MLB City Connect Jerseys and Baseball Uniform Traditions Explained
MLB City Connect jerseys are alternate uniforms, made with Nike, that trade a team's usual colors and lettering for a look inspired by its home city. The program launched in 2021 with the Boston Red Sox's yellow and blue Boston Marathon uniforms, and by the 2026 season 28 of the 30 clubs had worn at least one City Connect design. The New York Yankees and the Athletics are the only teams that never have, per ESPN.
What are MLB City Connect jerseys?
City Connect jerseys are a set of alternate uniforms that use new color schemes, typefaces and graphics "designed to reflect cultural aspects of each team's home city," as MLB.com describes them. Each club builds its design with Nike and Fanatics, MLB's uniform manufacturer.
A few rules shape the program:
- Where City Connect fits: teams now run a four plus one uniform model: home, away, two alternates and a City Connect, ESPN reports.
- How long a design lasts: teams can rotate in a new City Connect after three years, per MLB.com.
- What comes next: MLB deputy commissioner Noah Garden told ESPN the program will continue indefinitely, with 2029 a potential target for third designs.
Every first MLB City Connect jersey, by year
The debut dates and themes below come from MLB's City Connect archive.
| Year | Team | Debut | Theme |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Boston Red Sox | Apr 17 | Blue and yellow, a nod to the Boston Marathon |
| 2021 | Miami Marlins | May 21 | The Havana Sugar Kings, a 1950s Triple A team |
| 2021 | Chicago White Sox | Jun 5 | The team's location and the city's architecture |
| 2021 | Chicago Cubs | Jun 12 | City flag colors and a Wrigley marquee script |
| 2021 | Arizona Diamondbacks | Jun 18 | "Serpientes" and desert gold |
| 2021 | San Francisco Giants | Jul 9 | Fog and the Golden Gate Bridge |
| 2021 | Los Angeles Dodgers | Aug 20 | The Latin fan base and Fernando Valenzuela |
| 2022 | Washington Nationals | Apr 9 | Cherry blossoms |
| 2022 | Houston Astros | Apr 20 | Houston's ties to NASA |
| 2022 | Kansas City Royals | Apr 30 | The "KC" from the city flag |
| 2022 | Colorado Rockies | Jun 4 | The Rocky Mountains and pine trees |
| 2022 | Los Angeles Angels | Jun 11 | California surf and skate culture |
| 2022 | Milwaukee Brewers | Jun 24 | Lake Michigan blue |
| 2022 | San Diego Padres | Jul 8 | Pink, yellow and mint for San Diego and Baja |
| 2023 | Atlanta Braves | Apr 8 | Hank Aaron's record breaking season |
| 2023 | Texas Rangers | Apr 21 | Team and Texas history |
| 2023 | Seattle Mariners | May 5 | The Seattle Pilots and Steelheads |
| 2023 | Cincinnati Reds | May 19 | A modernized classic logo |
| 2023 | Baltimore Orioles | May 26 | An interior mosaic for Baltimore's arts scene |
| 2023 | Pittsburgh Pirates | Jun 27 | Black and yellow and the Roberto Clemente Bridge |
| 2024 | Philadelphia Phillies | Apr 12 | City flag colors and Liberty Bell caps |
| 2024 | New York Mets | Apr 27 | Subway line pinstripes and 7 line purple |
| 2024 | Tampa Bay Rays | May 3 | Street art flames and a sun faded look |
| 2024 | Detroit Tigers | May 10 | Motor City muscle and innovation |
| 2024 | Cleveland Guardians | May 17 | The Guardians of Traffic statues |
| 2024 | St. Louis Cardinals | May 25 | The franchise's first red regular season jersey |
| 2024 | Toronto Blue Jays | May 31 | "Night Mode" and Toronto nightlife |
| 2024 | Minnesota Twins | Jun 14 | "Ripple Effect" for the Land of 10,000 Lakes |
Which MLB teams have second City Connect jerseys?
Seventeen teams had a second City Connect by the 2026 season. The Dodgers went first in 2024, eight teams followed in 2025, and eight more in 2026, according to MLB.com's 2025 roundup and 2026 announcement.
| Year | Team | Theme of the second design |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Los Angeles Dodgers | Los Angeles history, brilliance and diversity |
| 2025 | Washington Nationals | A "district blueprint" for 20 years in D.C. |
| 2025 | Houston Astros | Space exploration, past and future |
| 2025 | San Francisco Giants | San Francisco's musical history |
| 2025 | Colorado Rockies | Colorado sunsets over the Rockies |
| 2025 | Chicago White Sox | The first City Connect to combine MLB and NBA elements |
| 2025 | Miami Marlins | "Retrowave" and the 305 |
| 2025 | Arizona Diamondbacks | The team's original colors |
| 2025 | Boston Red Sox | "Fenway Greens," a nod to the Green Monster |
| 2026 | Atlanta Braves | 1980s powder blue with a modern color scheme |
| 2026 | Baltimore Orioles | The 1890s Baltimore Baseball Club and Camden Yards |
| 2026 | Cincinnati Reds | Tone on tone pinstripes and the Tyler Davidson Fountain |
| 2026 | Kansas City Royals | A fuchsia to blue "City of Fountains" gradient |
| 2026 | Milwaukee Brewers | "Wisco" lettering and Wisconsin's lakes |
| 2026 | Pittsburgh Pirates | The three Sister Bridges and Jolly Roger details |
| 2026 | San Diego Padres | Dia de los Muertos and San Diego's binational culture |
| 2026 | Texas Rangers | A "Tejas" wordmark and Mexican heritage |
Being eligible does not mean a team must switch. The Angels (2022) and Mariners (2023) had both reached the three year mark by 2026 and were still on their first designs.
