely to join the team soon, it would be interesting to bring back a fresh look that was unique to a special era in Mets history.