The MLB season is underway, and while the looming story above all the games is the sports betting scandal of superstar Shohei Ohtani, there is another subplot that's affected every single player.
That is the story of the subpar jerseys, which have been criticized for see-through pants that expose unflattering body parts of players or for the grey jerseys highlighting the sweat of players leading to color misalignments between the top and bottom parts of uniforms.
The deal has pushed a lot of heat towards Fanatics for the quality of the jerseys, but it seems as though the public blame has been pointed in the wrong direction.
Fanatics has been manufacturing the jersey designs that were made by Nike (NKE) , who has a 10-year, $1 billion merchandise deal with MLB. Fanatics is also in charge of distribution of the merchandise.
MLB Fanatics Jersey Update Through The First Weekend Of The Season: Sweating Players Look Like They Took a Shower In Them And The Small Lettering Draws Comparisons To Little League https://t.co/0QEeuKITtW pic.twitter.com/xvpn573QSp
— Barstool Sports (@barstoolsports) April 2, 2024
MLB players are finally roasting the fanatics jersey. About time
— Diamond Tales (@RSAdiamondtales) April 4, 2024
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Fanatics has taken the brunt of the public hit — in part because the company has faced criticism over its own merchandise in the past.
The MLB, Nike, and Fanatics have not directly pointed the finger at one another for the debacle — which is no surprise considering their billion-dollar deal runs until the end of the decade. But a recent report by The Athletic showed that the MLB is steering the blame toward Nike.
"Nike chose the letter sizing and picked the fabric that was used in these jerseys," the MLB told The Athletic in a statement. “Fanatics has done a great job manufacturing everything to the exact specifications provided by Nike. As part of this significant transition, Nike will continue to explore necessary adjustments to certain elements of the new uniforms to meet the needs of MLB Clubs and players."
The same report stated that a person with knowledge of the manufacturing process at Fanatics said that the fabric they use is already dyed by Nike when it arrives with them.
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This isn't the first time that the Swoosh brand has faced issues with developing jerseys for a major sports league. In 2017, Nike took over for Adidas in creating the jerseys for the NBA, and faced a lot of backlash due to the ease in which the jerseys were ripping.
While the ripping issues have come and gone, Nike's also faced criticism among NBA fans for its line of City Edition and other alternative jerseys. Many believe that Nike is creating too many designs in an attempt to sell more products, despite many of them not actually being that visually appealing.
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