Nike's MLB jersey launch is reaching a new stage of frustration – a pants shortage

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By Stephen J. Nesbitt, Patrick Mooney and C. Trent Rosecrans

GOODYEAR, Ariz. – When players entered the Cincinnati Reds clubhouse Thursday morning, they found white and gray baseball pants on the chairs by their lockers. More pants were piled on a table in the middle of the room, and a monitor above asked players to try them on. I had the familiar feeling of putting on old trousers.

Because that's exactly what they are.

Among the many issues surrounding the launch of Nike's new MLB jersey this spring is the lack of pants. Some teams are reusing pants from previous seasons — made by Nike or Majestic, Major League Baseball's former supplier — because they don't have enough new Nike pants for all players and uniformed personnel. The Reds have told players to wear their old pants for the remainder of spring training.

“The general problem,” said MLBPA executive director Tony Clark, “is the pants.”

Nike did not respond directly to questions but provided The Athletic with its first statement since player complaints first surfaced last week.

“We always put the athlete at the center of everything we do,” the Nike statement says. “We worked closely with MLB players, teams and the league to develop the most advanced uniforms in MLB history that are lighter and more flexible.

“The quality and performance of our product is of utmost importance to us. We will continue to work with MLB, the players and our manufacturing partner to develop player uniforms.”

Major League Baseball also issued a statement through a spokesperson. “As with every spring training, representatives from Fanatics, Nike and MLB will attend camps to meet with all players, conduct uniform fitting sessions with them and obtain their feedback on the fit of their uniforms,” MLB’s statement said. “Based on players' requests, adjustments will be made to jersey size, waist, inseam, length, thigh fit and the bottom of their pants.

“The goal of these meetings is to provide players with the most comfortable uniforms available on Opening Day. We are in close contact with our clubs and uniform partners to ensure clubs have everything they need for opening day.”

As Clark and players' union officials make the rounds during spring training, they continue to hear widespread complaints. After meeting with Chicago Cubs players Thursday morning in Mesa, Ariz., Clark admitted, “It's disappointing that we ended up in a place where the uniforms are a topic of discussion.” Even the negative feedback on the uniforms is turning not about a single problem.

“Every conversation with the guys brings out more information,” Clark said. “A lot of the rhetoric (Wednesday) was an acknowledgment that the pants appear to be see-through.”

But a broader problem — beyond the sheerness, design changes, inconsistent quality and fit issues that players have complained about — is the lack of pants available to teams.

“There are teams that have pants and jerseys,” Clark said. “There are some teams that don’t have pants. There are other teams that are scheduled to receive certain things before the start of the year. There are others who, in case they have a problem with the pants and a player needs a new pair, don’t have a reserve.”

Nike began a 10-year deal as the MLB's official supplier ahead of the 2020 season. Fanatics has been producing Nike's jerseys since 2020 in the same factory in Easton, Pennsylvania that made Majestic's jerseys. A spokesman for Fanatics, which makes the uniforms but is not involved in the design or engineering, declined to comment.

Speaking at the Grapefruit League last week, MLB commissioner Rob Manfred defended Nike and its new jersey, praising the company's track record and waving concerns to players.

“I think if people wear them for a while, they'll be really popular,” he said.

But as spring training games begin, players and coaches are still putting on old pants — some by choice, others by necessity.

One National League star has so far refused to wear the new pants. An American League star had a Goldilocks experience during his fitting: too tight in one place, too loose in another, just right in a third. A coach tried on the new Nike uniform on the first day of practice, then went home and found an old pair that he has worn ever since. One player who wears stirrups complained that he could choose whether his pants were high or low cut, but nothing in between. One club received just one set of the new Nike shorts on Wednesday – coincidentally the set they were required to wear on official photo day.

In previous years, players were adjusted at the start of spring training and were able to request all sorts of adjustments. They received the final, customized product a few weeks before opening day. According to several players who have recently been fitted, requests to take the fabric 1 inch long on the thigh or bicep will be rejected. Instead, players are sorted by four body types, based on body scans of more than 300 players that Nike and Fanatics conducted last spring, and are offered three options — a slimmer, regular and wider fit — with five different pant openings. Nike adjusts sleeve and pant length, but does not adjust specific areas.

When Padres starter Joe Musgrove started the first Cactus League game on Thursday, he was wearing last year's pants. When asked when he would receive the new ones, Musgrove replied, “Hopefully by opening day.” Musgrove recalled trying on the new Nike jersey, called the Nike Vapor Premier, for the first time last spring. He said the samples provided were not the correct length for every player, making it difficult to gauge fit at this point.

“Pants are pants,” Musgrove said. “We will carry them. If they don't fit properly, you need to take care of it. It's not the most important thing. … Honestly, our job is to go out and play baseball. So you can do whatever you want if you don’t like the pants, but you have to deal with it.”

Some players fear that if Nike cannot supply enough pants to meet clubs' current needs, players will not be able to wear them in the weeks leading up to the regular season.

“Guys are going to be mad,” the player said. “You don’t want to worry about those bulls — on opening day.”

“It's like…show,” another player repeated.

Reds catcher Luke Maile doesn't mind the new uniform. It fits well. It feels good. He is frustrated that the uniform chaos continues and the people responsible for cleaning up the mess are the clubhouse attendants. They have to retool their players and raid storage rooms to find enough old pants to outfit the squad.

“I think the biggest misconception right now is that it's not just players complaining and being prima donnas about what pants they wear,” Maile said. “We work with our clubhouse staff every day. They take care of virtually everything in our lives, and the amount of work they had to put in and then to see something like that fall through is pretty disappointing – not just for us, but for them too.”

Nike claimed in a press release last week that the new jersey was developed over several years. According to MLB.com, the jerseys were shown to teams during 2022 spring training and the players' union also reviewed the uniforms. Clark confirmed that discussions about the new uniforms “go back a few years” but he feels the union's suggestions have not been taken into account.

“We gave input – suggested what challenges would exist – and these had to be solved on the front end. They weren’t,” Clark said. “There was an announcement from Nike and the league (last week), and then all of a sudden you hear from the guys about what they're seeing on the ground. (There were) very few answers given.

“That’s why I say it’s been an ongoing conversation, where each day has brought forth something new that doesn’t seem to make as much sense as you would like.”

It's unclear if Nike plans to make any changes to the uniforms before Opening Day. Clark said some of the design changes were understandable; For example, the Nike Vapor Premier's thinner, lighter performance fabric requires the introduction of smaller numbers and letters on the jersey.

“But in the comments we've received, some people are disappointed with the spikes,” Clark said. “Other people will get through this.”

The pants are a bigger concern for most players, Clark said. “But I’m not sure what the solution might be or how quickly we can get there.”

The Reds had a supply of old pants on hand in case there were any problems with the uniform. They also wear red tops during spring training, so wearing old pants in their case doesn't clash with the new tops (which are slightly off-white). No one is sure what will happen between now and Opening Day, but the Reds at least have a workaround for a month.

Maile made it clear that he doesn't expect perfection, just pants.

“Will we make it? Of course,” he said. “Was the old way better? Probably. But again, man, our job is to be competitive. That's what we have to do. We’ll do it in whatever.”

— The athlete's Dennis Lin contributed to this report.

(Reds pitcher and catcher at spring training: Kareem Elgazzar / The Enquirer / USA Today)