Early City Connect jersey thoughts. Plus: Konnor Griffin's deal, a 'compromise

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The Pirates, Padres, Brewers, Orioles and Rangers previously teased today’s releases. Those six teams joined the Braves, whose City Connect 2.0 uniform was released in late March (and whose intro videos remain undefeated). Now that we have some jersey reveals, here are my thoughts on them (click on each team’s name to see its uniform): Rangers: I appreciate the “Tejas” nod — the team could certainly use a little goodwill on that front — but even as someone who grew up loving the Nolan Ryan-era uniforms, my first reaction is that the red on red is just too Soon … ers. Padres: The jersey seems fine. The hat is a throwback to an era when the Padres uniforms were just so lost. I’ve been so happy they returned to the brown and gold. Particularly at the cost of those neon City Connects, I’m bummed out about these. Reds: They sure are the (multiple, different) Reds! I’m not sure how these will look on TV, but I don’t hate them. Brewers: “Wisco” is a word no human should ever be forced to read and I’m sorry I wrote it out loud for you. The jerseys are … actually not bad. I like the orange! Orioles: I’m usually not a fan of the sleeves being a different color than the jerseys, but this dark green works so well. Good font, good jersey. I think these are a slight improvement over the black (and I really liked the black). Royals: These purple-and-blues are the best new color scheme I’ve seen in a while. So much better than their first ones! I’m so curious about the cap — hopefully they’ll stick the landing. Pirates: I am not a jersey-buying person, but this might make me reconsider. The font is perfectly Pirates without being corny — or featuring any typos to turn into goofy celebrations (complimentary). The matte/muted black and yellow are [chef’s kiss]. As with the Royals, let’s see how the caps look, but so far: City Connect 2.0 day is coming up Pittsburgh. (… and the Braves: The powder blues are fire.) I’m sure we’ll have some official rankings on the City Connect uniforms soon. I’ll let you know tomorrow if any of the caps significantly change my thoughts. Over to Ken for a deep dive on Griffin’s new deal. Invariably when young hitters sign long-term contracts, some player representatives grumble that he gave away too much upside, sacrificed too many millions. Griffin, the Pirates phenom shortstop, ultimately might face that reality if he turns into the superstar that nearly everyone in baseball expects him to become. But the nine-year, $140 million contract he signed Wednesday protects him better than these types of deals usually do. Griffin, who turns 20 on April 24, will be young enough at the end of the contract to strike an even bigger payday. His deal does not include club options. He will become eligible for free agency at 28, entering his age-29 season. The agreement marked the culmination of six months of discussions between the Pirates and Griffin’s agency, Excel Sports Management. People from both sides, granted anonymity for their candor, said that in the end, the nine-year term represented a compromise. The Pirates initially wanted 10 years of club control over Griffin. Excel preferred the number to be eight. For Griffin and Excel, the No. 1 priority was the size of the guarantee. Under the terms of the contract, obtained by The Athletic, Griffin will receive a $12 million signing bonus — $5 million up front, $3.5 million in 2027, $3.5 million in 2028. His three arbitration years, worth a combined $39.5 million, would put him near the top of the current arb market. His three free-agent years are worth a combined $81.5 million, and the contract includes $10 million in escalators. The Pirates initially offered eight years with two club options, a non-starter for Griffin’s camp, which did not want to delay his free agency until he was entering his age-30 season. Excel was open to an eight-year deal with one club option if the Pirates offered enough money. In a deal of that length, the Pirates might have gotten to $130 million, but not $140 million. So nine years it was, with no options. Fans might ask, how did Griffin receive a higher guarantee than Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony, who signed an eight-year, $130 million contract last August with one club option and escalators that could bring the total value to $230 million? Griffin is two years younger. He is an up-the-middle infielder, as opposed to a corner outfielder. And his minor-league performance last season practically broke the projection models teams use. As the predictions columns rolled in last month, the AL West seemed like an afterthought: The Mariners came within seven outs of the World Series in 2025. Every other team was flawed. Easy pick. And it’s probably still the Mariners. But after being swept in Texas this week, Seattle is 4-9 and in the division cellar. Here’s what’s going on with the other four teams: As for the Mariners, the problems look very … 2024. They rank worst in baseball in hard-hit rate (33.6 percent), tied with Pittsburgh for worst in average exit velocity (87.2 mph) and their xBA of .216 is third-worst in the sport. (I still think they’ll be fine.) More standings surprises: After beating Tarik Skubal and Framber Váldez on consecutive nights, the Twins are 6-6 — two games ahead of the 4-8 Tigers and just a game and a half behind Cleveland in the AL Central. Three days ago, the Giants and Red Sox were in crisis. Two days does not a turnaround make, but it can’t hurt, especially if you’re winning a series against a good team. The Giants held the Phillies scoreless over 20 innings, and the Red Sox throttled the Brewers. Shohei Ohtani, the pitcher, saw his scoreless streak end at 24 2/3 innings, thanks to an unearned run in Toronto. Ohtani, the hitter, walked once, and has now reached base in 43 consecutive games, tying Ichiro Suzuki for a record by Japanese-born players. If you think Chase DeLauter’s swing looks strange, you’re not alone. The Guardians rookie says he doesn’t care, as long as it works. Sam Blum spoke to Dodgers fans about the team selling the naming rights to the field. The reactions ranged from indifference to disgust. Keith Law’s Draft Rankings 2.0 are here, with Roch Cholowsky still atop the list (but there are other contenders now). Davey Lopes, who was one of the game’s most prolific base-stealers, has passed away at 80 years of age. Most-clicked in our last newsletter: Called it. The full video of Jorge Soler and Reynaldo López going at it in the Braves-Angels bench-clearing brawl. 📫 Love The Windup? Check out The Athletic’s other newsletters. Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms