Casey Recommends: Minor League Ballcaps

Even if you're not a baseball fan — everyone needs a good hat!

If you’ve hung out with me for any stretch of time or even just seen photos of me on Instagram, you have probably seen me in a baseball cap with a clever logo on it.

Part of this is practical and protective — I’m a short-haired girl who needs to keep my hair out of my face and my face out of the sun — and part of it is because I’m married to Mr. NJ Baseball, after all.

And a big part of it is that minor league ballcaps are just so fun.

Minor League baseball teams have made a cottage industry out of creating alternate identities over the past decade, from independently produced special team nights like the Portland Sea Dogs’ Maine Whoopie Pies or the MiLB-wide Copa de la Diversion logos.

And as the growing number of hats in my closet can attest, I am here for it.

I’m not actively trying to shade the Yankees (this time around), but you can see and find Yankees caps everywhere.

Why not get a cap from one of the Yankees’ minor league affiliates, like the Hudson Valley Renegades, who sometimes play as the Apple Valley Cider Donuts, or the Somerset Patriots, who are the Zorros de Somerset in the Copa program? I own both caps and am happy to support the teams, despite my lack of enthusiasm for their parent club.

I’ll even cop to owning some Phillies’ minor league affiliate caps, like the Jersey Shore (FKA Lakewood) BlueClaws and the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. Even my bleed-black-and-gold Yinzerdom doesn’t prevent me from wearing a fun hat with a crab or bacon on it.

Apart from the highly collectible angle, one of the best aspects of wearing these caps is their conversation-starting appeal. Rarely do I go anywhere in one of them without someone commenting on the logo — something that just doesn’t happen when I’m in my Mr. Met or Pirates caps.

(My Mrs. Met cap, however, is another story. Equality for mascots!)

So even if you don’t think that baseball is the most attention-grabbing or -holding of sports, why not sport a cap with a logo that fits your personality?

Maybe you’re a couch potato. Or an angry ostrich. Or a believer in the supernatural. Or a Simpsons fan (not always the same thing as a couch potato). Chances are, there’s a ballcap out there with your name on it. Metaphorically speaking.

Need help organizing your cap (or sneaker) collection?

If you have an overwhelming number of ballcaps or sneakers in your closet — or t-shirts, or vinyl albums, or baseball cards, or any type or memorabilia — I feel you. As a collector, I know the overwhelm of staying on top of knowig what you actually own.

So I created a Notion database to categorize and keep track of my ballcaps!

I customized it so I’d know in which closet bin I’m storing them and, most crucially, which major league affiliate each belongs to so I can sound like an expert anytime someone asks.

I’d love to work with you to help corral your own collections, no matter what they might be. Let’s set up a time to talk about how we can use the power of Notion to keep your life in flow and easier to organize.

---