Disgusting Cubs jersey flaw shockingly isn't Fanatics fault for once

Fanatics and Nike have certainly taken a beating since the start of MLB spring training and even more so at the start of the regular season for the rollout of the new baseball jerseys. Players have bemoaned the new digs, fans have been vocally displeased, and the list goes on.

So when the Chicago Cubs held their home opener at Wrigley Field on Monday, it must've felt like a cruel April Fool's joke when some fans began to notice a true eyesore on the team's jerseys. And it was one that you couldn't help but notice after you were made aware of it.

As soon as cameras cut to close-ups of the players during the national anthem and being introduced, fans quickly noticed that the secondary Cubs logo patch on the sleeves were not consistent. That is to say, some players had the logo on their right sleeve while others had it on their left sleeve.

No question, that looks terrible and it's reasonable to think, given how the new jerseys have gone over thus far, that this would be a continuation of those issues. But this actually has nothing to do with Fanatics and Nike.

Don't Blame Fanatics! Cubs jersey patch mismatch is all about the money

As one Twitter/X user noted after the initial photos of the mismatched logo patches on the sleeves from player-to-player, this is actually intentional from MLB and the Cubs alike to leave room for future advertising on jersey sleeves.

If you're wondering why that would cause the patches to be on different sleeves for different players, it's not the most intuitive answer but, from an advertising perspective, it does actually make sense.

Right-handed hitters have the patch on their right arm and left-handed hitters have it on their left. The result of this is that, when a player is in the batter's box, the ad on the opposite sleeve would be facing the cameras that broadcasts use most heavily over the pitcher's shoulder and back, thus giving the team and MLB that sweet, sweet camera time and whatever advertiser the revenue dollars they're looking for.

Is that better or worse than another screw-up for the jersey release? Honestly, neither is all that great. But the Cubs made it look exponentially worse by not having the ad already on the opposite sleeve of the logo patch, which just adds to confusion and serves as an ugly sight.