Baseball Caps (in moderation)?

[FrankMc]

I wear ball caps as often as I do my fedora and cowboys hats. I find them comfortable and they do the job intended whether it's work or play. I believe they look good on me and help to round out casual attire, whether backing my favorite teams or just working and doing chores.

 

[rclark]

My son plays baseball and my daughter plays softball, and we are all big baseball fans, so I wear them quite often.

 

[LeBois46]

I have a large collection of BB caps. However now living in a very sunny environment, I have as the result of having to "carve" a number of growths off my ears, neck and side of face switched in large part to fedoras' They also seem cooler than BB caps.

 

[Fed in a Fedora]

At times, I find myself in places where my good hats are not a great idea. Riding Harleys and scuba diving trips come quickly to mind. Then, various Harley hats, Sam's Tours of Palau or my Goex Black Powder hat seem to fit the need. (I sometimes stuff a smaller crowned converted cowboy hat into the Harley's saddle bag - if I can spare the space.)

Of course, tweaking the Mississippi home crowd is necessary at times, so the LSU Fighting Tigers hats might show up for limited engagements.

Fed

 

[belfastboy]

Yes, I have a large collection of BB caps in addition to my fedoras and panamas. They have a place. My fave is a Texas Ranger (blue& red) from Roman Pro. Well made hat and sorry to see when they went under. The New Era hats of today are well made but not nearly as well made as the Roman's.

 

[Winston Carter]

I'm a hat man. Ballcap, Fedora, Western. Love them all.

 

[Zombie_61]

I rarely wore hats or caps of any kind most of my life. I didn't care for them and didn't think they looked right on me. Still, I owned a ball cap or two here and there over the years, usually the cheap ones with the plastic snap size adjuster in the back that were given to me as part of some form of promotion because they have some company's logo on the front.

Since becoming a dedicated hat wearer a decade ago, I've come to appreciate hats as functional items of clothing and now wear them for sun and rain protection as much as because I like them. I still didn't care for ball caps, but a little over a year ago realized they have their use off of the baseball field--doing a little yardwork, helping a friend move, etc.--those times when fur felts and wool flat caps are too hot and I don't want to risk damaging the only straw hat I have (so far). So after consulting a good friend who has been wearing ball caps for more than three decades to protect his bald head from the sun and cold, I finally bought the first ball cap that I actually wanted. And I've bought two more since then. I can't see them replacing my fedoras any time soon, but it's nice to have them as an alternative.

 

[deadlyhandsome]

I think there are times and places for baseball hats, I just chose not to wear them based on personal preferences. I used to wear them when instructing as sponsors were always giving me free hats. My girls wear them now. Girls have a whole different set of rules.




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[Winston Carter]

This is one I really like since Uncle Sam has been paying me since 1974.

 

[Zombie_61]

...I used to wear them when instructing as sponsors were always giving me free hats...

Sounds like a situation similar to mine. At one point I was a delivery driver for an auto parts distributor where sales reps were regularly coming in, and they almost always handed out ball caps or beer cozys or something like that. Cheap advertising, I suppose, since even local drivers can cover a lot of ground in a single day.

This is one I really like since Uncle Sam has been paying me since 1974. View attachment 126531

That's a reason for wearing a ball cap that I fully support even though I was never in the military. And thank you for your service!

 

[Winston Carter]

Sounds like a situation similar to mine. At one point I was a delivery driver for an auto parts distributor where sales reps were regularly coming in, and they almost always handed out ball caps or beer cozys or something like that. Cheap advertising, I suppose, since even local drivers can cover a lot of ground in a single day.

That's a reason for wearing a ball cap that I fully support even though I was never in the military. And thank you for your service!

Your welcome. I stuck it out and got full benefits. Glad I did now. I have had 4 operations at VA plus pension. Now I got pension + SS. Never thought I would ever get here.

 

[AndyR]

Me too. Lots of ball caps. Most commemorate various hockey championships (Stanley Cup, Turner Cup, Calder Cup, and Canada Cup). Funny, they are 'ball caps' and out of all of mine, only two have to do with baseball.

 

[Winston Carter]

Me too. Lots of ball caps. Most commemorate various hockey championships (Stanley Cup, Turner Cup, Calder Cup, and Canada Cup). Funny, they are 'ball caps' and out of all of mine, only two have to do with baseball.

In the 70's they were called Gimme Cap or Trucker Hat. Everyone wore them.

 

[Zombie_61]

Me too. Lots of ball caps. Most commemorate various hockey championships (Stanley Cup, Turner Cup, Calder Cup, and Canada Cup). Funny, they are 'ball caps' and out of all of mine, only two have to do with baseball.

