Don't blame Nike, the Atlanta Braves have constantly tweaked their iconic uniforms

Earlier this month, we discovered that the Braves jerseys were being slightly modified for 2024 to fit Nike's new Vapor Elite template.

While plenty of Braves fans might not even notice the difference when the team takes the field this upcoming seasons, other fans were not happy. Some, like Ashland, were straight to the point:

But other fans, like Matt seem a little more outraged, saying that Nike is destroying the team's history.

And reporters like Grant McAuley were just baffled by the changes.

Understandably, fans would be frustrated with Nike for forcing an unnecessary (and in my opinion, downgrading) change, but it's not the first time the Braves have altered their jerseys since returning to the navy and scarlet in 1987.

From multiple script changes and last name alterations, to cap changes and helmet adjustments, let's look at all of the changes to the Atlanta Braves uniforms since 1987.

The Braves scripts have constantly changed

While it might look from afar that the Braves home whites have been unchanged since the team reintroduced the navy and scarlet uniforms with the tomahawk across the chest in 1987, there has been constant tinkering with the script angle, thickness, and script itself.

We'll take a look at the home jersey first.

The home white jersey

Here's what the script looked like in 1987. The navy outline is much thinner than its modern-day counterpart, and the angle of the script is much sharper.

Also, keep a close eye on the A. The placement of the A on the new Nike template has caused plenty of consternation in the past few weeks.

Over the years, the angle of this script got much more level, while the volume of red fill lessened. Here's the uniform in 1995, during their World Series championship:

Here's the jersey in 2004, noticeably less slanted. The "A" has also begun to change shape a little bit.

And here's the jersey in 2010. This a is similar to the 2004 version, but much different when compared to the 1987 version.

In 2016, the Braves made slight adjustments to the script that placed the A getting cut off by the placket and changed the shape of that letter to better match the 1987 version.

This is the script the Braves still use today.

This new change is making subtle alterations to the script, as the sleeve piping moving down makes more of a noticeable difference than any of the slight adjustments over the years (aside from the Quikcrete patches that were introduced last year).

Some fans were worried that the white space in the "A" would run right through the piping, as it's displayed on replica jerseys, but that won't be the case for the on-field jerseys. In fact, the white space in the V is now opened up thanks to the template narrowing the placket.

Believe it or not, as many tweaks as the Braves have made to their home jersey, there have been just as many changes to the road jersey.

The last names

This year, the last names on jerseys will be more arched and smaller than in previous seasons, but this isn't the first time the Braves have changed the way last names appear.

In 1987, last names were sewn into nameplates, which were then sewn onto the back of the uniforms. The lettering was vertically arched, which was a method that had each letter angled slightly differently to produce an upward or downward slant, according to Uni-Watch.

This was how it was done until 2006, when the Braves switched from vertical arching to the easier-to-produce radial arching.

In 2014, the Braves did away with nameplates all together. This is how things looked until this upcoming season, thanks to the new number and lettering uniformity implemented by Nike.

The helmet logos have changed

Yeah, we're still not done. The last thing that has been tinkered with over the years is the helmet logo. From 1987-2014, the Braves helmet logo was noticeably fatter than the cap logo.

But then, during a series in Boston, the Braves changed the helmet logo to match the cap logo without any fanfair.

In 2017, the Braves made another alternation, making the logo 3D. They'd revert back to a flat logo in 2018, but the logo has been 3D since 2019.

Conclusion

Although Nike's decision to force the Braves to alter its uniform makes the uniform uglier, it's important to remember that the club has constantly altered all aspects of the team's uniform over the last 36 years, well before Nike took over.

From the script to the caps, the Braves probably alter something again in the future, and it might be something even more noticeable.

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