Which MLB teams do not have City Connect jerseys?
The Yankees and the Athletics are the only MLB teams that have never had a City Connect uniform. For the Yankees, talks with MLB have been "ongoing since the beginning," Garden told ESPN, and a sticking point is that the team's traditional look is a big part of its brand. The Athletics are working with Nike on a Las Vegas themed design for their early years in the city, per ESPN.
The Chicago Cubs are a special case. They wore the navy "Wrigleyville" City Connect from 2021 through 2024, then retired it. In 2025 the Cubs replaced it with a powder blue alternate that the Chicago Sun-Times describes as "a new alternate uniform" rather than a City Connect.
Other MLB uniform traditions explained
City Connect is the newest MLB uniform tradition. These three are older, and each one changes what players wear on a specific day or role.
Why every MLB player wears 42 on April 15
Every April 15, MLB marks Jackie Robinson Day, the anniversary of Robinson breaking baseball's color barrier in 1947. MLB retired No. 42 across the majors in 1997, has dedicated April 15 to Robinson every year since 2004, and since 2009 has asked every player and all on-field personnel to wear 42 in that day's games.
Why MLB players wear a 21 patch in September
The 21 patch honors Roberto Clemente on Roberto Clemente Day, which MLB established in 2002. For September 15, 2026, MLB.com announced that every player would wear a No. 21 patch on the chest. All Pirates players, managers and coaches were set to wear Clemente's full No. 21, and Clemente Award nominees, past winners and players of Puerto Rican descent had the option to wear it too.
Why MLB managers wear uniforms
MLB managers wear uniforms because of how the job began, not because of a rule. In baseball's early days, the on-field leader was the team captain, who was usually a player, while "manager" meant the business manager. MLB.com notes that the rulebook has never officially mandated a manager dress code: its definition of a coach is a "team member in uniform," but Rule 4.07 lists "players and coaches in uniform, managers" separately. Philadelphia A's manager Connie Mack famously wore a suit in the dugout. Nearly everyone else has stuck with the uniform.
For how football handles alternates and throwbacks, see our guide to NFL alternate, throwback and Color Rush uniforms.
Shop MLB jerseys
The MLB collection has jerseys with name and number personalization. For City Connect fans there is an Orioles custom City Connect jersey, and for two of the teams in the tables above, a Shohei Ohtani Dodgers jersey and a Fernando Tatis Jr. Padres jersey.
Frequently asked questions
What is the point of MLB City Connect jerseys?
City Connect jerseys give each team an alternate uniform built around its home city instead of its traditional look. MLB says the designs are meant to reflect cultural aspects of each city, from Boston's marathon to San Diego's ties with Baja. They sit alongside home, road and two other alternates in a team's rotation.
When did MLB City Connect jerseys start?
MLB City Connect jerseys started in 2021. The Boston Red Sox debuted the first one on April 17, 2021, a blue and yellow uniform inspired by the Boston Marathon. Six more teams followed that year: the Marlins, White Sox, Cubs, Diamondbacks, Giants and Dodgers. Every season since has added new designs.
Are there new MLB City Connect jerseys in 2026?
Yes. Eight teams unveiled second City Connect designs for 2026 on the same day in April: the Braves, Orioles, Reds, Royals, Brewers, Pirates, Padres and Rangers. That brought the number of teams with a second design to 17, after the Dodgers in 2024 and eight clubs in 2025. The new uniforms stay in each club's rotation for multiple seasons.
Which MLB teams do not have City Connect jerseys?
The New York Yankees and the Athletics have never had City Connect jerseys. Yankees talks with MLB are ongoing, and the Athletics are working with Nike on a Las Vegas themed look. The Chicago Cubs retired their Wrigleyville City Connect after 2024 and now wear a powder blue alternate that is not part of the program.
How often can MLB teams change City Connect jerseys?
MLB teams can rotate in a new City Connect design after three years, according to MLB.com. Second designs have arrived three or four years after the first: 2021 designs were replaced in 2024 and 2025, and 2022 and 2023 designs in 2025 and 2026. Some teams, like the Angels and Mariners, have kept their first design past three years.
Does an MLB manager have to wear a uniform?
No written rule requires it, according to MLB.com. The rulebook defines a coach as a team member in uniform but lists managers separately in Rule 4.07, so managers could technically dress as they like. They wear the uniform by tradition, a habit dating back to when the on-field leader was a playing captain.
Sources
- espn.com: mlb 2026 city connect uniforms jerseys nike braves orioles reds...
- mlb.com: mlb city connect 2 0 jerseys revealed
- mlb.com: every mlb city connect jersey
- mlb.com: 2025 mlb city connect jerseys
- chicago.suntimes.com: cubs to debut new baby blue uniforms in 2025 retire wrigleyville...
- mlb.com: jackie robinson day
- mlb.com: roberto clemente day 2026 around mlb
- mlb.com: why do mlb managers wear uniforms