There’s nothing quite like going to the ballpark and smelling the fresh cut grass, damp dirt and grilled hot dogs in the air, double-fisting a couple beers and wearing your favorite (and lucky) cap to show your support for your squad.
And with baseball in full swing, it got us thinking about some of the ballplayers who have proven to wear their team’s caps better than anyone else ever has.
Becoming an MLB player takes talent and hard work, but only a few who get there have shown the swag in a cap as well as these players have.
Coco Crisp
- Associated Press
Not only does the Oakland Athletics outfielder have one of the most unique names in MLB history, but he’s rocked one of the freshest fros anyone has ever seen, letting it pour out of his cap as if it were a waterfall or something.
Crisp may never be an All-Star, but he deserves a spot in the Hall of Fame strictly because of that hair of his.
Ken Griffey Jr.
There are iconic moments, poses and reactions from some of our athletes, and the one that everyone remembers the most from Hall of Famer Ken Griffey Jr.—besides that sweet stroke of his—is the backwards cap he always wore.
Playing the game with a youthful passion that no one could match, Junior’s lid became a staple for him throughout his career, which influenced a ton of kids to do the same thing while out on the diamond growing up, myself included.
Andrew McCutchen
Long known for having dreadlocks that ran past his shoulders, former NL MVP and Pittsburgh Pirates All-Star Andrew McCutchen always knew how to rock a ball cap, but his just fits a little better nowadays.
Cutch, who has led the Pirates to three-straight playoff appearances following a two-decade drought—decided to chop his dreads off for charity in 2015, donating each lock for auction that benefitted various Pirates charities.
Whether long or short hair, the good news for Bucs fans is that the guy’s still a stud.
Johnny Damon
Back during his playing days, former outfielder Johnny Damon was known for being relaxed and fun, even being one of the aptly-named “Idiots” on the 2004 Boston Red Sox World Series team.
Part of that personality came out with his Jesus-like look during Boston’s unprecedented run that season, as he rocked the long hair and beard better than anyone before him, making me think that there really was a higher power looking over those Sox on their quest to breaking the “Curse of the Bambino.”
Jacob deGrom
The flow on New York Mets pitcher Jacob deGrom is, arguably, the best in the Bigs right now, as it whips around every time he fires a 100-plus mile per hour heater towards an opposing player.
Falling out the back of his cap and covering the top of his Mets jersey is sick and all—we’re truly jealous—but the fact that batters have actually complained about how distracting it is while at the plate is even more dope, as deGrom actually uses his locks to an advantage.
Manny Ramirez
Former outfielder Manny Ramirez sure was a character, wasn’t he?
While some of his hilarious memories include peeing inside Fenway Park’s Green Monster in-between innings and playing cut-off man from about 100 feet away in the outfield, when Ramirez was traded to the L.A. Dodgers, it was his hair that took center stage.
Long dreads that stretched past his shoulders, “Manny Just Being Manny” included a Dodgers cap that appeared as if it had a glued on wig spilling out the back. Does anyone know when he last washed those things?
Oscar Gamble
While the aforementioned Coco Crisp might have the best afro in the big leagues nowadays, back in the day, no one had it as good as Oscar Gamble did.
Seriously, Gamble’s fro was incredible, making me wonder if he was using that spray on hair that used to be advertised on TV to get a little extra flow to it as it spilled out of his cap every game.
The dude had so much hair that it’s a scientific mystery how Gamble’s cap even stayed on his head.
Derek Jeter
Pure class.
That’s the best way to describe former New York Yankees captain Derek Jeter—and the way he wore his cap propped up on the bridge of his forehead made it seem as if he was made to play shortstop of the Yanks.
There was just something about it that was both majestic and iconic, as the bill always seemed to fall in the perfect spot and had the ideal crease in it. Jeter looked like a ballplayer is supposed to look while out on the field—and seems like the perfect capper to this all-cap squad.