MLB City Connect jerseys 2026: Ranking all 8 uniforms unveiled Thursday

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A new MLB season means a new batch of City Connect uniforms, and the league opted to unveil all eight in a coordinated rollout on Thursday.

Each City Connect is meant to be distinct from its team’s regular uniforms, while incorporating various elements from its setting. There are some true highlights out there, and also some of the ugliest uniforms you’ll see on a professional baseball player.

The 2026 group of eight uniforms has a variety along those lines. Here’s how we ranked them:

8. Texas Rangers

(Photo by Billie Weiss/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

Cochineal red anchors a design steeped in Texas and Mexican heritage, highlighted by the “Tejas” chest wordmark, a charro-embossed belt and mariachi-inspired fill patterns.

These are nowhere near as bland as the Los Angeles Dodgers’ infamous “Los Dodgers” City Connects, which were so bad they reworked the hat the next year. Unfortunately, this still very much looks like a generic college uniform overall.

What helps this uniform from the bottom is the little details. The art on the jersey sleeve, the texture of the hat logo and the trim on the ends of the sleeves and down the pants all make this uniform a stronger package than at first glance, but still pretty weak.

7. Milwaukee Brewers

A water-toned base and cream accent evoke Wisconsin’s endless lakes, sandy shores and sandstone bluffs, while a gradient wordmark captures the state’s beautiful summer sunsets. A “Wisco” wordmark on the chest, state motto on the collar, bobber jock tag detail and redesigned Barrelman sleeve patch round out a uniform that celebrates the team’s history and Wisconsin’s rich heritage.

This is already a tough sell because the previous Brewers City Connects were a strong entry. This one is colorful, has some fun gradients and even finds a use for the Barrelman logo the franchise wisely moved on from in 1977.

Where it gets awkward is that “Wisco” isn’t exactly a popular nickname in-state, and they’ve made it the jersey’s central feature. That causes this all to feel pretty forced. Here’s a question: couldn’t they have just put “Wisconsin” on the jersey, if that’s what they’re going for?

6. San Diego Padres

Celebrating the Padres’ bi-national region and culture through honoring its traditions and families with a focus on Día de los Muertos, the design features a sunset-ombre “San Diego” chest wordmark, La Catrina sleeve patch, marigold-patterned trim, bone colored hat and pants, and papel picado jock tag.

The Padres had so much to work with. Honoring their city’s proximity to Mexico — both geographically and culturally — and aligning that broad concept with Día de los Muertos (unlike another team on this list) is an A-plus start.

But the end result is … a uniform in which the only distinctive element is a jersey patch, which also happens to be smaller than the giant Motorola sponsor patch on the other sleeve. This is a boring miss, especially considering how vibrant the team’s previous City Connects were and how much these resemble the Giants’ preexisting City Connects.

5. Cincinnati Reds

Embracing the color that defines the franchise, pinstripes make a modern comeback in a tone-on-tone style and a nod to the popular vest-style jersey last worn more than two decades ago. A sleeve graphic features the iconic Tyler Davidson Fountain, which begins flowing each year around Opening Day.

The featured logo here is distinctive, but everything else feels fairly bland. Pinstripes aren’t exactly fresh in baseball, the Tyler Davidson Fountain patch hides in the red-on-red coloring, and you wouldn’t know this is supposed to invoke a vest-style jersey unless told.

Combining red jerseys with red pants is also a risky move, as the whole thing could end up looking like a pajama set. We at least like this a lot more with the black cap than the red pinstriped one.

4. Pittsburgh Pirates

Built around Pittsburgh’s unmistakable black and gold identity, the uniform features a rugged, pirate-style wordmark whose font draws inspiration from the city’s “Sister Bridges.” Red accents and Jolly Roger elements add boldness without breaking the city’s iconic color palette.

The embrace of the Pirates’ buccaneer logo on the hat is a nice start, and it looks evolved enough to avoid invoking how Pittsburgh performed with it from 1997 to 2015.

The whole package comes off a little like the edgy cousin of the club’s usual black uniform, but this is still a good case in sticking with what works. After all, the Pirates’ central problems are rarely uniform- or stadium-related.

3. Baltimore Orioles

Rooted in the soul of Baltimore, the design pays tribute to Camden Yards through motifs including the brass home run plaques, wrought-iron scoreboard clock and a Camden “B” inspired by the 1890s Baltimore Baseball Club. An Oriole bird sits perched proudly atop the “BMORE” wordmark.

More than a few reasonable people will put forth Camden Yards as the best ballpark in MLB. It also happens to be one of the most historically important, singlehandedly kicking off the trend of retro stadiums the league still follows to this day. That makes it a great choice for a City Connect tribute.

There is admittedly a bit of a “college summer league” vibe going on here, but the jersey patch mimicking the plaques placed on Eutaw Street whenever a home run ball reaches there might be the coolest design element on this list.

2. Kansas City Royals

A bold fuchsia-to-blue gradient draws inspiration from Kansas City’s official City of Fountains logo, channeling the spirit of the city’s people and iconic waterways. The updated “R” logo pays homage to the Club’s original 1969 mark, while a heart logo reflects Kansas City’s place as the nation’s heartland.

Here’s where the competition really picks up. The City of Fountains art lends itself perfectly to a baseball uniform, giving it a timeless feel that makes you wonder why these aren’t the Royals’ regular uniforms.

If there are nitpicks, they are that this could basically be a (very good) standard home uniform in a field where you want something a little more out there, and the hat featuring a stylized version of the top of the Kauffman Stadium scoreboard might be a little too abstract for a cap logo.

Still, no one’s going to be complaining when the Royals bring these out.

1. Atlanta Braves

A brighter powder blue anchors the design as a modernized callback to the Club’s beloved 1980s uniforms. Red piping, an updated “Atlanta” script and “ATL” block letter sleeve patch marry vintage style with today’s team colors.

Where to even begin?

First of all, we’re always going to be fans of pullover uniforms as an alternate, especially when we’re dealing in the retro sphere. That lower-case ‘a’ hat is going to sell by the truckload. The powder blue is perfect. The throwback “Atlanta” logo is perfect.

The standout, though, is the “ATL” jersey patch that invokes the “TBS” logo from when Ted Turner used his cable station to make the Braves a national television presence. That strategy gained the Braves more than their fair share of fans, and these uniforms should, too.

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