Friday, May 27, 2016

Chad Wallach Cincinnati Reds Spring Training Jersey


I recently acquired this Chad Wallach Spring Training jersey on the MLB Auctions webpage.  I really liked the new Spring Training logos used this year, and that served as some of my justification for the price of this jersey, which was still well under what a new authentic jersey would demand on the Shop MLB website.  But regardless of what kind of "deal" I got, blowing anything on something like this inherently counterproductive to my ongoing efforts to load up on Wallach baseball cards.  I can't imagine ever having much occasion to wear this jersey, and it's not going to end up framed, so it's probably going to hang in a closet with what is slowly becoming an alarming number of collectible jersey's for guy who doesn't collect jerseys. 

The "interstate" Spring Training patch is made out of a sort of firm rubber material, and the MLB logo on the back is of the same material.  The Reds patch, and running man logo are both of the more traditional variety.  The other distinction with this jersey is the Spring Training logo pattern used on the numbers on the back.  I noticed this at some Spring Training games this year, and just thought it was some sort of ugly color variant from afar.  Up close, it's kind of cool, but what's the point if the only way to tell is up close?

This marks the second jersey of the Wallach trio of children that I've come across.  A year or two ago a reader sent me a Matt Wallach St. Patricks Day green Dodger jersey.  I mentioned it in that post and I'll mention it here again, but I'm curious how much stuff these guys actually get to keep.  I'm talking about the Spring Training invites with little to no expectation of making the roster.  There must be an impulse to take everything from jersey's on down to extra gum home with you as keepsakes.  At some point in player's career, I'm sure it becomes gratuitous, but it has to be sort of cool to see your name on a big league jersey for the first time, even if an MLB career is the expectation and you've enjoyed success/fame in college and/or the minors.  So I feel a little guilty having these hang in my closet if the players themselves weren't able to shove a couple jersey's into their travel bags when they left.  For that reason, it's a standing offer, if Matt or Chad Wallach ever stumble across these post and would like these jersey's back, just ask, they're literally yours.





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