CHICAGO — Oh, goody. Joe Maddon
can wear his hoodie.
Major League Baseball reversed its ban
Tuesday, telling the Tampa Bay Rays manager he can resume putting on
his pullover.
"Hoodie-gate is over," Maddon said. "I
received a call today saying cooler heads had prevailed. I'm now able
to wear the hoodie any time I'd like."
Maddon wasted no time, either. He wore
it on a brisk, 55-degree night before the Rays played the Chicago White
Sox. Tampa Bay took a seven-game winning streak and the majors' best
record into the matchup.
"It's so nice that I can wear my
hoodie without any concern that it may result in some form of
punishment," he said. "I'm just happy to say on behalf of all the
hoodie-wearers everywhere that MLB is back in line with a subculture
that I can really, truly identify with."
MLB sent out a memo last Friday
reminding managers and coaches they could only wear approved jerseys or
outerwear. Baseball confirmed it had reversed its ruling, without
elaborating.
"It's good for the youth in the United
States who are grabbing onto Major League Baseball for the first time,"
Maddon said. "I'm sure the hoodie is their favorite piece of clothing,
right next to the hat."
Maddon prefers the pullover to big
coats, which he wore over the weekend when the Rays played Boston at Fenway
Park.
Maddon has been somewhat of a baseball
fashion plate in the past. In 2008, he was among the first to wear
MLB-approved caps with the Elmer Fudd-style ear flaps in the postseason.
"We get cold. There's no doubt about
it," New York Yankees manager Joe Girardi said, sporting a hoodie of his
own on a chilly night in Oakland before playing the Athletics.
He planned to switch to a jacket.
"I'm really happy that I don't have
to wear a shirt and tie," he said.