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Boston Red Sox Unveil New 3rd Jersey

Red Sox will have more red in '03

By Ian Browne / MLB.com

NEWTON, Mass. -- One of the things that immediately dawned on John W. Henry in his first season as principal owner of the Red Sox was that his team simply wasn't red enough. However, in 2003, Sox fans will be seeing red a lot more, particularly at Fenway Park.

On Sunday, the Sox modeled some new looks to their apparel for the coming season. Manager Grady Little, right-hander Tim Wakefield and first-base coach Dallas Williams appeared at the Atrium Mall to show off the new designs.

For starters, the club will have an alternate home jersey, which is red with navy blue lettering. It looks markedly different from the Sox's traditional white home uniforms with red lettering. And as has always been the case for Sox home games, names won't be on the backs of the jerseys.

The alternate jersey, which will be worn for occasional home games, will go with a new blue mesh cap with a red button and bill.

Little proudly donned the alternate jersey as he went down an escalator. But relax Sox fans -- he isn't looking to trade in his lineup card for a modeling gig any time soon.

"This is the first experience at this for me," Little said. "But you can look at this body and tell I don't do a whole lot of modeling, unless this is a 'before' picture in a weight-loss program. But I'm proud of what I have on today. I think it's going to be a pleasant change here in Boston.

"If we win games when we wear them, we might be wearing them a little more. But any change is good. We enjoy this and we'll have just as much pride wearing this as any other uniform of the Boston Red Sox."

Wakefield -- the senior member of the Sox players -- was decked out in what will be the team's new batting practice jersey. It was similar to the alternate home uniform in that it was red with blue lettering. The main difference is that the players' last names will appear on the back, just like they do on the road jerseys. The Sox will also wear the BP jerseys for Spring Training games.

"I like it a lot," Wakefield said. "And that was Mr. Henry's wish, to have more red."

They are, after all, the Red Sox, right?

In recent years, it's been hard to spot the red in the actual socks, which also contained white and blue. Many players even covered the socks up with their pant legs.

This is why the Sox will break out solid red socks that every player will wear in 2003.

"It kind of started one night during a direct discussion during a game," said Mike Dee, vice president/business affairs for the Sox. "John [Henry] and I were talking and I said I thought we were so under-represented with our on-the-field representation. You have to respect the tradition and the history of the Red Sox uniform. But in '75 they had the red caps with the red crown and blue bill.

"We just thought we should take a look at doing something to bring the uniforms to life. We both looked at each other and he said, 'I like red.' He said it's the best. We wanted to balance the scale. We had three great colors, white, red and blue and only two were really being used. So we are taking the red and making it more or less our home color and blue is going to be our road color. "

During home games, the Sox will wear red shirts under their uniforms. For years, they have worn navy blue.

Williams modeled a red fleece shirt that can be worn on the bench or in batting practice during those inevitably cold days the Sox will have early and late in the season. On the road, they will go with blue fleece shirts. The team is also in the process of putting out new red jackets. For years, Sox uniformed personnel have worn navy blue jackets on the bench.

Though the Sox will stay with the traditional uniforms the majority of the time, they are hoping that their passionate fans will turn Fenway into a sea of red on game days and nights.

"We hope that it inspires fans to wear their proud colors at Fenway," Dee said. "We'd love to paint the town red."

The team will stay flexible with regard to how often they wear the alternate home jerseys.

"The greatest thing about an alternate jersey is you have no obligation," Dee said. "In San Diego, Sterling Hitchcock always pitched in blue. Wakefield could go out and go 3-0 in red and he might want to wear red at home for the rest of the year. I remember 1974 Opening Day for the Orioles and they came out in their orange tops for the first time. Kids here haven't had the chance to see different colors. It just seemed logical that the Red Sox would have red as their primary color."

Ian Browne is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

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