I absolutely loved what New Era started in Minnesota at the 2014 MLB All Star Game by designing special All Star caps that honored the host team. The potential was set up for new caps every year on All Star night to tell a different story about a host team's uniform history or local culture, while also allowing the game a rare chance to have some fun and get creative with their usually sacrosanct brands -- not to mention increasing merchandise sales in the process. Unfortunately, that was a trend that only lasted two seasons.
So in an effort to show what could have been, each season I take it upon myself to continue what New Era once started and design my own concept caps for the MLB All Star Game. For the 2018 ASG in Washington D.C., I dipped into the city's baseball past to help inspire the cap design, while also taking cues from that time period and D.C.'s world-famous cherry blossoms to create a campaign that celebrates the nation's capital as well as the national pastime.
New Era Diamond Era 59FIFTY Official Game Cap
The Design Process
The hat design was inspired by the 1950s-era Washington Senators cap, as seen above modeled by the great Harmon Killebrew.
The cap's underbrim features a flowery design that pays tribute to the city's world-famous Cherry Blossom trees.
The look of the promotional campaign is styled like advertisements from the 1950s, complete with bright yellow background and the realistic painting/illustrations of that period.