During the consultation with my friend that I mentioned in post #107 one of the things he suggested was to be careful about any logos on the cap I chose. His reason for this was quite simple--if you wear a hat with a logo for any sports team, or music group, or other organization, at some point someone will see it and want to have a conversation with you about that organization. I'm not a sports fan and don't really want to have a conversation with a stranger about my musical (or any other) interests, so for my first ball cap I chose a simple John Deere cap because a) I liked the color, and b) nobody in this part of California is going to want to have a conversation about John Deere.

In the 70's they were called Gimme Cap or Trucker Hat. Everyone wore them.

One of the things I learned while researching my first ball cap was that, among ball cap aficionados, the "trucker" cap is (or has become) a specific subset of ball cap--relatively inexpensive and easy to find, the kind with the plastic snap size adjuster and mesh crown behind the two front panels:

It might sound like nitpicking, but to some people it's apparently as important as the distinction between a fur felt Fedora and a synthetic fiber Trilby. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

[scottyrocks]

During the consultation with my friend that I mentioned in post #107 one of the things he suggested was to be careful about any logos on the cap I chose. His reason for this was quite simple--if you wear a hat with a logo for any sports team, or music group, or other organization, at some point someone will see it and want to have a conversation with you about that organization. I'm not a sports fan and don't really want to have a conversation with a stranger about my musical (or any other) interests, so for my first ball cap I chose a simple John Deere cap because a) I liked the color, and b) nobody in this part of California is going to want to have a conversation about John Deere.

One of the things I learned while researching my first ball cap was that, among ball cap aficionados, the "trucker" cap is (or has become) a specific subset of ball cap--relatively inexpensive and easy to find, the kind with the plastic snap size adjuster and mesh crown behind the two front panels:

It might sound like nitpicking, but to some people it's apparently as important as the distinction between a fur felt Fedora and a synthetic fiber Trilby. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Because when I wear a ball cap it is rarely for a local-to-me team, I usually get the inevitable, 'Oh, you like Cardinals?' type of comment. My reply is, 'No, I just like the hat.' That ends any further conversation as quickly as a Yugo hitting a brick wall.

I think trucker caps really took off shortly after Smokey and the Bandit (1977), when Jerry Reed wore one throughout the picture, his character being a truck driver. This is not to say that no one but truck drivers wore them before that, though.

 

[Zombie_61]

Because when I wear a ball cap it is rarely for a local-to-me team, I usually get the inevitable, 'Oh, you like Cardinals?' type of comment. My reply is, 'No, I just like the hat.' That ends any further conversation as quickly as a Yugo hitting a brick wall...

I've tried that, but I seem to be a magnet for the type of people who want to continue that conversation even after I've told them I have no knowledge of their favorite team and no interest in having that conversation.

...I think trucker caps really took off shortly after Smokey and the Bandit (1977), when Jerry Reed wore one throughout the picture, his character being a truck driver. This is not to say that no one but truck drivers wore them before that, though.

You could be right. Smokey and the Bandit was incredibly popular and was the second-highest grossing movie in the U.S. in 1977. It certainly increased sales of Pontiac's Trans Am, and it wouldn't be the first time a movie had such a strong influence on the general public.

 

[AndyR]

One of the things I learned while researching my first ball cap was that, among ball cap aficionados, the "trucker" cap is (or has become) a specific subset of ball cap--relatively inexpensive and easy to find, the kind with the plastic snap size adjuster and mesh crown behind the two front panels:
It might sound like nitpicking, but to some people it's apparently as important as the distinction between a fur felt Fedora and a synthetic fiber Trilby. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Now this is interesting and not nitpicking at all, because to me, it 'is' as important as the distinctions between our other hats. For instance, I consider the ultimate ball caps to be the fitted kind, without the plastic one size fits all snaps.

Those are more my 'dress' ball caps. Then I even have in between types, that still adjust, but with a cloth strap, small buckle and velcro.

Man, it's just like talking about liners and sweatbands. LOL!

 

[splintercellsz]

This cap is my go to, when not reaching for something made from felt.

It's been around the world, through many changes in the weather, and has seen enough of my blood, sweat, and tear to write it's own novel.

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[Zombie_61]

This cap is my go to, when not reaching for something made from felt.

It's been around the world, through many changes in the weather, and has seen enough of my blood, sweat, and tear to write it's own novel.

And just in case I've neglected to mention it before, thank you for your service. Great cap!

 

[johnnycanuck]

I found it odd that a forum dedicated to hats seemed so negative towards the most common hat on the market. No different to flat caps or bowlers of years ago.
I am a bit of a snob when it comes to my Ball caps. Not only do I hunt out New Era On-Field caps but I make sure they are made in USA. Yes there is a difference. I belong to another fourm that is all about them and its fascinating all the differences in something that is considered so simple.
My wife was just in Vegas and found a ton of USA made ones. Txted me and put me on the spot as to what one I wanted. So I have two new hats to break in.

Here is my entire collection of on-fields

Johnny