BOSTON — A decision on the New York Yankees players’ pitch to wear alternate road jerseys for the first time in franchise history isn’t “imminent,” a league source with knowledge of the conversations told The Athletic.
Hal Steinbrenner will ultimately make the call on whether to introduce a third jersey, in addition to the team’s historic home pinstripes and road grays. But the owner and those around him will weigh many factors — not simply the appeasement of players, the source said.
According to the source, the factors Steinbrenner and those around him will likely weigh include the economic impact of adding a third jersey, how often they would use it and when, and the appetite of a fan base that seems split between holding on to Yankees tradition and bringing modernity to the club, which ditched its longstanding rule prohibiting facial hair in 2024 and added an advertisement to its jersey for the first time in 2023.
The club also likely would want to create a marketing campaign leading up to the release of any new alternate jersey.
The Yankees have never worn an official alternate jersey in a game. Every other MLB team has an alternate.
On Wednesday, The Athletic broke the news that players had recently pushed to occasionally wear in games their navy road batting practice jerseys — complete with silver letters and numbers with white trim, and a Starr Insurance logo on the sleeve. MLB had already approved the jerseys for game use. So, the Yankees could use them at any time. They are in the midst of a three-city, nine-game road trip that also includes stops in Houston and Arlington, Texas.
Before a 4-1 win over the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday at Fenway Park, designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton said players have talked for years about potentially wearing an alternate jersey. The Yankees are one of just two MLB teams that don’t have a City Connect jersey. The Athletics, which don’t have an official home city, are the other.
“I would be a fan,” Stanton said.
Right fielder Aaron Judge mostly sidestepped the topic, but noted how the Yankees are being paid a reported $25 million a year by Starr Insurance to wear its logo on their jersey.
“I’m all about tradition,” he said, “but we’ve got a patch on our sleeves.”
Manager Aaron Boone said the idea had come up “loosely” over the years.
“It’s 2026,” he said. “A lot of teams have a lot of different uniforms.”
The Yankees have made other changes to their jerseys in recent years. They removed white trimming from their road jerseys in 2024. Before the 2020 season, MLB struck a $1 billion deal with Nike and Fanatics, and Nike’s swoosh logo was added to the front of uniforms, including the Yankees’. They also have participated in MLB Players’ Weekend, wearing black jerseys with player-chosen nicknames on the back.