Say whatever you want about the MLB Players’ Weekend jerseys this season.
The all-white and all-black unis certainly were not everyone’s cup of tea, but players certainly had plenty of other opportunities to display some sick flair on the field — mostly with their cleats.
We saw all kinds of spikes throughout the weekend. Some players honoring their home countries, playing off their nicknames, honoring their favorite player or TV show, while others were just downright out there. All-in-all, there was some sick footwear out on the ball diamond this weekend.
Let’s take a look at some of the best.
Honorable mention — Michael Chavis, Boston Red Sox — So Chavis gets an honorable mention mostly because he didn’t actually get to wear these cleats because he is on a rehab assignment in Triple-A Pawtucket with a shoulder injury. Still, the Ice Horse had the perfect cleat design planned, playing off of his nickname with a taste of “Game of Thrones.”
No. 10 — Rhys Hoskins, Philadelphia Phillies — The Phillies slugger decided to dedicate his Players’ Weekend cleats to his dog Rookie. And we can confirm, Rookie is a very good boy.
No. 9 — Tommy Pham, Tampa Bay Rays — Pham joined Adam Jones in honoring rapper Nipsey Hussle, who was murdered in March. We particularly love how the design stuck with black and white to match the uniform scheme, but incorporated a ton of detail without making it look too busy.
No. 9 — Christian Yelich, Jack Flaherty and Kole Calhoun — A number of players paid tribute to former Los Angeles Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs, who died in early July. Flaherty rocked the cleats on the top left and tossed six shutout innings on Friday night. We’re also a really big fans of the purple and gold look Yelich had.
No. 7 — Aaron Judge, New York Yankees — Players’ Weekend coincided with the final weekend of the Little League World Series and Judge wanted to recognize that. The Yankees slugger rocked classic all-white Adidas spikes signed by all 217 LLWS players. The various colored markers provided some cool accent, and we just love the way those Adidas look on their own to be honest.
No. 6 — Trevor Williams, Pittsburgh Pirates — Trevor Williams is all-in on the storm Area 51 movement and we are all-in on these cleats designed by @Cody_Sabol. They are absolutely filthy and some of the more creative ones we saw all weekend.
No. 5 — Cameron Maybin, New York Yankees — Oh the 90’s nostalgia is so real here. “Hey Arnold” and “Doug” references get Maybin an automatic top five.
No. 4 — Mookie Betts, Boston Red Sox — The reigning American League MVP absolutely crushed his cleat game out of the park. The outfielder rocked three different pairs of cleats this weekend, two dedicated to his daughter, and another to Big Papi — 3-for-3 with three bombs, if you ask us.
No. 3 — Kris Bryant, Chicago Cubs — Not only did Bryant collaborate with artists @afrokilla and Blake Jones to make these slick, creative cleats for the whole weekend, but the three pairs will be auctioned off to benefit spinal cord research. Definitely the best variety we saw this weekend when it came to footwear.
No. 2 — Derek Holland, Chicago Cubs — A lot of epic pop culture references were featured in these rankings, but this is the best of them. Holland gave a nod to the cast of the NBC hit and Netflix favorite “The Office.” You miss 100 percent of the shots you don’t take, and Holland nailed this one.
No. 1 — Pete Alonso, New York Mets — Perhaps an upset here at the top going with Alonso over Holland. So, the all-white Players’ Weekend uniforms weren’t the best thing in the world, but man did Alonso’s spikes go perfectly with them. The rookie slugger’s cleats played off his “Polar Bear” moniker, which we like, and the design is probably the most unique of the weekend. We specifically love the brick design in the strap. Simple, yet dripping with swag. We wish Alonso could rock these every day.
