Missives of a Baseball Milquetoast

I was planning on continuing my deep-dive into Eastern League caps however this past week's discussion over Jim Thome's preference that his Hall of Fame plaque not feature the  Chief Wahoo  caricature sparked something that I need to address here. As much as I love baseball's rich history, that appreciation should never cause someone else to suffer. I understand that Chief Wahoo has been a part of the Cleveland Indians' branding since the 1940's but I encourage everyone to please take a moment to think about how different this country was back then. Racial segregation was still in full effect and people of color were constantly subjected to insensitive language and tormented on a daily basis  in general . We've come a long way since then in terms of treating each other with respect and I would be sad to think the end point for that progress is sports fans unwillingness to recognize that a seemingly harmless mascot or logo can in fact be extremely hurtful

The Double-A party continues this week folks and we're not just taking a look at any old Eastern League team this time around. This week's Fresh Fitted is an alternate worn by the Hartford Yard Goats, which as it turns out is a natural rival to last week's featured team, the New Hampshire Fisher Cats.  Like last week's cap, this was another gift from my wife. The "Horned H" logo first caught her eye because it represents our last initial but when she learned the cap was one worn by the team in Hartford, that sealed the deal as we had recently visited The Insurance Capital of the World . Unfortunately, this cap cannot proudly boast the Made In USA tag but I haven't found any glaring quality issues with it thus far. The green, white and blue MILB batterman is a fitting tribute to the iconic colorway once used by the now-defunct Hartford Whalers. The team's rebrand by Brandiose in 2015 brought the design firm's calling card  - w

Last week's Birmingham Barons post might have gotten me really hype on Double-A caps so I sense more of those coming over the next few weeks. Because today is my birthday, I decided to give myself a little shout-out by featuring a cap with my initials (NH) and what's even cooler about this New Hampshire Fisher Cats hat is that it's one my wife gifted to me. This is the primary (I'm so sorry; I couldn't help myself) cap worn by the Fisher Cats and while its logo is not as flashy as some of the other minor league caps out there, I like that the line through the H is the fisher's tail. Also, this is an article about the fisher. The standard current-day New Era taping and tags are found on this cap. Unlikely that this set of tags will change anytime soon, but hey you never know! I like that democracy was utilized in choosing the team's name but I'm hoping that for one game they do a "What If?" night and go by the New Hampshire For

If you follow  @baseballmilquetoast on Instagram —if not, please do so immediately— you'll know that on MLK Day I posted a photo of my Birmingham Black Barons cap to commemorate Dr. King's legacy and more specifically, his "Letter From Birmingham Jail" which was an open letter written while Dr. King was unjustly incarcerated.  While that hat has much historical significance, I also have an emotional connection with the Birmingham Barons of the Southern League as I associate that team with  Frank Thomas, who is  my all-time favorite baseball player. This card from 1990 shows Thomas wearing the Old English "B" cap logo lettering that the Barons had used since their reintroduction into the Southern League in 1981.  This is the photo used in Thomas' 1990 Best Card and I love that it's signed by the man himself. I don't collect autographs anymore but if I ever met Thomas I'd have to ask him for one. "The Big Hurt"

I had some trouble deciding which hat to write about this week, y'all. As much as I want to show off some of the newer caps in my collection, I've got all of these super rare vintage selections just begging to be flaunted. Also, I love themes so I couldn't turn down the chance to write about another Class A Short Season league for the seventh week in a row.  The Bend Rockies played in the Pacific Northwest League from 1992-94. The inaugural team was mostly comprised of selections from the 1992 draft while its parent team  would not play a game until the following year. Even though it's possible this cap is from 1994, I highly doubt it considering the tags are of the pre-1992 variety.  The lack of the MILB batterman here seals the deal; this cap is either from 1992 or 1993 as the batterman did not appear until 1994. Ideally, I'd like to believe that this cap is from the 1992 season as it would be the first time in the blog's history that I'

Happy new year, dear reader! As you are well aware, I capped off 2017 by posting some photos of rare gems that had yet to be de-tagged and I'm happy to be starting this year off with another one of those hats. So without further ado, the first Fresh Fitted Friday selection of 2018 is a Portland Rockies hat that I estimate to be from 1995 or 1996.  Portland only hosted this Class A Short Season team from 1995-2000 but this logo is legendary as it combines the major league club's aesthetic along with a rose, which is emblematic of Portland, aka the "City of Roses." I can't be the only one who finds it neat that the price of this cap is exactly the same as the team's inaugural season (as well as the year it was worn).  The usual suspects: classic mid-1990's sweatband tags A purple and black MILB batterman patch is a thing to be treasured.  Well friend, if you wear a size 7 1/8 and you've got a great cap in my size to trade

For the last post of 2017 I'm continuing the trend of showcasing a classic Class A Short Season cap while also paying tribute to my favorite band, Phish, who got their start  in Burlington, Vermont which is where t he Vermont Expos (now Lake Monsters) played.  The Vermont Expos of the New York-Penn League wore this logo from 1994 through 2005. Because there is no New Era flag it's safe to say this cap is from 1996 at the latest. The sweatband tags here have the mid-1990's flavor. Notice the size tag flapping in the wind! Can't believe for the second week in a row I've got a cap that's over 20 years old and hasn't had its tags popped. Ringing in the new year in style! This cap isn't for sale or trade however don't hesitate to reach out if there's something you like on the  Trading Block  and you are willing to  part  with any of the hats  on my  Wish List . Happy New Year y'all and a s always, thanks for coming back