Being a pioneer has its pluses and minuses.
That's the lesson the Los Angeles Dodgers have learned this season, regarding their 3-D batting helmet logos.
The raised logos -- the first such helmet graphics in Major League Baseball history -- were introduced in April and have drawn interest from fans and other teams but have also been problematic, because the rigid, plastic "LA" marks have frequently chipped, cracked or come askew.
Dodgers having all kinds of trouble with those 3D helmet logos so far this season. pic.twitter.com/XwWfF7YyRT
— Paul Lukas (@UniWatch) August 19, 2016
"We were just breaking 'em every day -- not just during games, but during travel," said Dodgers equipment manager Mitch Poole, who would replace the broken logos with new ones. "I could barely keep up with it. We had about 160 of the logos and now I'm down to six."
So now Poole is switching gears. He has ordered a fresh batch of 3-D logos, but the new set is made of Santoprene, a rubber-like polymer that's flexible and therefore shouldn't crack. Poole expects to receive a batch of the new logos in time for Friday night's game against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park. He'll begin swapping in the new logos as the old ones break.
Rigid plastic 3D helmet logos have been problematic, so Dodgers are switching to a flexible rubber-like polymer. pic.twitter.com/yygpZ0lj2o
— Paul Lukas (@UniWatch) August 19, 2016
"With these, you could take a hammer to them and they wouldn't break," said David Sulecki, owner of Pro Helmet Decals, the Florida-based vendor that has supplied both sets of logos. "It probably would have been better to go with this material from the start, but there just wasn't time to test things out beforehand."
The new material has an additional advantage: Because the plastic logos are rigid, they were manufactured with a built-in curvature and had to be positioned in just the right "sweet spot" in order to adhere properly to the curved helmet shells. That won't be an issue with the new flexible logos, which should adhere more like a traditional logo decal.
If the new logos perform better than the old ones, other MLB teams might adopt them next season. Poole said the New York Mets' and Washington Nationals' equipment staffs had spoken with him about the 3-D logos, and Sulecki said he has fielded inquiries from the New York Yankees and Houston Astros. The Yankees switched to matte-finish batting helmets for road games earlier this season, suggesting that their longstanding reluctance to tinker with their uniform program might be diminishing.
Paul Lukas writes about uniforms for ESPN.com. You can follow him on Twitter and Facebook. Want to learn about his Uni Watch Membership Program, be added to his mailing list so you'll always know when a new column has been posted, or just ask him a question? Contact him here.