What Baseball Means To BL101’s Featured City Collection

Chris Elwell

Staff Writer

For fans across the country, baseball truly is more than just a game, it’s a lifestyle.

Baseball Lifestyle 101’s new “City Collection” highlights three of the most baseball obsessed cities in America: Chicago, Dallas, and New York City. Each of these cities have a rich history within the sport, ranging from legends at the major league level to a track record of producing talent from all levels of amateur baseball. 

Baseball fans around the world pride themselves on their teams and their significance in their home area. These specific cities in our collection have long been a part of MLB culture and have some of the most iconic players and traditions of all time that have turned the league into what it has become today.

Our newest collection captures the history of baseball in the respective cities and their own connection to baseball. People of all ages have unique things that makes them a true fan of the game. 

The Chicago Collection

Baseball Lifestyle’s rendition of Chicago for the collection is built around the city’s deep passion for baseball. The Cubs’ blue, red, and white colors are the primary colors and the clothing features part of the city skyline and a baby blue colorway on the shorts to commemorate Chicago’s contributions to blues music that was a prominent part of the team’s colors until 1981.

Chicago has a long-standing tradition of baseball in “The Windy City” that dates back to the late 19th century. Major League Baseball first came to Chicago in 1876 with the birth of the Cubs, formerly known as the White Stockings. When they were rebranded to the Cubs in 1904, they made four World Series appearances and won back-to-back championships in 1907 and 1908.

This run of dominance would mark the last World Series title for the team until 2016, an all-time record across North American sports with a 108-year title drought. Through all of the ups and downs in the franchise’s history, the fans' unwavering love for the team never left and earned the reputation of one of the most loyal fanbases in the league.

1901 marked the first year of two teams in Chicago with the birth of the White Sox. Chicago’s loyalty to their teams stands just as strong with the White Sox, who despite periods of sustained losing, still made their way to the ballpark to support their favorite team every day and every season.

Our team traveled to Chicago to take photos of the collection in front of one of the most historic ballparks in Wrigley Field, MLB’s second-oldest stadium that opened in 1914, and famous Chicago sports bar, Slugger’s. 

We sat down for an interview with Slugger’s co-owner, David Strauss, to talk about all things Chicago baseball, the history of the teams, their rivalry, and what they mean to the city. 

“The community here really is based around the Cubs and lives and dies by the Cubs,” said Strauss. “It’s a special place and nothing like it on earth.”

Strauss and his team have been in the center of Wrigleyville since 1985 and said he has seen it all in terms of the fan experience coming into his bar, ranging from a World Series winning team to being one of the bottom teams in baseball. He credits the fans for their loyalty and showing out to support their favorite team through thick and thin.

Chicago’s unwavering passion for baseball makes them one of the premier destinations in the sport to visit no matter what team you are a fan of, and the Baseball Lifestyle collection reflects their spirit and love for baseball.

The Dallas Collection

Baseball Lifestyle’s Dallas collection offers a black-based pair of shorts with the Rangers’ color scheme of red, white, and blue with outlines of the “Lone Star State,” and a cool gray shirt that highlights prominent aspects of the state and city. On both the shirt and shorts, the design features an outline of the state, the Texas Longhorn, and a contrast of all of the colors to make for a distorted look in the background to get the full feel of the color scheme.

The Baseball Lifestyle team traveled to Dallas for the collection’s photoshoot and used Globe Life Field, home of the Texas Rangers, as a featured destination. Globe Life Field first opened in 2020 and served as the neutral site for the World Series in that year’s COVID-shortened season. 

The team moved from their former home, Globe Life Park in Arlington, regarded as one of the most fan-friendly stadiums in all of baseball, across the street to their current state-of-the-art stadium with a retractable roof and air conditioning to battle the harsh conditions of summer in Texas.

The team first moved to Texas in 1972 after starting out in Washington D.C. as the Senators in 1961. Since then, the team has made nine postseason appearances during their 51 seasons in Texas, with three World Series appearances and their lone championship in 2023. 

Baseball is deeply rooted in Texas, with 82 current MLB players born in the state and 25 players elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame born in Texas. Some of the top teams in the country in both collegiate and high school baseball also come from the Lone Star State, making it one of the top places in America for baseball.

Texas’ love for baseball stretches far beyond just playing, with classic baseball movies like “The Rookie” being filmed and based in Texas. The Rookie, released in 2002, was filmed in various locations across Texas in Thorndale, Thrall, and Taylor, and Globe Life Park was also used for some of the big-league scenes filmed and featured MLB players like former Rangers shortstop Royce Clayton. Based on a true story, Dennis Quaid starred in the film as Jim Morris, who grew up in Texas and made his MLB debut against the Rangers in 1999 with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays.

Fans frequently come out to the ballpark to the Rangers as they rank near the top in terms of highest average attendances in the American League per year. No matter the standing of their team, Rangers fans and baseball fans in the Dallas area in general will always come out to the ballpark to watch their team and cherish the history and current state of baseball in Texas.

The New York Collection

Baseball Lifestyle’s New York edition of the City Collection consists of a black and pink gradient pair of shorts that showcases the Empire State Building and a classic Baseball Lifestyle shirt with the company logo on the front and the expanded design on the back of the shirt. 

New York City is one of the most historic baseball cities in the country with the current and past presences of historic franchises. Despite not having the quality of weather that other cities have for the entire season, fans still show out in full effect to support their teams, especially when both teams are among the favorites to win the World Series. 

Both the Mets and Yankees fanbases are deeply passionate about their teams, making for a rivalry between the two sides that makes the Subway Series some of the most exciting games of the season.

The Yankees have been a mainstay in New York since the organization’s inception in 1903 as the Highlanders, before becoming known as the Yankees in 1913. Fans of the team have earned the reputation as one of the rowdiest fanbases in the league, most famously with their “Bleacher Creatures” in the right field bleachers that make their presence felt from the first pitch of the game doing roll calls for every player in the starting lineup. 

Before relocating to their current locations in California prior to the 1958 season, both the Dodgers and Giants called New York home, playing in Ebbets Field in Brooklyn and Polo Grounds in Manhattan, respectively. With three historic franchises in the city at one time, the 1950s marked a golden era for baseball in New York with legendary players like Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle with the Yankees, Jackie Robinson and Duke Snider with the Dodgers, and Willie Mays and Willie McCovey with the Giants.

In 1962, just five years after the Dodgers and Giants moved west, the Mets became the second MLB team in New York, playing their first two seasons in Polo Grounds before moving to their home for 45 seasons, Shea Stadium. 2009 marked the first season of the team’s current home, Citi Field, which has something to offer for fans of all ages to come to the ballpark and have a unique experience while watching their favorite team play. 

Legendary franchises and Hall of Fame players turned New York into one of the premier baseball destinations in the country. Fans of New York baseball are second to none in passion for their team and like the other cities in the Baseball Lifestyle collection, most fans are born into their fandom and will remain dedicated to their team.