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1982-84 Denver Bears Double-Cap Post (New Era Cap Buffalo and My Favourite Colour Studio)

I was planning on taking off this week on account of the holiday weekend but then I remembered that I'm coming off a nice-sized break so I decided to up the ante and do a long-winded double-cap post which is something I am fairly certain was last done with vintage and retro Jacksonville Expos caps I wrote about in 2017.

Otherwise, the closest I've come to such a thing in recent years was with consecutive posts of very similar hats worn by the Albany-Colonie Yankees which was also in 2017 as well as the vintage and retro 1988-92 Buffalo Bisons caps in 2021.

This week's double-cap post features the logo the Denver Bears wore from 1982-84 which has been my most sought after design ever since I got serious about hat collecting many years ago. As I've stated in previous posts, I went to college in Colorado which probably explains why most things related to the Centennial State are of interest to me.

As is the case with many hat hoarders, it all began with an interest in baseball cards which only grew stronger as a hobby by attending Minor League baseball games in hopes of getting cards signed by players. At that time the only team in Denver I knew of was the Zephyrs who came to play my hometown Tidewater Tides once a year.

I eventually got my first taste of "secondhand baseball abandonment" in 1992 when the Zephyrs played their final season in Denver in order to make way for the expansion Colorado Rockies who would begin play in the National League the following season.

It was exciting to have a new MLB team come into existence so early in my lifetime but even more exciting was the prospect of my hometown team one day exiting in favor of our own MLB team. Of course, my enthusiasm subsided when I learned there was no way the region I grew up in could feasibly support a major league team.

In retrospect, I accepted that fate rather gracefully and a few years later during college I made sure to see the Rockies play as often as I could afford to, which wasn't many times but that was ok too. I don't remember being much celebration of the Zephyrs' history at Coors Field and even wondered how many people at the ballpark remembered their old team.

I would have liked to obtain a Zephyrs hat back then but this was before the age of online shopping so outside of finding one at a thrift store, my chances were slim. I eventually got one years after I left Colorado and it was during my search for it that I learned about the Bears which prompted me to hunt for one of their caps as well.

The Bears logo that comes up in most photos is of the plain red "D" or perhaps the Old English version on a pinwheel cap from their Montreal Expos days but the one that called out to me most was the simple lowercase "DB" that the team wore from 1982 through 1984. It was understated yet uniquely distinctive in a way that the aforementioned versions were not.

To this day a vintage cap featuring that logo is at the top of my Wish List but just as I had to accept that no MLB team would ever play in my hometown, I've come to terms with never finding a version of this cap from that era. I've picked up some ratty mesh snapbacks and even a pillbox with this logo so until I find a vintage on-field, the retros such as this week's caps will suffice.

The first cap I'll be showing is the My Favourite Colour Studio retro that was produced by Ebbets Field Flannels. I am thankful MFC had the vision to produce this cap however I feel the "DB" is a little large compared to the photos I've seen of players wearing this logo.

You can always expect high quality goods from EFF and this cap is no exception and I appreciate the extra touch of the MFC tag on the sweatband.

The lack of batterman here is era-appropriate and an advantage this cap has over the next one I'm about to share with you good folks.
 

This beauty was acquired through an Instagram pal (@yellowsub73) who procured it via the New Era Cap Buffalo store which has been cranking out absolute heat when it comes to custom designs such as this one. Outside of sitting a touch higher on the crown than I was expecting, the size of the "DB" here is glorious. 

Most of the retro releases you see these days feature black sweatbands which is great for keeping the hat looking fresh but I have a feeling the white sweatband here is going to look nice and "lived-in" after a few years of wearing this cap around.

The only thing I'd change on this hat is removing the MILB batterman but I imagine it's there because of some legal technicality which I can't begin to comprehend but will fully accept if it means having a Denver Bears cap with a proper logo like I now have in my possesion!

This week's Fresh Fitted Friday selections are not going on the Trading Block however please don't hesitate to reach out if you want any other cap from that list and you are willing to part with any of the hats on my Wish List.

As always, thanks for coming back to read about baseball hat geekery. I've got comments disabled here so if you'd like to discuss a trade or simply just chat about hats, please feel free to connect via the following social sites:

Instagram: @baseballmilquetoast
Twitter: @FittedFriday


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