It’s safe to say baseball fans aren’t too happy with MLB’s new batting helmets that come with ads.
The league announced a deal last month with Strauss, a German workwear apparel company, to put the company logo on both sides of every helmet during the postseason in yet another on-field uniform ad.
Social media was abuzz, to say the least, on Tuesday after fans got their first look at the logo during the first day of wild-card round play.
“Is there anything MLB @MLB won’t put advertising on?” Trent Mongero, a high school baseball coach, wrote on X. “Just cheapens the look of the MLB product, in my opinion. Now the batting helmets? Looks like the local little league with sponsors on the jerseys. Is it me, or does this irk anyone else?”
MLB has allowed jersey ads since 2023, causing frustration for many baseball watchers.
Frank Paul Santangelo Jr., son of former big leaguer F.P. Santangelo, wants nothing to do with Strauss after seeing the advertisements on Tuesday.
“I’m boycotting the Strauss company out of principle,” he wrote. “I don’t even know what that company is or what they do, but I’m never purchasing anything because they ruined helmets in the playoffs.”
They were far from alone.
“I’ll say it again: these stupid ass advertisements on these postseason helmets are ridiculous,” WFAN host Danielle McCartan wrote on X. “Rob Manfred continues to run MLB like a poverty company.”
“Hey @MLB the ads on the helmets are embarrassing,” another user said on the platform. “Guess what, you don’t need to squeeze every last dollar out of the game. Have a little respect for it.”
