In 1926 the Cardinals home uniform went to a more “old school” look. The only identifying mark was what we refer to as the STM logo, a Blackletter or Old English emblem that made the L look like an M. The Cardinals have a physical sample of this jersey displayed in their museum.
The road jersey was nearly identical to the 1925 road jersey. However, we noticed the rendering of the birds in this season to be much skinnier and less detailed than previous seasons, and the C swoops over the bat instead of behind the bat. We also can not confirm the color of the sock stripes this season. Did green continue?
The Cardinals won the pennant and donned a set of 3 brand new uniforms for the World Series, two home kits and one road kit. The home kit had red piping and a new STL emblem that was similar to the 1903 STL cap emblem. The other home uniform was a new version of the Birds on the Bat. The road uniform featured pinstripes and the new Birds on the Bat rendering. The Cardinals won their first World Series in 7 games against the Yankees.
A newspaper describes the world series uniform as having green pinstripes and green stripes around the socks.
This is the only known jersey of having “green stripes”
Newspaper Accounts
St. Louis Post Dispatch: April 13, 1926
New Uniforms for Cards. The Cardinals will be decked out in their new uniforms. And there is a change. The “Cardinal Birds” no longer adorn the chest. They have been done away with. Instead there is only a “St. L.” on the sleeve. The “Birds” were thrown off because no hard, fast colors could be obtained.
St Louis Post Dispatch: September 29, 1926
To the Editor of the Post-Dispatch… We want to see the Red Bird on the Cardinal uniforms in the world’s series. Let us hear from some of the other fans. CARDINAL. ROOTER.
St. Louis Globe Democrat: October 3, 1926
Gardner Starts Cards’ Uniforms to New York
An automobile parade through the St. Louis downtown district last Wednesday afternoon preceded the shipment by express from St. Louis to New York of the new uniforms of the Cardinals to be worn by them during the world series games. The uniforms, made by the Leacock Sporting Goods Company, which has made the previous uniforms of the club, were carried in a Cylinder Straight Eight cardinal colored touring car driven by Fred W. Gardner, vice president of the Gardner Motor Company Inc. The car was photographed in front of the Leacock company’s building at 921 Locust Street before the start. Fred Gardner is at the wheel, and beside him sits R. J. Leacock, president of the Leacock Sporting Goods Company. Two giant cardinal birds decorated the car, one at the windshield, the other on the radiator, and a big pennant mounted above the hood, bearing the inscription, On to New York to Beat the Yanks. The Gardners carried the uniforms to Union Station where they were delivered to the Adams Express Company, leaving at 4pm for New York. The express company provided a man to take charge of the uniforms and deliver them personally to Rogers Hornsby in time for the first world series game at the Polo Grounds. The uniforms are the same as the road uniforms made by Leacock for the St. Louis National League during the past year. They are steel gray with dark green stripes. Two cardinal birds and a baseball bat are embroidered in silk on the shirt. The cap has a cardinal visor. The stockings are gray with a center stripe of cardinal and two green stripes. The belts are cardinal in color. The shipment consisted of thirty-one complete road uniforms, including the 15 year-old size for the “Good Luck Sullivan”, the Cardinals bat boy. The at-home uniforms are of white with cardinal trimmings, cardinal belt. the monogram St. L on the left sleeve, and the white stockings with three narrow cardinal stripes.
The Buffalo News: October 6, 1926
Both Cardinals and Yankees warmed up in front of their dugouts. The St. Louis players wore new white uniforms with bright visors on their cap to give the necessary Cardinal touch The Yanks were more sombre in solid gray uniform with dark blue cap and hose.
The Gazette: October 6, 1926
In a hectic day of intermittent sunshine and showers, the ardent St. Louis ball fans unloosed their long suppressed world’s series enthusiasm and, in a mud-spattered battle, saw the Cardinals take the grey-clad Yanks into camp by a 4 to 0 score. Considering the muddy condition of the diamond after a mid-game downpour, it was thought remarkable by the experts how clean the Cardinals kept their brand new white uniforms.
The St. Louis players were voted the bets mud-runners in either league.
It was a great crowd for St. Louis, and a very colorful one. Just 37,708 spectators jammed the stands when play began and they turned loose more noise probably than has ever been heard at a baseball game. A majority of the cash customers came to the grounds armed with bells, horns, whistles and any other implements that would add to the pandemonium, even including a bass drum.
The proper color of the day was cardinal or a brilliant red, and with thousands of women in the stand wearing red bonnets, the picture was a gay one, and gayer still when the rain came on and the girls put on their prismatic slickers. Everywhere in the great green stands was the cardinal “bird,” which is expected to become the national bird if the Cardinals win the series. The red birds seemed to be everywhere except on the pristine uniforms of the St. Louis players themselves, these were only adorned by the club’s initials in red on the left sleeve and a red visor to the cap.
Team Colors
Cardinals Red – PMS 200
Vintage Yellow – PMS 1225
Cardinals Uniforms & Logos 