With the Philadelphia Phillies slated to get their City Connect jerseys during the 2024 season, the team has decided which existing color combination it is going to swap out to accommodate the new fit.
When doing a throwback post in late November, MLB.com's Todd Zolecki left the red uniforms off a list of current jerseys for the ballclub. Tim Kelly of Phillies Nation confirmed the red jerseys will be dropped entirely from the lineup.
The jerseys, which have been around since 2016 but used to mostly be reserved for Spring Training games, got a boost of support when players requested they be used on the road starting in the 2021 season. At that point, the team rotated them in, primarily for road games, with the gray uniforms that have been used since 1992 for away matchups.
For the first time since 1979, the #Phillies will wear red jerseys during regular season: https://t.co/cuV0dGsja2 pic.twitter.com/qYat445TVg
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) February 1, 2016
Kelly noted that Nike has a rule in place that it will only produce four jerseys in addition to the City Connect jerseys for each team in any given year. With the pinstripes, powder blues, cream and road grays still in rotation, that means there's no room for the red jerseys.
The classic red pinstripes have been the main home jersey for the ballclub since 1992. The cream jerseys, which were reintroduced in 2008, have been used as the alternate home option, mostly during day games. The popular powder blues re-entered the picture in 2018. While they honor the team's primary road uniforms from the '70s and '80s, they are now mostly reserved for Thursday home games.
The red jerseys have faced a bit of an uphill battle. Originally introduced as a home alternate in 2016, the team had to shelve their appearance outside of spring training after only a couple of years. When the players made their request to bring them back to the regular season, they became an option for the last game of away series.
.@rhyshoskins is very into red jerseys on the road.
— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) June 17, 2021
Lucky 13 for the Big Fella. 🤘 #RingTheBell pic.twitter.com/ehcIQsDCAE
With more history and significance behind the other jerseys, though, it's easy to understand why the organization has decided to boot the reds in order to make room for the upcoming new release.
Attention turns to the Phillies' City Connect uniforms
As for the City Connect jerseys, the goal is to create a uniform that celebrates the city. Introduced as a concept across the league in 2021, the upcoming 2024 season finally marks the year the Phillies' new jersey will be unveiled. Now, attention turns to what the official design will look like for Philadelphia.
Kyle Pagan of Crossing Broad mentioned the possibility of the design being modeled after Philadelphia's flag, in the same vein as the uniforms donned by the Eagles in 2007. There is also speculation that the new jerseys will incorporate things like the Liberty Bell, the Phanatic, or the other pro sports teams in the city.
As of now, though, there is no official date set for when the City Connect jerseys will be released.
With the Phillies retiring their road alternates, and the intention of the City Connect jerseys to be worn at home to honor the city, the organization will now have to decide which other existing jersey will be worked into the rotation for away games and for Spring Training, which starts on Feb. 24.