Feb 23

Feb 23 Boston Red Sox Colors and Logo: A History and Color Codes

Why do the Boston Red Sox wear red and white? The story of the Red Sox colors, including full color codes

In this article, we look at the history and details of the Boston Red Sox logo and colors.

We discuss the different colors and logos that the baseball team have used throughout the years- including full details of their CMYK, HEX, RGB and Pantone codes.

The iconic Boston Red Sox uniform

A brief history of the Boston Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox were founded in 1901 by John Taylor, who at the time was a member of the editorial and advertising department at The Globe (now known as The Boston Globe).

He had lots of ties to the newspaper business, but he also had a liking for baseball due to family ties that went back generations.

Before becoming the Red Sox, this team was known as the Boston Americans.

They were also known as the Boston Red Stockings, and then the Boston Braves- before they eventually became the Red Sox in 1908.

The Braves became the Red Sox due to an ownership change, moving out of Boston.

Then just three years later, the home of the Red Sox moved from the Huntington Grounds to Fenway Park in 1912. This is where they play to this day!

Six years later, the Red Sox made what turned out to be one of the worst moves in their team’s history.

They sold Babe Ruth to the Yankees for $125,000, starting what became known as the “Curse of the Bambino”.

The Red Sox won the World Series the year before, but after moving Babe Ruth, they didn’t win another one for 86 years!

The Red Sox are one of the most recognisable brands in not only the Major Leagues, but in all of global sport.

Major honours and trophies

The 2000s have been far friendlier to the Red Sox than the 1900s. The Red Sox have already won just as many World Series this century as they did in the 1900s.

Before the Curse of the Bambino, the Red Sox won the World Series in 1903, 1912, 1915, 1916 and 1918.

In the 2000s, they won the World Series in 2004, 2007, 2013 and 2018.

The 5 most famous Boston Red Sox players

Let’s take a look at 5 of the most well-known Boston Red Sox players of all-time.

Babe Ruth

Although Babe Ruth had 714 homers during his career, he was still one of the greatest pitchers for the Red Sox. He played for them between 1904-1919.

For accolades, Ruth garnered an MVP award, he was a two time All-Star, seven-time World Series champion and he won both the ERA and batting titles.

Cy Young

Cy Young’s name is used for the award given each year to the player voted the best pitcher in both the American and National League.

Young had a great career with the Red Sox between 1901-1908.

Before playing in Boston, Young played for Cleveland from 1890-1898, Saint Louis in 1899 and 1900 and then he went back to Cleveland in 1909 and 1910. He also played for BSN in 1911.

Carl Yastremski

Carl Yastremski is most famous as the last man to win the triple crown in 1967, a season when the Red Sox were known as the “Impossible Dream.”

For those not familiar, the triple crown is the award you get when you finish the season leading the league in batting average, home runs and runs batted in.

The term “Impossible Dream” came from the fact that the Red Sox went from ninth place to first in one season.

Manny Ramirez

Most people will agree that of all the Red Sox personalities that have come through Boston, Ramirez was one of the most colorful.

There was a saying in Boston that went “Manny being Manny”, meaning he either did something clutch or funny.

During his career, he was a 12-time All-Star, nine-time Silver Slugger, led the league in batting average in 2002 and he was World Series MVP in 2004.

He was also part of the first two World Series teams that the Red Sox won this century, in 2004 and 2007.

He played for the Boston Red Sox from 2001-2008, played in Cleveland from 1993-2000 and played for the Dodgers and the White Sox in 2009 and 2010.

He finished his career with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in 2011.

David Ortiz

Otherwise known as ‘Big Papi,’ David Ortiz is most famous for hitting a walk-off game-winning homer in the 2004 American League Championship Series.

After the Red Sox came back from the Yankees, who initially had a 3-0 series lead, this walk-off propelled them into the 2004 World Series, after sweeping the Saint Louis Cardinals.

For accolades, Ortiz was a 10-time All-Star, three-time World Series Champion and World Series MVP.

He also won the silver slugger award seven times and he was the ALCS MVP.

Why do the Boston Red Sox play in red and white?

The Boston Red Sox wear white uniforms with red piping around the neck and down the sides of the front placket, with “Red Sox” in red letters outlined in blue.

This home uniform has been worn since 1979. Between 1933 and 1972, a similar uniform was used by the Red Sox, with a few small alterations.

Unlike their logo, which has experienced quite a few changes, Red Sox uniforms haven’t changed much over the years.

Boston Red Sox: CMYK, HEX, RGB and Pantone color codes

Below, find the full color codes for the Boston Red Sox.

Red Sox Red

HEX: #BD3039

RGB: (189, 48, 57)

CMYK: (0 91, 76, 6)

Pantone: PMS 186 C

Red Sox Blue

HEX: #0C2340

RGB: (12, 35, 64)

CMYK: (100, 60, 00, 56)

Pantone: PMS 289 C

Red Sox White

HEX: #FFFFFF

RGB: (255, 255, 255)

CMYK: (0, 0, 0, 0)

Boston Red Sox Logo and Colors History

Let’s take a look at the history of the Red Sox logo and colors.

1901-1907

The logo at this time included a “B” and “A” in Old English lettering, much like the Detroit Tigers logo.

The “B” and “A” stand for the team name at the time, which was the Boston Americans.

1908

The word “Boston” was in white lettering, with a line in a shape that looked like a sock.

1909-1911

The word “Boston” was in red lettering, on an upward curve.

1912-1923

During this time, the logo changed from “Boston” to “Red Sox”.

1924-1960

This logo included a picture of two socks. These were red with white lines.

1961-1969

This version of the Red Sox logo was inside a red baseball. The stitching was also red just like a real-life baseball.

1970-1975

The stitches on the baseball went in the opposite direction, and there were slight changes to the color of the logo itself.

1976-2008

This version of the logo is the longest-lasting logo to date, containing a circle with a red outline. The word “Boston” was in blue and the name “Red Sox” was in red.