10 Ways Baseball's Biggest Badasses Influenced Today's Most Stylish Dudes

Image via Complex Original

As seen on: Nolan Ryan

Nolan Ryan required elbow coverage because he threw 104 miles-per-hour darts and needed to keep that cannon loose. If his arm locked up in the middle of a delivery, he'd probably fling his entire limb against the backstop like a macabre version of Thor's hammer. However, pragmatism doesn't make the look any less stylish. The tasteless, skeezy '70s gave us avocado appliances, pencil thin mustaches, and shag carpeting, but all is forgiven because of the glorious three-quarter sleeve.

As seen on: Babe Ruth

Baseball is a game that's played in the dirt and features purported adults scratching their private parts and coughing up wads of chewing tobacco. Your existence is similarly disgusting, which means—like Babe Ruth over here—you should overcompensate with a sophisticated looking cardigan once in a while. Sure, The Babe lived on a steady diet of encased meats, prostitutes, and fastballs, but he looks like a tenured professor at the Julliard School of Music with this. Even if you're not a "grownup," it's time to look the part.

As seen on: Ozzie Smith

Long before Tyler the Creator made the look popular in detention halls throughout suburbia, striped socks and knee-high stirrups were a staple in Major League Baseball. There are three types of dudes who jack up their socks: Skateboarders, old people who live in retirement communities/golf resorts in Florida, and rangy infielders with above average arm strength. Which one are you?

As seen on: Tony Gwynn

Baseball jerseys do it right because they're basically short sleeve work shirts, only with another dude's name on the back. Basketball jerseys expose your flabby under arms; soccer jerseys are emblazoned with advertisements; and hockey jerseys are out of place in every social setting except for DUI checkpoints. Now, it's important to wear a throwback because wearing the name of another adult who you could have gone to high school with is just kind of sad. But, if your shirt says "Clemente" instead of "Trout" or "Gehrig" instead of "Puig," then it's considerably less pathetic.

As seen on: Jose Canseco

In the '90s, baseball players wore Oakley Blades with more pigmentation than Aurora Borealis. Jose Canseco and Rickey Henderson roamed the vast outfield of Oakland Coliseum looking like yoked-out cyborgs who ran on swag fuel, which is really "in" right now. When you soak in this picture of Riff Raff, it looks like he's equal parts Dennis Eckersley, Jose Canseco, and Tony La Russa. Of course, it's possible that I've just been chugging too much cough syrup and Red Bull.

As seen on: Deion Sanders

Deion Sanders once said, "If you look good, you feel good. If you feel good, you play good. If you play good, they pay good," which obviously means that flossing is the first step towards stacking like wild and making the Hall of Fame. Duh. So, skip today's practice and have your jersey custom fitted by a bespoke tailor in Milan. Your coach will definitely understand.

As seen on: Brian Wilson

Without a beard, The Most Interesting Man in the World would look like a bloated Anderson Cooper, James Harden would be Steve Urkel with 3-point range, and the only people laughing at Zach Galifianakis would be the YouTube miscreants pranking him at the drive-thru. A well-maintained face blanket does more than veil a double chin, it actually makes you a more mysteriously attractive person with its mere presence. Look at Brian Wilson. He's paid to throw heaters by fools in the ninth inning, but he looks like a bloodthirsty barbarian who wrestles Kodiak bears for sport. He gets it.

As seen on: Ken Griffey Jr.

It's been more than a decade since "Nookie," so rest assured that whatever damage Fred Durst did to the backwards hat brand is now healed. You're free to spin that crown 180 degrees or tilt it to the side just so, like a flame throwing version of DJ Drama holding a runner at first. Let the world know that you're here to have a good time. But, if some lamestain challenges you with a weak shit fastball, then you'll smash it into the bleachers.

As seen on: Randy Johnson

While it isn't the best look for landing a corporate job, the homicidal dirtbag "thing" really works when it comes to intimidating people from 60 feet away or landing a date with a hot chick who has an aggressive piercing. When your steez has that kind of range and purpose, then the sky is the limit.

As seen on: Roger Maris

Whether it's made out of cotton or nylon, you can't go wrong with a baseball jacket. An athlete's accessories don't always make a seamless transition from the playing field to pedestrian life—it would be hard to explain a cowboy collar or goalie mask to a club doorman, for example. But, as far as layers go, basketball jackets are the cleanest shells this side of the alligator snapping turtle.