Texas Rangers, Nike Miss Mark on City Connect Uniforms

The Texas Rangers unveiled their new Nike City Connect uniforms on Monday, paying homage to the baseball history of Dallas-Fort Worth.

Kade Kistner | Apr 17, 2023

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Getting a complete re-design correct is hard work. It's impossible to make everyone happy or, for that matter, upset. New uniforms will spark strong opinions from every part of the sports spectrum, something that the Texas Rangers Nike City Connect unveil invoked.

The Rangers, whose City Connect uniforms pay homage to the baseball history of the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and the region's minor league teams, aren't as flashy as some of the other special Nike uniforms that have been released.

The combination of cream tops with dark blue pants has drawn much debate already.

But the thing about these jerseys is that most fans who support the Rangers just weren't around for the history of these baseball teams that are being honored.

The story behind the jersey is very thought provoking and makes sense on paper. It's also a difficult task when the team plays in Arlington and not Dallas or Fort Worth. You can't use a skyline, or a defining feature of either major city. You can't invoke Reunion Tower or the Stockyards.

It's also hard to encapsulate the a very large metro area like DFW, full of diverse cultures and neighborhoods, and hope to do it properly.

Still, the issue lies in the "fashion" of the jersey itself. Many fans believe that the designers could have taken a more exciting or "flashy" approach to these. Take the Houston Astros' "Space City" jerseys or the San Diego Padres' threads for example.

Again, strong opinions either way on those (as with everything), but they draw excitement from the fanbase when they don them for a game. Perhaps bringing back the beloved red jerseys would have caused more of a stir.

Maybe a dive into the history will change some minds. Or not. Once the initial reaction from release wears off, these new unis might just grow on some.

The designers obviously worked hard, but missed the mark. While it's nice to appreciate the history, these City Connect jerseys don't "connect" the fanbase to the area.

By going the history route, you're not blending what makes the area unique to itself right now. While the "Texas" in Texas Rangers draws some dissent, there is a lot to work with.

The Texas flag, cowboy boots and hats, the rich history of rodeo. Big Tex at the State Fair. DFW also boats some of the most concentrated urban arts district anywhere in the United States.

There are things that make this region unique to itself. It's a tough task to get it right. But the historical route of combining two minor league baseball teams from the 1960's just doesn't seem like the most effective way to go about "connecting" the fans to their team.

Additionally, if you showed this jersey to any non-baseball fan (or even a baseball fan for that matter) they would not be able to tell this was a Texas Rangers jersey. The only mention is a small "4/21" on the collar that represents Texas Independence along with the first game the Rangers played in Arlington.

That is meaningful, yet hidden away.

A quick look at this jersey invokes nothing about the Rangers, Texas, or the city and region it is located in. It takes an entire history lesson, something most people will not bother to look into, to understand.

It missed the mark.

Still, the pants are great.

nike city connect — Texas Rangers Nike City Connect uniforms

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Published Apr 17, 2023

KADE KISTNER

Kade Kistner is the publisher and beat writer for Sports Illustrated's Inside the Phillies, Cubs and Astros. He is also an editor for Inside the Rangers. An alumnus of Tulane University, Kade graduated in 2017 with a degree in Latin American Studies and a minor in Spanish. Upon graduation, Kade commissioned into the United States Navy and attended Naval Flight School in Pensacola, Fl. He served as a Naval Aviator and was stationed in Jacksonville, Fl. During his time in school and the Navy, Kade began covering the MLB and NFL with USA Today, SB Nation, and Sports Illustrated. Kade covered the New Orleans Saints, Texas Rangers, and numerous other teams within the Sports Illustrated network before launching Inside the Phillies, Inside the Astros, and Inside the Cubs. You can follow him on Twitter at @KadeKistner, or if you have any questions or comments he can be reached via email at kwkistner@gmail.com.