If you’ve ever been curious about when the Philadelphia Phillies wear each uniform, here’s an in-depth look at the history of each of the five combinations that the team currently uses on a regular basis.
When Do The Phillies Wear Red Pinstripes?
The red pinstripes have been the primary home look for the Phillies since the 1992 season. They are worn for all night games played at Citizens Bank Park, except on Thursdays and Fridays. A few exceptions have been made in the past, but for 99% of non-Thursday/Friday home games that start at 6 p.m. ET or later, the Phillies will wear their red pinstripes. The Phillies also wear the red pinstripes for the home opener, regardless of what time the game starts at. In 2022, they wore the red pinstripes for Game 3 of the NLDS — their first home game of the postseason — which started at 4:37 p.m ET.
When Do The Phillies Wear Gray?
Like the red pinstripes, these gray uniforms became the primary road look of the Phillies during the 1992 season. They are worn for all road games. While they have their critics, the road grays are a pretty sharp look when players are wearing long red sleeves underneath.
When Do The Phillies Wear Cream?
First introduced in 2008, these cream uniforms pay homage to the primary home look that the Phillies utilized from 1946-1949. It took until 2009 for the Phillies to get matching batting helmets, initially using the typical red batting helmets with these uniforms in 2008. The creams are worn for all day games played at Citizens Bank Park, except on Thursdays or Fridays. There have been a few occasions where they’ve been worn for night games over the last few seasons. In 2024, the color of the cream seemed to change a bit as part of the league’s switch to Nike’s Vapor Premier jersey template.
When Do The Phillies Wear Powder Blue?
One of the most popular uniforms in baseball history, the Phillies donned the powder blues as their primary road uniforms from 1972-1988. Post-1988, they were occasionally worn as a throwback on the road. Beginning in 2018, the Phillies brought the powder blues back on a semi-regular basis, choosing to wear them for games played on Thursdays at Citizens Bank Park as part of their Throwback Thursday promotion. From time to time, they’ll be worn on other days of the week, including when the Phillies sported the powder blues on Sunday, Aug. 7, 2022, as they honored the 1980 World Series team. The Phillies wore the powder blues in Game 5 of the 2022 World Series — a Thursday game — marking the first time that the uniforms were used in the postseason since Game 2 of the 1983 World Series.
When Do The Phillies Wear City Connects?
The Phillies became the 21st MLB team to introduce a City Connect jersey when they unveiled their’s in April of 2024. The uniforms are based off of the City of Philadelphia flag, and are worn for Friday home games at Citizens Bank Park. You can read more about how the City Connect uniforms came to be and some of the easter eggs featured in the design here.
When Do The Phillies Wear Red Tops?
The Phillies retired the red tops — both as their Spring Training jerseys and a regular-season alternate — after the 2023 season, in order to comply with Nike’s 4+1 rule. You can read more about why the Phillies chose the red jerseys to be shelved here.
The red tops were initially introduced as the weekday game alternates (in addition to Spring Training jerseys) worn at Citizens Bank Park in 2016. They lasted just two years before the Phillies ditched them for a few seasons outside of Spring Training. In June of 2021, the Phillies began wearing the red jerseys as their “getaway day” uniforms, utilizing them for the final game of road series. The Phillies wore the red tops for Game 2 of the 2022 NLCS in San Diego, but elected not to do so for Game 2 of the World Series in Houston. They also were worn occasionally in the second game of a road doubleheader. The final game that the red jerseys were worn for before being retired was Game 5 of the 2023 NLCS in Arizona.
Who Is The Phillies’ Jersey Advertiser?
Independence Blue Cross — stylized as IBX — became the Phillies jersey sponsor starting on July 31, 2024. The Phillies were the 22nd team to add a uniform sponsor, which became permissible starting in the 2023 season.
It is on all five current jerseys.
— Destiny Lugardo (@destiny_lugardo) July 31, 2024
For left-handed hitters or pitchers, it is on their right sleeve. For right-handed hitters or pitchers it is on their left sleeve. The reasoning is that’s the direction facing the camera the most.
What Happened To The Numbers On The Phillies’ Jersey Sleeves?
The Phillies current primary uniforms — their home pinstripes and road grays — had numbers on the left sleeve from their debut in 1992 through the 2022 season. They were removed in 2023, essentially as a “your sign here” advertisement for potential jersey sponsors.
