Last winter I took my annual trip to Massachusetts and along with my girlfriend we took a one week trip down to New York City, and as I'm sure one could imagine it is no where near warm in the North East during winter, so I decided to give one of these caps a try. After checking out MLB's webpage, I finally decided to pick one up, so I decided to order the black Arizona Diamondbacks cap, however I considered getting more of a wintery team to go along with the North East, but my Dbacks ultimately prevailed.
The cap is actually an approved on-field cap in Major League Baseball, and it can be spotted on occasion during the later months of the season and also in the Post-Season on certain players. This cap is a wool blend, 97% wool and 3% spandex, and is also a stretch fit unlike the regular fitted 59Fifty brand. The cap's downflap includes the MLB's logo on the back which is present in unfolded mode and has the team's logo on the back while it is folded down to go along with the second MLB logo above it.
The flap is designed to be folded up when not in use, but in colder weather the flap would be pulled down in order to cover ones' ears to help add that little bit of warmth that might be desired. The cap's crown is a traditional six-panel cap as the rest of New Era's American style, and the front bill has a manufactured bend to it as much of the rest of the 39Thirty style caps and has a more squared out brim than the traditional on-field 59Fifty. The interior of the cap is also different than a regular 39Thirty cap due to the fact that the back four panels have a line of fleece to help hold in more warmth and to keep the cap from getting too cold when not in use. This fleece loops up the downflap and is designed to be placed upon ones ears or back of the neck during use.
The embroidery on these caps are also extremely different than on the 59Fifty models, which is an interesting series of events due to the fact that they are all made by the same company. In fact, the logo designs also vary between the styles and are often extremely noticeable when compared to the original. Some of the logos have an extreme shift to them which most likely can be explained due to the lower profile of the caps, in order to attempt to visually trick others due to the fact that the cap's logo is being seen at a different angle. The more realistic answer to this question is the fact that the changes were implemented because the modified logos were easier to embroider on the lower profile 39Thirty crown.
If you're from an area that will endure extreme cold, I would recommend this hat if you're someone who can't be seen without the logo of his/her team on. The cap worked surprisingly well in the cold and it worked extremely well at cutting down on wind that slices through the air like a knife, however the only downfall to the cap is that they all appear to be Chinese made, a conundrum that seemingly can't be avoided.
Strange how different they are from 59Fifty caps, yet they're approved for games. I think I'd look ridiculous in one of these but it wouldn't be a bad idea during cold Canadian winters...
ReplyDeleteAnyways, informative post. I've seen these before but I never really knew they were essentially 39Thirty hats.
If you watch the Post-Season, you'll see some players wear them. I remember during the 2009 World Series, Johnny Damon wore them the entire time while on the Yankees, and I saw Elvis Andrus wearing one during a game in St. Louis this World Series.
ReplyDeleteDo you make these for any MLB team? I am desperately looking for a Phillies version of this as we moved from PA to MI and hubby won't wear a knit cap despite if being nearly 5 below outside this morning.
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