Coronavirus Protective Masks to Be Made From M.L.B. Uniform Material

Gov. Tom Wolf heard about the endeavor and called Rubin to urge him to go forward.

Wolf said in a statement that he was grateful for the shift by Fanatics.

“Their innovative approach will be a model for other businesses to follow in Pennsylvania and throughout the country,” Wolf said.

The first masks, bearing the Phillies and Yankees’ pinstripes, came out of production on Wednesday and were expected to be distributed to hospitals within a couple of days.

Fanatics hopes to produce at least 10,000 masks and gowns per day to start, but Rubin said that they hoped to increase to 15,000 per day. He said they had enough uniform material in stock for two months.

After supplying hospitals in Pennsylvania, Fanatics will look toward New Jersey and New York with masks and gowns made from Yankees pinstripes. If they have the capacity to produce for other areas, and it is feasible, those could be made from the uniforms of the teams in those areas, too.

“There is incredible pride for our 7,000 employees to be able to do our small part to help the heroes that are on the front lines to save lives every day,” Rubin said. “It’s amazing how quickly something can go from an idea to production when it’s needed.”

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/26/sports/baseball/coronavirus-masks-gowns-mlb-uniforms.html