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Report: MLB will change jerseys after fan and player backlash

The uniforms were widely panned for the small lettering on the nameplate along with see-through and ill-fitting pants. ESPN reported on the planned changes.

Phillies’ Bryce Harper bats during the first inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Citizens Bank Park.
Phillies’ Bryce Harper bats during the first inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Citizens Bank Park.Read moreJose F. Moreno / Staff Photographer

MLB is making big changes to its uniforms after massive player and fan backlash to the new design, according to a report from ESPN.

The jerseys were widely panned for the small lettering on the nameplate, see-through and ill-fitting pants, and for how the jerseys wicked sweat away (they didn’t).

“I mean, the pants are thinner,” one Phillies player, who wished to remain anonymous, told The Inquirer. “The feel of the jersey is OK. Like, feels fine, it’s just the font on the back just looks bad. My jersey has only been washed five times, it’s already falling apart. The thread and the seams are coming out of the numbers. So, it definitely feels cheaper. Like I mean, you know, when you put on a Fruit of the Loom T-shirt, compared to a luxury T-shirt. It kind of feels like that. Still paying the luxury price, though.”

» READ MORE: New uniforms have some Phillies pining for the old ones. Others like them: ‘I feel huge in the jerseys.’

ESPN reported that a new version of the jerseys will be in place by at the latest the start of the 2025 season, which will restore the name plates to their previous size, fix issues with poorly toned gray shades and fix the pants, among other corrections.

The report also absolved maligned retailer Fanatics, responsible for manufacturing the jerseys, of wrongdoing, instead pinning the blame on Nike, which designed the new template.

“This has been entirely a Nike issue,” an MLBPA memo to players said, according to ESPN. “At its core, what has happened here is that Nike was innovating something that didn’t need to be innovated.”

Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin said at Sports Business Journal’s World Congress of Sports in Los Angeles earlier this month that he didn’t feel vindicated knowing Fanatics was not at fault.

“There’s obviously been a lot of noise from players, and that’s what hurts me,” Rubin said. “Even if we did nothing wrong, it doesn’t make a difference because we’re not making our fans happy, and that’s our job.”

Exact dates for the release of the new design are not available yet, and there’s no information on when a new version of the jerseys available for retail might be released. But it can’t come soon enough for most players and fans.