National League catcher Omar Narvaez of the Milwaukee Brewers (10) is tagged out trying to reach second base by American League second baseman Whit Merrifield of the Kansas City Royals (15) during the ninth inning during the 2021 MLB All Star Game at Coors Field. Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

MLB has no plans to abandon custom All-Star jerseys

Originally posted on Larry Brown Sports | By Grey Papke | Last updated 7/14/21

Bad news for fans who didn’t like the special uniforms players wore during Tuesday night’s All-Star Game: They’ll be back in some form next year, too.

The special uniforms proved controversial, with many fans voicing their dislike of the jerseys the AL and NL players wore during Tuesday’s game. Many wondered why players couldn’t simply wear the appropriate home or away uniform of the team they play for, as has been customary in past All-Star games.

Despite some of the blowback, Bill Shaikin of the Los Angeles Times said Wednesday that there are “no plans” to return to team jerseys for the game, and that MLB and Nike are already working on designs for uniforms for the 2022 All-Star Game.

MLB and Nike already are designing next year's All-Star uniforms. No plans to go back to team jerseys. https://t.co/lenHvEkTGn

— Bill Shaikin (@BillShaikin) July 14, 2021

Why might MLB stick with an unpopular design? Nike took over as MLB’s jersey provider in 2020, which has led to some other unique looks already. There’s no doubt that the company views the All-Star Game as a way to stamp its brand on the sport in a way that wouldn’t be doable if players just wore their regular uniforms. That means the special ones are here to stay.

This article first appeared on Larry Brown Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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