Rule 1.11 and the Codification of the Cap

In the Official Baseball Rules, Rule 1.11 outlines uniform requirements for Major League players—including the cap. Specifically, Rule 1.11(a)(1) mandates that all players must wear uniforms that are identical in color, trim, and style—including headwear. This wasn’t always the case. In baseball’s early days, players occasionally wore different styles of caps, even on the same team. It wasn’t until the early 20th century that the uniform standardization began to crystallize.

The cap became more than just a sun shield. It became identity. By the 1940s, every major league team had an established cap design and colorway. Yet even as logos grew larger and brims grew stiffer, the navy wool cap remained a constant in both professional and amateur circles. It was the everyman’s cap—a connection to a purer, less commercial version of the game.

A Cap Without a Logo, but Never Without Meaning

This specific Ebbets cap pays tribute to that legacy. Unbranded, unadorned, yet unmistakable. It’s a nod to baseball’s roots—before TV deals, before billion-dollar franchises, before players became brands. It’s the cap your grandfather might’ve worn while listening to games on the radio. The one a minor league pitcher might’ve pulled low over his brow before toeing the rubber on a sunbaked diamond.

Still Worn, Still Relevant

Today, the navy wool ballcap lives on not just as retro fashion, but as an emblem of baseball purity. It represents the eternal spirit of the game—the backyard catch, the neighborhood team, the first pop fly you ever tracked under a summer sky. And in a world of rapid change, that kind of permanence is rare.

Why This Cap Endures

This isn’t nostalgia for nostalgia’s sake. It’s reverence. The Ebbets Vintage Navy Wool Ballcap is stitched with intentionality. It’s not about fitting into trends. It’s about remembering where the game came from—and what it still means to people who never stopped loving it.