Ranking the 8 New MLB City Connect Jerseys for 2026
MLB's City Connect program is back for its fifth season, with eight new offerings for the 2026 campaign.
Last week, the Atlanta Braves, Baltimore Orioles, Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Royals, Milwaukee Brewers, Pittsburgh Pirates, San Diego Padres and Texas Rangers all unveiled new City Connects:
Here are our rankings from worst to first of the new threads.
8. Cincinnati Reds
1 of 8This is the second City Connect design for the Reds. While we aren't partial to the original one they introduced in 2023, Cincinnati has decided to keep that in rotation as their Friday home jerseys in 2026:
The new City Connects—which will be worn on Saturdays at Great American Ball Park—use the same "C." While the "C" on the chest is preferable to just slapping a "Cincy" script across the chest, it's still hard to shake the feeling that this specific "C" looks like a piece of bacon.
And it's like, really red. Too much red even for a team called, well, the Reds:
On a positive note, the Fountain Square sleeve patch is cool, though it would probably be better without the unnecessary "Cincy" on top.
Overall, this isn't a very good 2.0. Reasonable minds can disagree on the 1.0 the Reds have, but putting on the all-black uniform definitely added something different, while still tying into the team's color scheme. 2.0 is another red jersey for the Reds. It's already inferior to their other red tops (which are seen above).
7. Texas Rangers
2 of 8The original City Connect design that the Rangers wore from 2023-2025 were among the worst that the program has produced, which is saying something:
Unfortunately, the new "Tejas" City Connects likely also go near the bottom of the list. If you dyed them burnt orange, they would be a great alternate for the Texas Longhorns, but they really don't look like an MLB uniform. They come with a very collegiate feel.
One of the biggest problems with the City Connect program is that it has produced uniforms that you see, and you aren't even sure which team they're for. These fit into that category, as it's another red jersey in a sport with too many already.
Don't get it twisted, red is a secondary color for the Rangers, and the alternate seen above that was retired after the 2022 season to make room for the arrival of the original City Connect was actually pretty good. Perhaps we're overthinking things.
6. Milwaukee Brewers
3 of 8If this were for a minor-league baseball team, they would actually be pretty cool. The biggest issue here isn't necessarily that these are bad-looking uniforms, but rather that you have no idea they are the Brewers upon first glance.
As noted in the tweet above, the "Wisco" script pays homage to the American Association Milwaukee Brewers baseball club of the early 20th century, which may very well be true, but it's a bit too much of a deep cut.
Where we will give the Brewers some props is for creating a new sleeve patch involving Barrelman, who is such a ridiculous mascot that he's actually cool. Previously, it was assumed that Barrelman—also sometimes referred to as "Beer Barrel Man"—was just a hitter. As it turns out, Barrelman has a glove and could have survived in old-school National League Baseball.
One other thing to consider here is that even if this look has shortcomings, Milwaukee's 1.0 City Connect—worn from 2022-2025—was atrocious, and 2.0 sent those to the grave:
The main takeaway from the 2.0 design is that it's likely too gimmicky to grade out well as a uniform for the regular season. That said, the hat will look good if fans just wear it. There will be plenty of merchandise sales with the new Barrelman logo. This program is arguably more about selling hoodies and shirts than making a great on-field product.
5. Atlanta Braves
4 of 8These may not rank among the best powder-blue uniforms in baseball, but they still are a strong addition from the Braves, tying multiple eras of their franchise together.
The lowercase "a" was the primary logo for Atlanta from 1972 to 1980. Given its ties to Henry Aaron, it has been seen on multiple Braves throwbacks since then.
From 1980-1984, the Braves wore powder blue as their primary road shade, bringing back the shade for the 1986 season as well after wearing gray in 1985. Interestingly, in this case, they opted to just go with powder blue tops and a powder blue base cap color, but not bring back the powder blue pants:
A cool Easter Egg in these threads is the "ATL" sleeve patch, meant to pay homage to the TBS Superstation Era, when the Braves were telecast across the country:
It's possible that we're reaching a critical mass where too many teams are throwing it back to the 1980s with some variation of powder blue in the rotation. The 2.0 City Connect design for the Braves probably isn't necessary, but it definitely has some cool elements for the sickos.
