With the weather in Toronto imitating something from a Peter Jackson flick - with the temperature just dipping below zero, right in time to catch the latest storm to stroll through the region and make for an eventful journey into work as lightening, thunder and snow flakes 3-inches in diameter all interject at once, leaving only the 40 ton ape-with-a-vengeance out of the picture - I thought it would be a perfect time to dream of a better place. A place where the grass is as green as the Weed Man’s truck, the sun shines at a perfect 75 degrees and the smell of pine tar, dip, and fresh maple and ash fills the air. Pitchers and catchers have already reported, had their physicals and things are starting to get into full swing. Spring is within sight, even if it feels, or literally is, miles away.One thing that we won’t have the joy of seeing, or wearing for that matter, will be what has become the longest standing staple in the game outside of the Louisville Slugger’s stacked nicely at the end of the dugout (even though they are becoming less prominent). New Era has just announced that they will be discontinuing their classic design and modeling of their official Major League Baseball caps. They are moving away from the less technologically advanced design that has, for the entirety of the game, incorporated the usage of wool as the primary material and going to something that will supposedly be better for performance – synthetic – and be more aesthetically appealing all at the same time.
The new design calls upon the “wicking” process found in the new athletic apparel such as Nike’s
DryFit, where the fabric is designed to wick away moisture, such as sweat, upon the scientific process of “capillary action.” In laymen’s terms, the process is similar to taking a glass which is full with water and dropping a test tube into it. Naturally the water from within the glass will overflow and water will exit. This is the same process, although instead of a glass and test tube, what creates the wicking process is the spaces between the fibers (sweat accumulates, reaches the specially engineered fibers, and is pushed through the spaces between those fibers and is wicked away).This may be all fine and good, and may serve its purpose as we’ve all experienced how a sweat filled cap feels on a muggy day in the middle of July. There’s a bigger travesty occurring here, however. With the continual advancement of technology and the subsequent trickle down effect it has on varying sectors and facets of life, we continue to take away the essence of what is right and good about the game.
No longer will we be treated to watching our ace on the mound, bottom of the seventh, middle of July, with the thermometer reaching its tipping point, as he glares in for the sign with the game tied and the opposition’s best bat coming to the plate. As the pressure mounts, he wipes his brow and the trickle of tiny pellets of moisture gracefully fall to the ground. Everything relating to perspiration on the playing field is equated to high performance, effort and passion, not to mention, is a natural coolant our bodies fall back on when the heat is on. Some people may prefer to have a dry cap, which will look very similar to the ones we’ve became used to over the past hundred years, but it remains to be seen if this is actually what is best for the game and everyone involved.
Over the past decade we have seen a resurgence in older feeling ballparks being built around the nation. Gone are the days when hundreds of millions of dollars are spent on new-aged, high tech domes with Astroturf that look as though they belong on NASA’s base instead of a downtown core. The reason for this is because the originality, creativity, look and feel of a game is what connects people. Being able to date back to a time and place where you were running out onto the field - glove in hand, your once white pants now a convoluted shade of green and brown and that worn, faded, sweat laden ringed cap you quickly scoop from under the bench and toss on your melon – makes you remember what is good and right about the game.
The essence of a sport is found deeply rooted from years of hardship, dedication and passion. All of these things are found saturated deeply within the wool confines of what used to be one of the remaining elements connecting the past, present and future. Let’s hope the new caps don’t become a component of distraction and a scapegoat for poor performance, if so, we may see what happened to the NBA this season when they too went the way of the future and tried to implement the new, technologically advanced, performance enhancing, sweat and moisture free synthetic basketball to the masses. Only time will tell how this will affect the new generations of players and fans alike, but by removing another staple from the game, it seems as though another peice of baseball's soul goes with it.
-JW
PS. MLB season preview coming soon….
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