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š£ļøFanatics CEO Speaks on jerseys
The cost to change jerseys and the Astros college classic
Grand Slam Newsletter
March 04, 2024
Today we cover:
š£ļø Fanatics CEO speaks on uniforms
šµ The cost to switch numbers
āļø The Astros College classic
Fanatics CEO responds to jersey drama
Michael Rubin, the founder and CEO of Fanatics, has responded to some of the concerns raised about the new MLB jerseys. Fanatics produces the MLB jerseys that Nike designs and specifies. Because of this, Rubin stated at the MIT Sloan Sports Analytics Conference he is frustrated because he feels they are doing what they were instructed and the blame is being unfairly put on them. Reportedly, some players and teams have been meeting with members of Nike, Fanatics, MLB, and the playerās association to get this worked out.
āWeāre purely doing exactly as weāve been told, and weāve been told weāre doing everything exactly right. And weāre getting the sh*t kicked out of us. So thatās not fun.ā
The hefty price for players to switch numbers
Changing uniform numbers had long been acceptable and common practice. Joe Ryan and Carlos Santana of the Minnesota Twins realized the steep price that comes with wanting to switch with someone on the team that has been wearing it. Carlos Santana had worn number 41 at each of his six teams in the MLB he has played at. The number was a tribute to 5-time All-Star Victor Martinez, the Venezuelan slugger who played for 16 seasons, most of them also with No. 41 on his back.
When Santana arrived, Ryan was willing to give up the number which he had been wearing for the past several seasons, until he realized he would be getting a bill for about $225,000. Thatās the cost of everything that already has his name and number on it. Story.
Gearing up for the Astros College classic
The Annual Houston Astros Foundation college classic returned for its 24th year this year. Itās a three-day college baseball tournament held annually at Minute Maid Park in Houston, Texas and took place from March 1st to 3rd. This yearās lineup is stacked with LSU, Texas, Texas State, University of Houston, the University of Louisiana ā Lafayette, and Vanderbilt will take the field for the nine-game tournament. The Cougars and Bobcats kick the tournament off followed by Vandy and the Raginā Cajuns. The Texas Longhorns and LSU Tigers headline the 3-day tournament at 7:05 pm Friday night. You can see the schedule here.
In other newsā¦
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