When the Boston Red Sox released the first images of their 2026 home uniforms, fans quickly noticed something off. The spacing of the "Red Sox" logo on the front of the jerseys was different from previous years, with the "D" and "S" touching the red piping on either side of the buttons.
Boston fans called out the cramped lettering and the Red Sox heard them loud and clear. The team on February 18 released a series of statements addressing the jersey changes and announced they would be changed before Opening Day.
Something also stood out about the number and nature of Boston's statements. The Red Sox posted and deleted this initial explanation of their plans to change the jerseys before Opening Day at Fenway Park. They'll play six games on the road before their April 3 home opener against the San Diego Padres.
Their next statement, which remains active on their Twitter feed, mentions that MLB's jersey partner, Fanatics, made the jerseys "exactly to our specs" and that it's been "an outstanding partner throughout" and "deserve no blame."
Red Sox issue multiple statements addressing 2026 home jersey design controversy, remove all blame from Fanatics
To be clear, the original design was selected by the Red Sox. Fanatics executed to our specifications and has been an outstanding partner throughout. They deserve no blame and we are grateful to them for making the new jerseys in time for Opening Day.
— Red Sox (@RedSox) February 18, 2026
Fans couldn't help but notice the shift in verbiage and the groveling tone of the final release. The first statement didn't explicitly blame Fanatics for the mistake and even included that they'll work with the Red Sox to fix the jersey designs before Opening Day.
Then, Boston's statement shifted to take all the blame for the text mishap, absolving Fanatics of all blame. Yet, the Red Sox have worn the same jerseys for decades — their new explanation claims the 2026 uniforms were "executed to our specifications," as if the text spacing they've always used is something they would've purposefully changed.
There's no way to tell which party is truly to blame for the tight text, and it no longer matters since the issue will be fixed by the time the Sox need to don their home whites at Fenway. But mistakes and poor quality merchandise have come to be associated with Fanatics over the last many years, and forcing the Red Sox to wax poetic about their partnership isn't going to change that.
Since Fanatics purchased Majestic Athletic and took over as MLB's jersey partner, there have been uniform controversies involving small text, bad designs and even see-through pants. Messing up the spacing on a long-running, iconic uniform such as the Red Sox's seems like something Fanatics would do, no matter how aggressively Boston tries to take the blame.
At least the jersey spacing will be fixed before Opening Day, but this controversy and following public relations disaster will serve as yet another tick against Fanatics in Red Sox fans' minds.