On first glance, the Baltimore Orioles’ City Connect uniform unveiled Monday is plain and boring — an almost all-black design with Baltimore across the chest in a bold, white typeface. On second glance, the Orioles’ City Connect uniform is plain and boring, because the most interesting features of the new look, which the team will debut on the field Friday, are — get this — hidden on the inside of the jersey.
“If you know our history, then you know Baltimore has pioneered many of America’s finest innovations,” the Orioles explained in a news release. “From historical artifacts and industry to institutions and ideas, the desire to create change is in our blood. Nothing is ever surface level with us; we always dig deep. So it comes as no surprise we are the first MLB team to design the inside of our jersey.”
As the clubhouse attendant responsible for doing the Orioles’ laundry could tell you, the inside of the team’s City Connect jersey features a colorful pattern representing the neighborhoods that make up Baltimore. The multicolored interior lining is visible if a player rolls up his sleeves or leaves a button or two undone, but unless most players plan to wear their jerseys this way, the concept for the uniform sounds cooler than how the finished product will look on the field. The Orioles might’ve been better off going really bold by creating MLB’s first reversible jersey or designing something to look like a can of Old Bay and calling it a day.
This is what it means to wear Baltimore on your chest. pic.twitter.com/42jXwRT9PV
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) May 22, 2023
“From the outside, it looks all black and white,” the release continues. “But there’s always more to our story. In art, black doesn’t exist without color. You can’t see what you’re not looking for. Threaded from the artistic tapestry of our city, the palette is like our people: colorful, vibrant and quirky. Whether it’s our iconic rowhomes, egg custard or skylite snowball, steamed crabs, lemon sticks or salt boxes, Fifi the poodle or pink flamingos, the Ravens or the O’s, our colors run deep here in Baltimore.”
Start off your week with the @Orioles new City Connects. 🔥 pic.twitter.com/JoswnkfNzE
— MLB (@MLB) May 22, 2023
According to the team, the slightly speckled Baltimore word mark on the front of the jersey is inspired by the Globe Collection and Press at the Maryland Institute College of Art. A tag that isn’t visible when the jersey is tucked into a player’s pants features the slogan “You Can’t Clip These Wings,” which is from a lovely melody written by Baltimore native Kondwani Fidel.
We are Baltimore. You can’t clip these wings. pic.twitter.com/4eQAdPtmjy
— Baltimore Orioles (@Orioles) May 22, 2023
The white script “B” on the Orioles’ City Connect caps and batting helmets is from the Baltimore script on the team’s regular road jerseys, and it’s a look Buck Showalter lobbied for when he was manager of the Orioles from 2010 to 2018. The script “B” is also featured on a sleeve patch. Player names on the back of the jersey are orange, which adds some much-needed color to the exterior design.
After a photo of the Orioles’ City Connect jersey leaked this month, the look was widely panned for its lack of creativity, with some comparing it to Great Britain’s generic and uninspiring jerseys at the World Baseball Classic. The reaction to Monday’s reveal seemed somewhat more complimentary, but the Orioles’ design brings up the rear in ESPN’s ranking of the 19 City Connect uniforms released since 2021. The Washington Nationals’ ivory, gray and pink cherry blossom-themed City Connect uniforms, which the team debuted last year, rank fifth.
While not for everyone, there are no doubt plenty of fans of the Orioles’ new alternate uniform and still others who don’t particularly care what the team wears as long as it continues to win. After a three-game sweep of the Blue Jays in Toronto, Baltimore ended the weekend with the second-best record in baseball.