Categories: Phillies Nuggets with Tim KellyUniforms

Details starting to emerge about the Phillies City Connect uniforms

The blue and yellow flag that flies in center field at Citizens Bank Park isn’t a Ukrainian one, but rather the City of Philadelphia’s. From the sounds of things, it’s one that Phillies fans are about to become much more aquatinted with.

MLB.com‘s Todd Zolecki reported this week that the City Connect uniforms the Phillies will be getting in 2024 are “expected to incorporate some element of the City of Philadelphia flag.” Kyle Pagan of Crossing Broad first wrote about this possibility back in April.

Phillies Nation has previously reported that the Phillies — one of the 10 remaining teams without a City Connect jersey — will be getting one in 2024 and will be ditching their red tops to make room for the arrival of the new threads. Nike has created a “4+1” rule, meaning they will produce four uniforms per team, and a fifth if it’s part of the City Connect program. The Phillies already had five uniforms, with the red tops, home pinstripes, alternate creams, throwback powder blues and road grays. So the reds are out, both for the regular season and Spring Training.

The Phillies have not yet announced a date for when the uniforms will be unveiled, nor is it clear what day(s) of the week the City Connects will be worn at Citizens Bank Park.

The most notable example of a Philadelphia team wearing uniforms that include the colors of the city flag are the Eagles. In 1934, the Eagles wore yellow and blue primary uniforms. A modern version — which paid homage to the Frankford Yellow Jackets, the team that proceeded the Eagles — was worn by the Eagles in Week 3 of the 2007 season against the Detroit Lions.

Embed from Getty Images

Eagles legend Brian Westbrook had one of the best games of his career that day, recording over 100 rushing and receiving yards and combining for three touchdowns in a 56-21 win over the Detroit Lions. But Westbrook would later admit that he wasn’t especially fond of the uniforms.

Presumably, the Phillies will have their own take on the City of Philadelphia flag. Given the popularity of the four remaining uniforms, it will be interesting to see if the City Connect uniforms gain acceptance, or prove to be a black sheep that the Phillies are stuck with for a few seasons as part of this program.