07/11/2008 8:33 AM -
ST. PAUL, MN (July 11, 2008) – Zebra striped pants and a monkey at a ballpark. It can only mean one thing. The St. Paul Saints are up to some crazy antics once again as they bring back a fashion icon of the 90’s, Zubaz, and will have a monkey perform ballpark tasks on June 16th.
Saints players will take the field Wednesday wearing Zubaz as they battle the Sioux City Explorers at 1:05 p.m.
Never fearing the front end of a trend, Saints Executive Vice-President, Tom Whaley said, “We’re so far behind the curve, we’re actually ahead of it. This may cause people to shake their heads, but everyone will get a kick out of seeing our players in Zubaz. They’re something everyone seems to have an opinion about, which is terrific, and very much in the spirit of what the Saints are about.We may try to bring back other fashion trends. The Leisure Suit never really got its due.”
As part of the festivities for the game on July 16th, Boarak Ohama, the Saints four-legged mascot, will sport his own pair of specially designed Piggy Zubaz. The bases will be painted in the famous black and white pattern that fans of zubaz will recognize. Saints players will also wear the zubaz pants during batting practice prior to the ballgame.
Along with the zubaz, the Saints will hire a monkey for a day to do ballpark tasks during the afternoon. He will take tickets, help the promotions crew and even appear on the TV broadcast, proving “Even a Monkey Can Do That!”
The monkey will also be outfitted in zubaz, which is celebrating its 20th Anniversary and was developed in 1988 by Dan Stock and Bob Truax who decided to create a functional pair of shorts. The two owned a weightlifting gym and wanted to develop a pair of shorts that could expand and stretch to accommodate the bulging muscles of bodybuilders. They called the shorts Zubaz and they caught on in a big way nationally.
Celebrities from all walks of life sported the trend during the 90s. The Road Warriors and Jesse “the Body” Ventura from wrestling, quarterbacks Dan Marino of the Miami Dolphins, Warren Moon of the Houston Oilers and Jim McMahon of the Chicago Bears. Also, two big named bands wore the Zubaz brand; Guns N’ Roses and Aerosmith.
The shorts are known for being brightly colored and very flashy. Stock, along with his wife Kim, currently own the Press Gym in Little Canada and that is the only retail outlet where fashion aficionados can purchase Zubaz. They can be purchased online at zubaz.com.
For tickets to the July 16th game or any of the Saints other home games, including the American Association All-Star Game, fans can contact the Saints Box Office at 651-644-6659 or visit saintsbaseball.com.
