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Phillies reportedly still plan to add uniform sponsor in 2023

Zack Wheeler is in his fourth season with the Phillies. (Rick Ulreich/Icon Sportswire)

If you thought that the Philadelphia Phillies didn’t have their uniform numbers on their sleeves in an Opening Day loss to the Texas Rangers, you weren’t seeing things.

According to Matt Breen of The Philadelphia Inquirer, the numbers are no longer on the sleeves because that’s where a uniform sponsorship eventually will be placed. And eventually may not be far away:

It’s not clear what companies are in the running to be the uniform sponsor, or when a deal could be completed.

Since the Phillies introduced their primary home pinstripes and road grays in 1992, uniform numbers have been on the left sleeves of all jerseys. (The team’s three other current uniforms never featured numbers on the sleeves.) However, based on what we’ve seen from other teams, it’s probably fair to assume that the sponsorship patch will go on a different sleeve based on your handedness.

So left-handed pitchers and hitters — José Alvarado and Kyle Schwarber, for example — would have the patch on their right sleeve, because that’s what faces the camera more frequently. Right-handed pitchers and hitters — such as Zack Wheeler and J.T. Realmuto — would have a sponsorship patch on their left sleeve, to increase exposure. That’s just a guess, but an educated one.

2023 is the first year that teams are allowed to have sponsorship patches, and the Arizona Diamondbacks, Boston Red Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Houston Astros, Los Angeles Angels and San Diego Padres have already taken advantage of an additional revenue source. For better or for worse, the Phillies may not be far behind.