The Bryce Harper jersey that could have been worn this baseball season by any of the Philadelphia Phillies’ biggest fans is now a protective mask in the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fanatics, the company that manufactures uniforms for Major League Baseball, has suspended production on jerseys and is instead using the polyester mesh fabric to make masks and gowns for hospitals in Pennsylvania and nearby states.
The pinstripes worn by the New York Yankees and Phillies were still in vogue on baseball’s scheduled opening day — only they were stitched on the protective wear made by the apparel company.
Photo: AP
Last week, Fanatics founder and executive chairman Michael Rubin was watching TV when he was struck by the idea to turn the 33,445 m2 facility in Easton, Pennsylvania, into a factory supporting the coronavirus fight.
While Rubin considered how he could make it happen, Saint Luke’s Hospital in Bethlehem late last week reached out to Fanatics about the possibility of the company manufacturing masks.
Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf and Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro each contacted Rubin over the weekend and told Rubin that the state was in “dire need” of more masks and gowns.
Fanatics developed a prototype that was approved by the Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency and by Tuesday, the company halted production of all baseball jerseys.
Rubin, a limited ownership partner of the NBA’s Philadelphia 76ers and NHL’s New Jersey Devils, said that he had MLB commissioner Rob Manfred’s blessing to stop producing jerseys.
“We’ve got a million yards of fabric that we make these baseball uniforms from, what would you think if we take that fabric and make masks and gowns,” Rubin told reporters. “He immediately said: ‘Great. I want to do it immediately. The most important thing is we’ve got to help the heroes on the front line and baseball can help play a role in it.’”
So with Manfred’s support, production on the US$300 jerseys for Harper, Aaron Judge, Mookie Betts and the rest of baseball’s brightest stars was stopped.
The company makes the uniforms for MLB and Nike.
On Tuesday, Fanatics started fashioning masks and gowns, and Rubin hopes to produce nearly 15,000 masks and gowns per day.
Rubin, whose Reform Alliance lobbies for changes to state probation and parole laws, said that the demand was for 95 percent masks.
The production plant had been shut down as a nonessential business, but about 100 workers have returned to work for Fanatics.
The manufacturer is producing level 1 masks, used for low-risk, nonsurgical procedures that are for single use only.
Rubin said that he spoke to Manfred and Fanatics teamed with MLB to provide hospital uniforms at no cost to those in need in Pennsylvania, New Jersey and New York.
Rubin, who has a net worth of US$2.3 billion according to Forbes, said that it would cost Fanatics about US$3 million to make the masks and gowns and that at least 1 million would be produced over the course of several months.
Asked what the few Phillies fans left who do not have a Harper jersey should do, Rubin said: “I think we’ve got them, but I’m not 100 percent sure. I know we can get a mask and a jersey made from one.”
There was a bit of a dust-up this week when the Devils and 76ers did an about-face on cutting salaries for employees making more than US$100,000.
A day after announcing the temporary 20 percent pay cuts because of the economics effects of the pandemic, the teams’ co-owners rescinded them.
“As an organization, I don’t believe we got it right up front, but I believe we got it right,” Rubin said. “I think people who know me, know I’m a transparent person. I believe when you get something wrong, you just kind of fix it. Ultimately, as an organization, we fixed it. I’m proud the organization came together and did the right thing by our employees. I think we’ll be rewarded by our employees who will feel we did the right thing. We got to the right place.”
However, when it comes to Fanatics assisting in the virus fight, Rubin said: “We’re less worried about manufacturing jerseys and more worried about saving lives.”
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