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Aug 06, 2023

‘Futuristic Teletubbies’: Young Orioles stars arrive for homestand with matching tracksuits, sunglasses

As the Orioles waited out last week’s lengthy rain delay against the New York Yankees, an idea was hatched. It began with Ryan Mountcastle buying a collection of cyclops sunglasses. The first baseman

As the Orioles waited out last week’s lengthy rain delay against the New York Yankees, an idea was hatched. It began with Ryan Mountcastle buying a collection of cyclops sunglasses.

The first baseman suggested to a handful of his teammates they all don a pair before a game, a show of the clubhouse camaraderie that has played a key role in their season. Then Colton Cowser chimed in to elevate the plan.

“I was like, ‘But what if we had matching outfits?’” Cowser said. “That was the first thing I thought of.”

An Amazon shopping spree later, Mountcastle, Cowser, Adley Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson had all they needed for a standout image of the quartet walking in the Camden Yards tunnel on their way to the Orioles’ clubhouse before opening a homestand Friday. Each wore a pair of Mountcastle’s one-lens sunglasses with color-coordinated velour tracksuits, with Cowser in yellow, Mountcastle in purple, Rutschman in pink and Henderson in blue.

“We were trying to match the color of the glasses,” Henderson said. “It was a variety pack.”

You got to strut like you mean it. pic.twitter.com/EmYBTUW19P

The final look was not a reference to anything in particular, with Mountcastle describing the attire as that of “futuristic Teletubbies.”

“I don’t know what’s going on there,” he said. “We just thought it would be funny.”

Manager Brandon Hyde was likewise bewildered, saying he saw the image of the foursome walking in the tunnel but was disappointed to miss seeing them all suited up together. He manages one of the youngest teams in baseball, with that youthful energy leading to a 67-42 record that’s the best in the American League.

“I love when our guys show their personalities,” Hyde said. “I want us to be as loose as possible, and if that’s what it is, that’s awesome.”

From left, Colton Cowser, Ryan Mountcastle, Adley Rutschman and Gunnar Henderson wore matching tracksuits and sunglasses to Camden Yards on Friday before the Orioles' game with the New York Mets. (Orioles)

Cowser said they did well by debuting the fits on a day the Orioles will wear their City Connect uniforms, which feature a multi-colored pattern on the internal trim. He figured the only of those colors they didn’t feature was red; rookie Jordan Westburg was invited to join in and perhaps could’ve provided that missing piece, but the reserved infielder felt he couldn’t pull off the look in the same way his teammates did.

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About an hour before Friday’s first pitch, the Orioles’ tweet with the image — captioned “You got to strut like you mean it” — had more than 1,000 reposts and 5,400 likes.

“I didn’t think that’d catch that much traction. It’s kind of blown up,” Cowser said. “If you can keep it light, have a good mood and just having fun outside of the field and in the clubhouse, I think helps translate on the field.”