IF YOU ARE A FAN OF TRADITION, YOU MAY NOT LIKE THIS!

For decades, we have seen the Yankees wear gray on the road and pinstripes at home. It's all we have ever known as 28 other teams have experimented in recent years. That may be about to change, and if you love the Yankee traditional uniforms, you just might hate it.

Last month, The Athletic reported HERE (subscription required) that players were in favor of alternate road jerseys. It's an interesting idea, and I know "interesting" might not be the word some fans use here. The Yankees have been all about branding and protecting that branding at all costs. It's a valid point, but also a way for the Yankees to make more money by offering more merchandise. Plus, if the players support it, I guess it's bound to garner more support.

"I think the alternates are cool," second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. said HERE. "For me, it's no big deal which uniforms we wear. When I was in Miami, wearing the teal pinstripes was a big deal. But I'm in New York. It's pinstripes, and we wear whatever else on the road. The road never really bothered me, or I've never thought about, ‘Oh, we need to change,’ or anything. It's whatever. If they don't do it, it's fine with me." 

Even Aaron Judge referenced tradition HERE and made a valid point. "I'm all about tradition, but we've got a patch on our sleeves," in reference to the Starr Insurance advertisements that were added to the Yankees uniforms in July of 2023. It's something that I certainly never thought was possible....until it happened. I still don't like it but if the Yankees are okay with advertising on their uniform, would adding another alternate jersey be so awful?

I guess if you are a purist, the answer to that question is YES. But if you are the Yankees it gives you more merchandise to sell and the opportunity to make more money. That is after all the only thing Hal Steinbrenner seems to care about. To hell with winning, he just wants to turn a good profit. This allows him to do that, so that's why it will happen.

Over the years, the Yankees have started to stray away from tradition. In addition to the Starr Insurance patch, last year the Yankees eliminated their nearly 50-year-old policy prohibiting beards. In-game entertainment has even changed with more frequent music and sound effects. The Yankees are evolving.

So why not with a uniform? And not even a NEW uniform at that. The Yankees have approval to use their existing spring training navy batting tops as an alternate uniform. It's already hanging in their closets, they already wear it and we know it. At least it's not a crazy City Connect uniform that doesn't match the Yankee branding. It could be a lot worse.

The Yankees aren't reinventing the wheel, but if you are a traditionalist you might still hate it. If you do hate it, you better start getting used to it because this sounds like the next big change. The days of only gray or pinstripes might be over.

--Jeana Bellezza-Ochoa

BYB Senior Managing Editor

Twitter: @nyprincessj