Padres Need Brown Uniforms to Show True Identity

San Diego Padres fans have shouted out, even drawn up their own concepts for a revitalized brown uniform. Yet management has ducked out of demands, and instead added several promotional “Throwback Wednesdays” for the upcoming 2015 season.

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This whole thing smells like the Chargers and refusal to go back to the the powder blue uniforms as their primary uniform; the best uniform in Football. They similarly add these promo days to their schedule to keep the fans excited, so they will go buy both the home and clearly superior alternate jersey.

The problem is not so much that the Padres kits are bad, it’s that having such a standard blue and white uniforms obliterates any chance for the Padres identity! Nearly half of the teams in the MLB use blue as a primary color. By blending into this category we are deflating enthusiasm for the season, especially when such a better alternative is staring us right in the face.

In 2008, the Tampa Bay changed their name from “Devil Rays” to “Rays” and played with a completely different uniform. They went on to finish 97-65 and win their first league title and pennant after years of being a doormat in the powerhouse AL East.

Coincidence? I think not.

Arguments against the brown say that it does not match the lifestyle of San Diego. Sure we have the Pacific, but think about the team name, Padres. Nothing could be more representative of a Padre, or priest, than a brown uniform matching the traditional garb worn by the religious leaders of the Spanish Missions. When I see our boring blue jerseys, I think, that is what a baseball uniform is supposed to look like, but not what the Padre uniform is supposed to look like.

Over the past few years, our weekend series with the Dodgers have been a major disappointment. Not only for the play on the field, but the sheer number of Dodger fans who turn Petco Park into a weekend destination; and easily outnumber Padre Fans. Sadly, these weekends were usually welcomed, because ticket sales were finally at a healthy level.

This year will be different. Ticket sales have skyrocketed, meaning that a series at Petco will no longer be a fun weekend home series for the Dodgers. The men on the field can’t feel the support from the fans if they look up and only see off-shades of blue in the stands.

The Padres are going through a major identity change this year. It’s time that the ownership group steps up and gives our club the unique identity it deserves, by permanently changing back to brown uniforms.

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