Cardinals add retro jersey for Saturday home games

ST. LOUIS (AP) -- For the first time in 80 years, the St. Louis Cardinals will feature the city's name on a home jersey.

The Cardinals are adding a new retro jersey to wear next season at Saturday home games. For eight decades, all home jerseys have had "Cardinals" on the front along with the birds on the bat logo.

The new jersey, an off-white color with red piping along the collar and down the front, will read "St. Louis." The style is similar to jerseys worn in Stan Musial's heyday in the 1940s and 1950s. The birds on the bat remain, but have enhanced stitching.

The Cardinals will be the 27th team in the major leagues to add an alternate jersey and the fourth to use off-white.

All of the team's jerseys will feature more detail in the embroidery, consistent with the graphic logo used by the club since 1998. The size of the numbers on the front of the jersey will shrink from 4 inches to 3 ½ inches.

The team will wear red caps on the road, while the blue cap will remain as a road alternate. New batting practice hats also will debut next year.