HOUSTON -- Astros players, coaches and on-field personnel are joining the rest of baseball during Father's Day Weekend and wearing the symbolic blue ribbon and wristbands on their uniforms to help raise awareness and funds for the fight against prostate cancer.
Players are also wearing specially designed uniforms that incorporate blue into the team's regular logos, while the caps are highlighted by a blue shadow tech heather crown and graphite visor. Players also have options from two different pairs of blue-infused socks.
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"Any time you can raise awareness for a cause that affects a lot of people, it's good," Astros pitcher Collin McHugh said. "I think one in eight men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lives, and it's obviously something we've dealt with as a family. I think a lot of people in the baseball community know and it's close to their hearts.
:: Father's Day 2017 ::
"Being able to raise awareness in a cool way, being able to wear different uniforms and be on national TV and kind of help people know that even though we're professional baseball players, we're still real people with real-life problems and real-life struggles, and we understand what people are going through, that's really good."
McHugh's father, Scott, has been battling prostate cancer for more than two years and is in Houston undergoing treatments at MD Anderson Cancer Center. Collin's family came to town this weekend to surprise the pitcher for his 30th birthday, which is Monday. But this weekend is about his dad.
"Thank God, he's feeling really good," Collin said. "He hasn't had a whole lot of issues and the doctors have really been kind of a godsend for him and my mom here at MD Anderson. We try to do whatever we can to help raise money for them and support them in any way."
• MLB.TV Father's Week deal
MLB will again donate all royalty payments from the sales of specialty caps and jerseys to the Prostate Cancer Foundation and Stand Up To Cancer. For the first time, players and on-field personnel will wear the blue-infused attire and equipment throughout Father's Day Weekend. Commemorative base jewels and dugout lineup cards also will be blue.
In addition, the following game equipment can be used for prostate cancer awareness throughout Father's Day Weekend: blue compression sleeves, blue batting gloves, blue footwear, blue wrist/elbow/leg guards and catcher's equipment.
For the first time, Father's Day games feature a blue-stitched Rawlings baseball, the official ball of MLB, as the official game ball. Players and all on-field personnel have worn blue ribbons and sported blue wristbands on Father's Day since MLB first partnered with the Prostate Cancer Foundation in 1996.
Also, on Father's Day, MLB.com, all 30 teams and broadcast partners will express their gratitude by sharing their favorite baseball moments of dad on social media using #MLBDads, and fans are encouraged to do the same.