The Utility Of Menswear And An Old-Timey Baseball Anecdote

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So men used to dress better blah, blah, blah, buy everything featured on Four Pins, etc. And we all know how various fuckboy menswear turds try to defend their masculinity and poor career choice by coming up with all their featherweight creeds and reasons for why a man should dress well. I actually don’t even want to click around to go find a few examples, but you know what I’m talking about—"confidence!" "Dressing for the job you want!" "Appearances matters!" "Seriously, women care!"

Well, here’s a story my dad told me once about how dressing up actually had some significant utility. In the times when his dad went to Yankee games, all the men who were seated in the centerfield bleachers would take off their jackets when the visiting team was at bat. Their white shirts serving as a backdrop made it difficult for the opposing batter to see the ball coming out of the pitcher’s hand. When the Yankees were at bat, the men would all stand up, put their jackets back on and provide a contrasting dark background so greats like Mantle, Rizzuto, Berra, et al. could better see the ball. Now before you get all romantic and nostalgic, remember that this was also a time when interracial marriage was illegal, and some of these same well-dressed men were going violently ham on Jackie Robinson with racism and abuse. Simply food for thought.

James Harris is a publicist living in NYC. He is greatly amused by the fact that there was a professional baseball player in the 1930's named Ugly Dickshot. Follow him on Twitter here.

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