More info about Pillbox Caps

 Every summer I make an annual pilgrimage to Cooperstown, NY to visit the Baseball Hall of Fame.

This was the first time I spent some time in the Giamatti Research Center.

What did I want to learn about?  Pillbox caps.

It's well established that the Cardinals, Expos, Mets, Phillies, Pirates, and  Reds all wore a pillbox  cap at some point in the 1976 season.

Speculation persists that the Giants and Dodgers did as well.

I'll get to my findings shortly.

I want to share what I learned outside of the Hall of Fame.

I recently purchased a Phillies pillbox cap that was made somewhere between 1982 and 87.

The 1976 is on the left and the 80's version on the right.

Notice the difference in the logo?

Each cap has the exact same tag on the inside.

But the button is very different.  The bigger button is the 80's model and this is very significant.

All of my 1976 pillbox caps have the much smaller button on the top.

I see these caps for sale from time to time and they are listed as 1976 pillbox caps.

While the Reds did wear a white pillbox cap on the field, I have yet to see any evidence to prove either of these two caps were ever worn by the players.

Here are the buttons of the Reds and Dodgers caps that clearly reveal that they are mid 80's models.

The batterman logo on the inside of the cap is telling also, it appeared from 1982-87.

And my research at the Giamatti center?

I had to make a reservation at least two weeks in advance and notify them that I wanted to learn about pillbox caps and if they were worn in 1976 and the 1980's.

I looked at hundreds of photos and news articles of the Giants, Reds, and Dodgers from 1976 season as well as the 1980's.

I did not find one player from the above mentioned teams wearing a pillbox cap.

I did find an April 10, 1976 article about the Phillies and the Pirates both wearing pillbox caps for the opening series in Philadelphia.

The administrator at the center, who was very helpful, did tell me that they only have evidence of the Cardinals, Expos, Mets, Phillies, Pirates, and Reds (white version) wearing pillbox caps in 1976. 

Buyer Beware!

When someone is selling a '76 pillbox cap....ask to see the button.