March 17: Tug McGraw and the Wearing of the Green

The Main Event

• March 17, 1977 – In honor of St. Patrick’s day, Tug McGraw dyes his uniform green. The home plate umpire made him change to a regulation uniform, but let him keep his green socks.
• March 17, 1979 – Wearing green socks and a green undershirt, Tug McGraw gave up a game tying home run in the top of the eight inning, but emerged with a win when the Phillies scored in the bottom of the inning to beat the White Sox.

By the late 1970s, Tug McGraw had already established himself as the emotional spark plug of the Phillies clubhouse, but St. Patrick’s Day gave him a perfect stage to lean all the way into that role. Spring training can drag, especially in the middle weeks, and McGraw had a knack for breaking tension and keeping things loose. What started as a bit of clubhouse fun quickly turned into one of the more enduring and colorful traditions in Phillies history.

McGraw didn’t just acknowledge St. Patrick’s Day. He went out of his way to turn it into an event. He leaned into the Irish theme with jokes, antics, and a level of enthusiasm that stood out even on a team known for strong personalities. Teammates came to expect something memorable every March 17, and McGraw rarely disappointed.

The Green Uniform Stunt in 1977

The most famous of McGraw’s St. Patrick’s Day moments came in 1977, when he decided that simply wearing green wasn’t enough. Instead, he took things a step further and dyed parts of his Phillies uniform green. Accounts vary slightly on the exact details, but the essence is consistent. McGraw showed up to camp with a visibly altered uniform that had been tinted green, either partially or in a way that made it impossible to ignore.

This wasn’t an officially sanctioned move by the team. It was pure McGraw. The stunt caught teammates and coaches off guard, and it immediately became the talk of camp. In an era when uniforms were treated with a bit more tradition and rigidity, the idea of altering one like that stood out even more than it would today.

What made the moment stick wasn’t just the visual. It was the reaction. Players laughed, coaches shook their heads, and the mood around camp noticeably lifted. McGraw had a way of reading the room, and 1977 was a season where the Phillies were trying to push past previous disappointments. Moments like this helped keep things from getting too tight.

The story of the green-dyed uniform has been retold for decades because it perfectly captures McGraw’s personality. He was fearless in a social sense. He didn’t mind being the center of attention if it meant loosening everyone else up.

How the Phillies Embraced St. Patrick’s Day

Over time, what started as McGraw-driven fun became something closer to an organizational tradition. The Phillies began leaning into St. Patrick’s Day during spring training, especially in Clearwater. Players would wear green jerseys or incorporate green into their workout gear. It wasn’t about marketing at first. It was about clubhouse culture.

By the 1980 season, the tradition had real staying power. That championship team is often remembered for its toughness and resilience, but players from that era have also talked about how important chemistry was. St. Patrick’s Day became one of those small but meaningful checkpoints during camp where the team could reset mentally.

As the years went on, the practice evolved. What McGraw did informally became more structured. The team began issuing green warm-up tops or hats for March 17 workouts. In some cases, green elements even showed up during exhibition games. Fans who attended spring training games on that date started to expect it.

In more recent decades, the tradition has lined up with Major League Baseball’s broader use of green for St. Patrick’s Day across the league. Teams often wear green caps or accessories during games played around March 17. For the Phillies, though, it carries a little extra meaning because of its roots in McGraw’s personality and those late 1970s teams.

What stands out is how something small stuck. McGraw wasn’t trying to create a legacy moment when he dyed that uniform. He was just being himself. But it resonated, and it became part of the team’s identity in a subtle way.

Even now, when players throw on green during spring training, there’s a direct line back to those early moments. It’s one of those traditions that feels light and fun on the surface, but underneath it reflects something deeper about how good teams often come together.

Philadelphia Baseball Events for March 17

• March 17, 1975 – The Philadelphia Phillies purchased the contract of right-handed pitcher Cy Acosta from the Chicago White Sox during spring training. Acosta went on to appear in 57 games for the Phillies that season, serving as a frequently used reliever.
• March 17, 2011 – Injured Philles All-Star 2B Chase Utley is absent from spring training today, visiting a specialist to look at his injured right knee, which has kept him off the playing field since the beginning of camp. As the knee is apparently not healing, surgery is becoming more likely, and no one in the Phillies’ front office dares to set a timetable for Utley’s return to the line-up. He will only play his first game on May 23rd.

MLB Events for March 17

• March 17, 1999 – The Toronto Blue Jays fire manager Tim Johnson and replace him with former Phillies manager Jim Fregosi. Johnson had been under fire since admitting he had lied when he said he had seen combat duty in the Vietnam War.
• March 17, 2005 – During more than 11 hours of hearings by the Committee on Government Reform concerning major league players’ use of steroids, Mark McGwire refuses to talk about the past and does not deny taking performance enhancing drugs. Other players testifying include Curt Schilling, Sammy Sosa, Rafael Palmeiro, and former big leaguer Jose Canseco, whose recent book, Juiced, prompted the congressional hearing. Palmeiro will be found guilty of steroid usage later this year.

ICYMI

Philly Baseball News – Stubbs Is Really Doing This Outfield/Infield Thing

Philadelphia Baseball Birthdays for March 17

• Jean Segura (born 1990) – An infielder for the Phillies from 2019 through 2022, Segura was a consistent contact hitter and key veteran presence on the 2022 National League championship team.
• Rhys Hoskins (born 1993) – A first baseman and one of the Phillies’ primary power hitters from 2017 to 2022. Known for his home run production and on-base ability, he played a major role in the team’s return to postseason play, including the 2022 World Series run. Hoskins recently signed with the Cleveland Guardians.

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