Blue Jays to honour Canadian Forces on Memorial Day
By Matt Fisher
The story behind the Blue Jays Memorial Day uniforms this season goes beyond just paying tribute to the Canadian Forces, whereas the rest of Major League Baseball will be wearing United States military-inspired jerseys. There are legal issues involved with the Toronto uniforms. Brendan Kennedy of The Toronto Star says that the reason Toronto hasn’t done this in the past is because it is illegal in Canada for non-military personnel to wear anything with the military pattern. What the Blue Jays will wear on Monday is akin to a replica jersey. It’s similar, but not an exact copy of the pattern used by the Canadian Forces.
"“The materials and the inks have certain properties that are useful from a military perspective and those items are top secret,” said Anthony Partipilo, the Jays’ vice-president of marketing and merchandise. “(The design) is the closest thing you can get to it in terms of simulating it.”"
The uniform will contain the colours worn by the Canadian Forces, and the pattern is an approximation, as the Canadian military would not release the pattern to the Jays for use. This marks the first time ever that Canadian Forces jerseys have been worn by a Canadian Major League Baseball team. The colours have already been used by the National Hockey League’s Ottawa Senators and Toronto Maple Leafs. This is what the cap will look like.
Toronto opens a three-game set at home against the Tampa Bay Rays on Memorial Day.