You know it's the end of the baseball season when I'm trying to cram as many games in as possible. Last week's Staten Island Yankees game was loads of fun so this week I ventured to Yankee Stadium in the Bronx to watch the big league club take on the Texas Rangers.
That matchup reminded me that I hadn't featured a Texas-related hat in far too long and in fact, it's been over two years since the 1991-92 Jackson Generals post so this week's 2005-07 Round Rock Express cap has a connection to not only that cap but the Rangers as well.
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| The Express wore this cap throughout the entirety of their first stint as an Astros affiliate which was from 2000-2010 |
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| The MILB tag and "Originators of the True Fitted" text on the satin taping as well as the "blue box special" New Era and size tags are something we've seen on caps from 2005-2007 such as the Portland SeaDogs and the West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx. |
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| As we saw in the SeaDogs and Diamond Jaxx caps, this cap has a raised MILB batterman which isn't too common for caps with white sweatbands and grey underbrims. |
Earlier I mentioned this cap had a connection to the Texas League Jackson Generals and that's because Nolan Ryan's ownership group (RSR) was instrumental in moving the Houston Astros Double-A affiliate to Round Rock in 2000 and rebranding it as the Express, which is an homage to Ryan, whose nickname as a player was "The Ryan Express."
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| This Multi-Ad Sports card from 2000 can be considered Ryan's rookie card as an owner. |
Ryan is an absolute legend when it comes to baseball in Texas and I think a big reason for that is because of his contributions to both the Rangers and the Astros, which is the team that the Express is affiliated with once again as of the beginning of the 2019 season.
At 7 3/8, this cap definitely fits me but because I don't have a burning to desire to actually wear it, I think I should put it on the Trading Block. Please do not hesitate to reach out if you want this or 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:
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