The Reveal
On Monday, the Minnesota Twins released their City Connect uniforms. The Twins waited their turn. They watched while most of the league released their City Connect jerseys one by one. Finally, their time came.
The reveal on Monday came with no accurate leaks ahead of time. This meant that it stayed a surprise to most. Many had theories about the color scheme or look, with very few being close. Royce Lewis even teased Twins fans recently with an edited post of him in a baby blue jersey with an MSP logo across the chest. Lewis got many fans excited about the idea of Baby Blue coming back to the uniform rotation.
All rumors and teases came to a conclusion Monday when the Ripple Effect uniform was announced and released to the public. This includes a blue hat with a new state logo and “Land of 10,000 Lakes” etched on the side and a yellow brim, a blue jersey with a ripple pattern, a new MN logo, and solid blue pants. The uniform has a couple of other notable additions. The first is the loon logo on the right arm sleeve. The other is the outline of Lake Minnetonka on the underside of the brim. Every aspect of the uniform is unique and new.
The Immediate Reaction
As with any new uniform or jersey release, the reactions were mixed. Immediately, the majority of opinions seemed overwhelmingly negative. This was also the case when the Twins came out with their updated set of uniforms last offseason. With both releases, fans had issues with the colors, the logos, the overall look, and just how different they were.
Any time a new city connect gets released it gets picked apart, so this time is no different. Fans and media voiced their concerns.
Complaints
The most popular knock on the uniforms is the inclusion of yellow as the second primary color. The Twins went back to a classic navy blue, red, and white color scheme in their latest update so many fans are wondering why yellow was included in the City Connect. Not only is the yellow new but it also reminded many fans of other (non-Minnesota Twins) uniforms, like Best Buy or the Seattle Mariners City Connects. The similarities exist, but the yellow was very intentional and thought out. When designing the jerseys, the yellow was included as a nod to the North Star (which is represented in the MN logo) and to the sunsets Minnesotans get out on the lakes. If the yellow was a random inclusion, the complaints would be much more warranted, but being a meaningful connection to the state, it works.
Another common issue is the pants. The Twins opted to go with blue pants to pull the whole uniform together. These jerseys are meant as more of a state connection than a city connection with a nod to the 10,000 lakes and the blue does that well. Many other city connects across the league ended up with black pants and Twins fans seem thankful that The Ripple Effect stuck with the blue instead. Many fans and players seem to have preferred the jerseys be paired with white pants instead. There have been reports that next season the Twins will be able to wear the city connects with white pants, though, which would ease plenty of concerns with the uniform. Twins fans may just need to have some patience with this.
The Debut
Friday night was the Twins’ debut for the City Connects. The Minnesota Twins matched up with the Oakland Athletics to show off the new uniforms. Target Field contained plenty of excitement as the Twins had one of their biggest crowds on the season. The fans did not leave disappointed.
The top of inning number one did not seem to be a good omen for the new jerseys. Simeon Woods-Richardson, who has been dealing of late, walked the first two batters. Another reached on an infield single. Woods-Richardson nearly escaped the inning with no damage but left a slider over the middle that ended up over the fence. Starting the game in a four-run deficit is not ideal, but the Twins battled.
Max Kepler led the Twins on Friday night. After struggling quite a bit in June, Kepler celebrated the new uniforms with his first homer this month. His three-run homer in the bottom of the sixth tied the game. It also gave him the most home runs in Target Field history. Each team scored one more to even the score at five. Jhoan Duran pitched two huge innings to allow the Twins to win in extra innings. In the bottom of the tenth, already having the automatic runner at second, the Athletics opted to walk Carlos Correa. Their plan to keep the force around the infield ended up not being a factor. Kepler took the first pitch he saw and sent it through the gap between the first and second basemen to walk it off for the Twins.
Part of the Rotation
Baseball is commonly known as a very superstitious sport. Many players and fans have beliefs on what can impact the outcomes of baseball games. Something like a new uniform can have an impact on how players feel and play. The Ripple Effect starting off with a walk-off win in front of a huge crowd seems like a good sign.
Many fans have made their opinion very clear on the Twins’ new City Connect uniforms. No matter how you feel about them, these jerseys are now a part of the rotation. As fans, we are always entitled to opinions. They keep us interested and engaged even if nothing will change. The Twins used these city connects to connect to the whole state. This connection was intentional and fun. Whether you are a fan of the new jerseys or not, we can appreciate the effort and attention to detail. Walk-off wins make for a nice touch, too.
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