Missives of a Baseball Milquetoast

The Albuquerque Dukes and Denver Zephyrs are two former Minor League Baseball teams that you probably don't remember unless they played in your hometown or you are a die-hard fan of the Dodgers or Brewers, respectively. Then again, that seemingly obscure nature of these clubs is what is so great about MILB teams in the first place. They provide endless entertainment to appreciative fans who might otherwise never see an MLB game in person. The Dukes and Zephyrs were two teams that I remembered because their prospects would go on to play in the MLB and I can remember my MILB cards featuring Pedro Martinez wearing a Dukes ballcap very similar to the one I have pictured here. I'll post an image of that card as a reference because it's difficult to imagine Pedro wearing anything but a Red Sox cap! However, it's no secret I'm no fan of the Red Sox or the Dodgers so this Dukes cap isn't something that I'll wear to a ballgame or anywhere for that matter, so I'

This special edition New Era cap was first sold on July 9, 2011 at Yankee Stadium, the day Derek Jeter ticked his 3,000th career hit. I picked up two caps from the stadium and both feature the commemorative patch as an embroidery, however one is on the wearer's left side and the other is on the wearer's right side.  The ride side patch seems to be more common at the stadium but the well is drying up so if you haven't purchased a cap yet, now might be a good time to think about doing so! I did purchase some caps from Lids.com and those caps feature the felt-style patches that are common on the All-Star Game and World Series caps. The patch is glued-on the wearer's left side and incidentally, these caps are not available for purchase at Yankee Stadium. The conclusion that I have to draw from this is that the New York Yankees must have ordered the caps from New Era in advance enough to be able to sell them at the stadium the day Jeter broke the record however the fel

This cap is a new favorite of mine as sometimes it gets a bit tiresome wearing the same old Yankees hat to the games. I was fortunate to attend the Rays-Yankees game on July 9, 2011 when Derek Jeter joined the 3,000 hit club. I thought back on how I somehow managed to get him to autograph some cards when he played for the Columbus Clippers either in 1994 or 1995. Even though Jeter only played in Tampa for part of of one season (1994) wearing this cap will always symbolize the amazing journey that this sensational athelete has taken. As a side note, someone who was never a Tampa Yankee, Jorge Posada, hit a grand slam during the game. Coincidentally, I wore this hat to the Rays-Yankees game on August 13, 2011 when they honored Jeter with a slew of fanfare before the game commemorating his 3,000th hit. I didn't spot another Tampa Yankees cap that day, nor did I see a Columbus Clippers or Greensboro Hornets cap for that matter either. I suppose more people would rather wear the World S

In 1993, an instant classic was born for minor league ballcaps. While many might think that Conrad the Crawdad is a hokey mascot, I'm a complete supporter of this cap. Upon the team's relocation to Hickory from Gastonia, they changed their name from the Rangers to the Crawdads and thusly switched from being an affiliate of the Texas Rangers to the Chicago White Sox. The mid-1990's was a new golden era for the White Sox from a marketing perspective when you consider the wild success of this cap as well as the oft-photographed Michael Jordan during his stint with their Double-A affiliate, the Birmingham Barons. I can't say with any certainty that the Nashville Sounds or Vancouver Canadians made as much of a splash as the other two aforementioned teams but I wouldn't mind owning a cap from either one of those clubs. These days, the Crawdads are back to being an affiliate of the Texas Rangers but I'll always remember them as an affiliate of the White Sox. I'm

Next up is an Augusta GreenJackets cap made by Pro-Line. Again, this one has no minor league baseball patch on the rear of the cap and that is something that I enjoy about caps from that era. While they are currently a minor league affiliate of the San Francisco Giants, most people largely remember them as a farm team for the Pittsburgh Pirates. They have also been affiliates of the Boston Red Sox, St. Louis Cardinals and the Detroit Tigers.          

07/05/2023 U pdate: In honor of being today being National Hawaii Day, I am updating this entry with some new photos as well as some  grammar and formatting modifications which were made with the goal in mind of altering  the original post's content as little as possible. While at a Yankees game recently, I thought back on how many minor league games I attended at Met Park/Harbor Park as a youth and how I spent the majority of my summers trying to obtain autographs from a mixed group of washed-up major leaguers and players who had yet to make a name for themselves. The differences between games of the minor league and MLB are night and day but there are some similarities. While I do enjoy the serious mentality of the major market teams, I also appreciate the laid-back small town approach toward baseball. There are many amenities to be had at major league ballparks but after emptying out my wallet at the concession stands game after game, I often find myself wishing I could pay mino

Alright, this is the last one in the 1983-1993 SF Giants cap. I like this one a lot but haven't worn it in public yet. It might be one that gets used later on but for right now I keep it safe at home! Not much to report on the specifics of the cap but I'm hoping that someone out there can profess some nerdly information on the cap's inside tags!