Baseball hats are a staple of American fashion. They are so ingrained in American society that businesses and brands create them for the purpose of advertising and fashion without the intent of baseball ever to be played while wearing them. According to Vogue, baseball hats that we recognize took its place in the baseball world in the early 1900s.
While baseball hats were worn by baseball players even as far back as the 1800s, the first logo added to the crown was done by the Detroit Tigers in 1901. After decades of change to bill material and length, and crown height, the hat we know and love today had been near fully evolved by the 1950s. From that point on, baseball hats will continue to expand their presence in American life and fashion.
Collectors of Baseball Hats
To some, baseball hats are for dirt, sweat, and the great outdoors. For many more, baseball hats are an accent to completing a casual outfit. However, to some others, they are collectors items with stories to tell. Slam Station would like to show spotlight on some life-long collectors. Some of which are award winning, and all of whom named are easily accessible through social media to share their passion and stories.
Spencer S
Any hat wearer in the tri-state area should be following Spencer on social media. He has accumulated a collection of over 1000 Yankees, Jets, and Nets hats and shows them off daily with his “Hat of the Day” post every morning to start his followers days off with a smile. There is a method to the madness: Spencer buys multiple of each hat at a time and retires each hat after 4 years of beating worn.
He rotates hats like a NASCAR pit crew changes tires, which always keeps him looking razor sharp. Need you worry, he has plenty of games to wear them to, having been a season ticket holder for both the Yankees and the Nets for over 20 years. Spencer was a finalist in the 2020 Lids Ultimate Hat Collection, and then selected as a contestant in the Lids Hat Battle in 2021.
Twitter: @Muzixndmd
Dawn Risueno
Who says you can’t play ball like a girl? Dawn Risueno is in a league of her own with her collection of eye turning headwear. This Brooklyn gal began her collection in the 1980s for the practical purpose of wearing her hair in a ponytail and keeping cool during hot summer days. These days, Dawn’s collection is all about flaunting style. She specifically wears hats that are not commonly worn so she remains chique and unique. Today, Dawns collection sits at a jaw-dropping count of 600.
Twitter: @Jeannie2321
James Christopher
James Christopher is as American as they come: boy from Texas and U.S Army veteran with a love for family, baseball, and Hollywood. Being as creative as he is, he combines all three on his show “Let’s Get Two” available on YouTube.
Through his show, James travels the backroads of America and goes boots-on-the-ground into the Minor League and Independent League ballparks in America’s soulful hometowns. While his hat collection features a timeline of his own hometown Houston Astros, James’ collection is mostly made up of hundreds of MiLB and independent league baseball hats from around the country.
He rarely purchases a hat without featuring it on his show Lets Get Two which he uses to educate the audience about the teams and towns which they belong to. So many of these towns are practically unheard of, but the stories he shares of them are truly unforgettable.
Twitter: @LetsGet2TheShow
YouTube: https://youtube.com/@letsgettwo
Hardy The Hat Guy
Hardy The Hat Guy is the undisputed king of headwear. His collection spans over 1000 baseball hats, and the Major League teams are just the top of the iceberg is his titanic of a collection. Hardy has the hat from every high school, college, American Legion, College summer league, Minor League and Independent league team in the state of Indiana.
For Hardy, this is more than a hobby. Almost every high school and college hat was picked up from the school by him personally and exchanged a handshake, conversation, and of course selfie with the coaches and/or athletic director. Each hat is personal, individual, and unique in its travels, just as he is himself.
Hardy’s baseball hat collection is so unique because it demonstrates how baseball is the common thread that binds Americans together. No matter how different we all are as individuals from the way we look or the language we speak, baseball somehow keeps us all one in the same, connected to each other.
Twitter: @HardyTheHatGuy
Have a hat collection you think Slam Station should recognize? Hit us up on Twitter and let us know!