4. Pittsburgh Pirates
5 of 8Don't get it twisted. This photoshoot has aura. But, as cool as PNC Park is, the Pirates aren't going to play their home games on a ship, so it will be interesting to see if there's a letdown upon seeing them in actual game action.
To be clear, these are definitely an improvement from the lazy "PGH" City Connects that the Pirates wore from 2023-2025:
The yellow hat with black brim on the City Connect 2.0s—which features the alternate Bucco logo that was all over merchandise in the 1990s and 2000s—is good.
Still, the Pirates run into a similar question as the Reds. Perhaps the hat will be a cool addition to the rotation, but the Pirates already had a really good black top to wear both at home and on the road:
It feels like the move here should have been a yellow top that draws more from the "We Are Family" Era, rather than trying to strike some balance between the past and future. These are cool, but they just feel a bit redundant.
3. San Diego Padres
6 of 8The pastel City Connects that the Padres wore from 2022-2025 were one of the most polarizing looks baseball has ever seen—you either loved or hated them:
The second City Connect design from the Friars keeps a similar "San Diego" script, but with a much quieter look. From our perspective, the first design was cool, but so are these:
Brown and gold is and has been the primary color scheme during much of the history of the Padres franchise. Still, the Padres' primary color scheme from 1991-2003 was navy blue and orange. Most notably during that period, the Padres won the 1998 NL pennant. These new City Connects definitely took some inspiration from the Tony Gwynn/Trevor Hoffman Era:
While the Friar sleeve patch that the Padres have donned for much of their history is a staple, the La Catrina patch on their second City Connect design—which is "an iconic symbol of Día de los Muertos," a holiday about remembering and celebrating our loved ones—is really cool. Even if you don't know all the context, it's pretty badass.
Where some of these uniforms peak in their opening photoshoot, there's a good chance the Padres' City Connect 2.0 will look even better in game action.
2. Kansas City Royals
7 of 8These won't be for everyone—especially the crown logo on the caps—but they have some pop and a variety of cool Easter eggs:
The Royals' original City Connects were based on the city's many incredible fountains, some of which are at the club's long-time home of Kauffman Stadium. It was a cool idea, but the execution was pretty boring on the 1.0 City Connect design the Royals wore from 2022-2025:
Some of the fountain inspiration is still present here, albeit in a different manner, as MLB.com's Anne Rogers noted:
"Featuring a fuchsia gradient into blue, the uniform's color treatment is a nod to the tones of a Midwestern summer sunset and the blue of water flowing through Kansas City's more than 200 fountains."
These new ones definitely swing in the other direction. It's possible the hat was too much of a gamble. There's going to be a lot of fans—particularly younger ones—that fall in love with this look, though.
1. Baltimore Orioles
8 of 8Even if you don't love a city nickname across the front of a jersey, it's hard to come to any conclusion other than the Orioles nailed this one.
Consider the context here, while the Orioles have a strong uniform rotation overall, their original City Connects—worn from 2023-2025—didn't stand out:
2.0 does stand out. In the same way that the Green City Connects the Boston Red Sox introduced last year pay homage to Fenway Park, these feel like Camden Yards, one of baseball's most iconic cathedrals.
The cartoon bird logo that the O's returned to as their primary cap logo in 2012 is their best look, but the more realistic bird most associated with Cal Ripken in the 1990s also returns here. It makes you think of the Hall of Famer high-fiving fans after breaking the consecutive games played streak on Sept. 6, 1995.
Baltimore arguably should have just gone with this matching hat for their second City Connect design:
MLB.com's Jake Rill has the details of what the cap that the Orioles will wear with their City Connects is inspired by:
The orange "B" logo featured on the hats, the helmets and the trim of the jerseys is inspired by the Baltimore Baseball Club of the 1890s. It's a symbol of the city's rich baseball history, and the mark was built into the green end seats in the ballpark when it first opened.
While the "B" on the cap is another one of those deep-cut stories, it's also a really good-looking hat. Props to the Orioles on this whole look.
