Q&A with Phil Hecken
Goat Jerseys sits down with Phil Hecken, Deputy Editor of Uni Watch. This man knows his stuff on anything uniform related, let’s chat…
Where did you grow up? On Long Island, where I still reside.
Were you a big sports fan as a kid? If so, what was the first athlete and team you fell in love with? Yeah– my pop was a big sports fan, and I learned that first from him. I think the ’73 Mets were my first love, and of course Tom Terrific and Willie Mays were my favorite athletes.
What was your childhood like? Did you play sports? What did a teenage Phil Hecken see himself doing as an adult? Played all organized sports except football (my mom wouldn’t let me!), but baseball was my first love as a child. Eventually I got into (and good at) tennis, so I picked that over baseball in the spring. I had no idea what I wanted to do as an adult — if you’re talking sports, I guess I fancied myself as a pro tennis player, in the image of Borg & Conners or maybe McEnroe.
How did you become the Deputy Editor of Uni Watch? How did you and Paul Lukas meet? Originally I was a huge fan of UW, but just a regular reader. Eventually, Paul offered me the position of “Weekend” guy (before I started, the weekend UW really was basically a picture and a short blurb). I wanted to make it more than that, and over the years it morphed into what it is now: basically a full UW post with some of my special trimmings. Informally, over the years, my title went to Weekend Editor to Deputy Editor. I first met Paul at a UW gathering in Brooklyn, but over the years we became good friends and frequently attend Met games and curl, among other things.
What’s your take on the current MLB uniforms? How much time do you have? Seriously, though I am generally impressed overall. Too many teams have too many colored softball tops for alternates, and that is of course driven by the retail market, and that’s a shame. There are still a good number of teams wearing classic uniforms they wore 50 or more years ago, some teams who’ve gone the modern route, and there are also a number who have returned to the more “classic” looks they sported in years past. While I hate proliferation of alternate jerseys and unis, I do love when teams throwback or wear Negro League uniforms. There are also way too many MLB-wide costumes out there — Mothers Day, Fathers Day, Independence Day, Memorial Day, etc. It’s too much and it dilutes the product. It’s also done purely for retail sales, and I don’t like when the retail tail wags uni dog.
All-time favorite uniform in sports? This is a harder question than it sounds. And on any given day, I might have a different answer, especially baseball. I’d say, at least as of this moment, the classic 1940/50s St. Louis Cardinals, (picture Stan Musial), with the classic birds on the bat logo, flanked by the full jersey piping. I’m also a huge fan of the special patriotically-themed World Series uniforms worn by the White Sox in 1917. In football, I’d say the Packers, and hockey, the Blackhawks.
One person in the world living or deceased that you could have 15 minutes to sit down with and pick their brain, who would it be? Another tough one, but if I could only pick one. I’d have to say Jackie Robinson.
Favorite food, favorite city, and all-time favorite sports movie? A ballpark hot dog (which is NOT a sandwich), Las Vegas, and either The Natural or Bull Durham.
One ballpark to watch a game from the past, where would it be? So many I’d love to have seen, but either Ebbets Field or the Polo Grounds.
What’s the best piece of advice you can give someone who’s building themselves and/or a company from the ground up? People should be playing the game for the love of it, not as a business decision. Study what Michael Jordan has done. Or Derek Jeter — he’s a guy who yes, was incredibly successful and talented, and made a boatload of money, but I think that was always secondary to his love of the game. If you have that, the rest will follow.
Thank you to Phil for his awesome insight like always. Goat Jerseys always appreciates the RT’s and interaction from you!
Twitter: @PhilHecken
Uni-Watch.com