Major League Baseball (MLB) fans have seen the Boston Red Sox utilizing uniforms with a yellow and blue color scheme, and many are left wondering how those colors fit with the team this summer.
Boston Red Sox Yellow & Blue Uniforms Explained
In the Boston Red Sox's June 15 home game against their arch-rivals, the New York Yankees, fans saw the team wear yellow and blue uniforms in Fenway Park - their home field.
Considering the Red Sox's usual color scheme consists of blue and white, along with the obvious red, these colors mark a major departure from their usual look.
This uniform ties back to the tragic bombing of the Boston Marathon, which took place on April 15, 2013. On that day, terrorists bombed the finish line of the marathon on Boston's Boylston Street near Copley Square, killing three people and gravely injuring hundreds more.
The Boston Marathon utilizes a yellow and blue color scheme for its promotional material, decorating the route and finish line in those colors every Patriot's Day when the race is run. The Red Sox use that color scheme to pay tribute to the marathon bombing and those whose lives were lost or changed with these threads.
The alternate uniform was first introduced in 2021, featuring a bright yellow jersey with blue lettering on the front and back, using "Boston" instead of "Red Sox" on the front. The jersey also features the number 617 on the sleeve, honoring the area code used by Boston locals, along with a bright blue cap.
In 2024, the Red Sox have worn these uniforms for the following games thus far:
- April 12 vs. Los Angeles Angels
- April 13 vs. Los Angeles Angels
- April 14 vs. Los Angeles Angels
- April 27 vs. Chicago Cubs
- May 11 vs. Washington Nationals
- May 25 vs. Milwaukee Brewers
- June 1 vs. Detroit Tigers
- June 15 vs. New York Yankees
The Red Sox use this uniform for home games on Saturdays throughout the regular season, which marks a change from the usually random schedule seen for uniform choices (per Mass Live). The team also uses them during the week of the Boston Marathon and on Patriot's Day itself every year to remember the tragedy.
As reported by MLB Daily Dish shortly after the bombing, both the Red Sox and the Kansas City Royals honored those lost in the Red Sox's first post-marathon game on April 20, 2013.
The Sox wore special white jerseys with "Boston" in place of "Red Sox" on the front to honor the city. The jersey also included an image of the phrase "B Strong," which stands for "Boston Strong" — a phrase that united the city, the country, and the world in the wake of the incident.
Both teams wore the "B Strong" logo throughout the series of games in Boston as Kansas City mourned with Boston.
Additionally, multiple MLB parks played Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline" in their seventh-inning stretches — the Red Sox's traditional song played during that stretch in home games. Other teams used the Standells' "Dirty Water," the music played in Red Sox's home wins as their victory song.
Will the Red Sox Keep Using Yellow & Blue Uniforms?
Considering the Boston Marathon is one of the worst tragedies in the city's extensive history, the Boston Red Sox are expected to keep utilizing these uniforms for years to come.
It is particularly meaningful for the organization as the Sox won the World Series title in 2013, the year the marathon bombing took place. The title has only come back to Boston once since then in 2018.
Seeing the Red Sox donning these yellow and blue uniforms on a regular basis in 2024 gives even more reason to believe they will not be shelved. As previously mentioned, this year is the first time the uniforms have been made a part of the rotation since their inception in 2021.
The marathon also always comes right after the MLB's regular season begins in April as Boston fans come together to stand strong through the loss and support their team.
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