We continue our trek through the NL East’s best unis. Next up: the Bravos:
The Best: Let us first specify that the Braves’ use of Native American iconography is problematic. Yes, the uniforms look good, but that tomahawk, while nothing as offensive as Chief Wahoo, does present a bit of a problem for me. Not one that I think should lead to boycotts or petition drives, but it’s something with which I’ll never be 100% comfortable. All of that said, the current home jerseys -- which are much like the classic 1946-67 Boston/Milwaukee/Atlanta uniforms, minus the big Indian head on the sleeve -- are easily the best of the bunch. Of course, the Braves have gone and messed with a good thing quite a bit in recent years, adding in an alternate road uniform that looks like batting practice stuff, and that home Sunday red jersey that -- thanks to our last image of it in 2010 -- should be burned and never seen again. Well, it was awful before Brooks Conrad too, but he just adds to it.
The Worst: Man, the Braves have had some awful uniforms in their history. The 1929 numbers were notable for having a giant Indian head on the back instead of a number. The 1936-40 uniforms have an excuse for being ugly -- the Braves had renamed themselves the “Bees” and adopted yellow accents. Many people hate the mid-70s getups, but I kind of like them. A bit of a dead end, sure, but at least they were trying something new and, God knows, there were teams who did way worse in that decade. Ultimately, though, the early-to-mid 80s look is the worst in my mind. Not because they’re terrible, but because they are so bland and uninspired.
Assessment: There is nowhere else to go with any historical basis that’s worth a damn if the Braves want to change things up, so if they ditch the current duds, they need to go off in a new direction. I don’t think they will, though. Those tweaks aside, they’ve kept with the classic look for nearly a quarter century now, so it’s probably here to stay. Just go back to the gray roadies and ditch the red alternates. Please? Pretty please?