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ASK!: The long and short of baseball pants

By Mike Rudeen, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)

Published July 6, 2008 at 3 p.m.

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Sarah, of Northglenn, wants to know why Rockies players wear pants of different lengths, which she doesn't think looks professional.

Since the game began, baseball players' pants have ranged from above the knee to dragging the dirt. The first official uniform pants, in the mid-19th century, were full-length, and teams experimented with buttons and belts to keep the bottoms from catching on shoes, according to the Baseball Hall of Fame Web site (exhibits.baseball halloffame.org/dressed_to_ the_nines/pants.htm). The Cincinnati Red Stockings in 1868 were the first to go to knickers to keep pants from interfering with play.

Knickers became the norm, but a trend to longer pants started in the mid-20th century. Today, pants range from full-length to knickers. Major League Baseball's current collective bargaining agreement says pants may not go below the top of the shoe heel.

As for the Rockies, players may wear the length they're comfortable with, says spokesman Jay Alves. Some players are superstitious enough to change the length of their pants to try to break out of a slump. "The look is always professional, if not uniform in length," Alves said.

Try this one:

Is it really illegal in Colorado to collect rainwater in a barrel on your own property? - J.L.

Know the answer? Post it on the Ask! blog, blogs.RockyMountainNews.com/denver/ask, or e-mail rudeenm@RockyMountainNews.com. While you're on the blog, check out the other questions on the Ask! home page, or post one of your own by clicking on the link to the left on the page.