With the World Series in full swing, Atlanta Braves outfielder Joc Pederson is making headlines with his swanky pearl necklace. It's a bold fashion statement that is having everyone talking.
It's not new that baseball players wear gold or diamond necklaces and players like Ken Griffey, Jr., Rickey Henderson and Barry Bonds were at the forefront of baseball style in the 1990s. Modern players like Mookie Betts, Xander Bogaerts and the entire Chicago White Sox team continue the tradition of swag. Manny Machado even bought the Padres an enormous spinning chain to celebrate whoever hits a home run. But pearls are all Pederson.
For the free-spirited California native, his pearls are a true statement of personal expression. According to Sports Illustrated, he enlisted his go-to jeweler, Gabe Arik of Happy Jewelers, to create the special piece, which consists of several dozen pearls hand strung on a 24-inch cord completed with a lobster clasp. The grand total comes out to about $4,000, which pales in comparison to some fancy diamond chains that players wear and even some that Pederson owns.
Pederson's reasoning for the bold on-field choice: he's a "bad bitch."
The necklace has propelled Pederson and the Braves to their first World Series since 1999. Fans have gotten on board with the trend and purchase replicas from the team or wear their own pieces from home. Atlanta is currently tied in the championship series with the Houston Astros in what has been a thrilling postseason so far.
While a string of pearls is a new statement in the MLB, it's not new in the world of fashion. Members of Indian royalty and the European aristocracy frequently wore the rare delicacy. One of the most famous pieces of English jewelry is the Drake Jewel, a pendant that Queen Elizabeth I gifted to explorer Sir Francis Drake that features a single dangling pearl.
Today, style icons like Pharrell, A$AP Rocky and Lewis Hamilton are reviving the look as a sign of modern elegance and sophistication, contrasting the stereotypes that pearls are reserved for women like Coco Chanel, Jackie Kennedy and Audrey Hepburn. As fashion continues to break barriers, the jewelry is embraced and celebrated on men just as much as women.
Here's some of the best looks of men wearing pearls:
A$AP Rocky At Virgil Abloh's First Louis Vuitton Show
A$AP Rocky isn't even really known for making music anymore as much as for his fashion sensibilities. The Harlem creative has been wearing pearls for several years now at fashion shows, movie premieres, hanging out in the studio and for his GQ cover story that declared him the "Prettiest Man Alive." But despite the many, many, many options, our favorite pearl look from Lord Pretty Flacko Jodye has to be this one from the 2018 Louis Vuitton show at Paris Fashion Week, which was Virgil Abloh's first as the luxury brand's head of menswear. Rocky wore a clean black double-breasted suit with the LV monogram logo embossed into it, some pants with a chain (*cue "Praise The Lord"), a pair of VLONE Air Force 1s and two subtle strands of pearls to match his perfect smile. He completed the look with a pearl ring on his middle finger almost as if he had a message for the haters.
Pete Davidson At Wimbledon
Pete Davidson's lanky skater kid vibe is something you either love or hate. We actually love it. Among his many interesting fashion statements is an Ian Charms necklace he wore to Wimbledon that was made up of pearls, dice and mushroom beads around a framed portrait of fellow "Saturday Night Live" star Lorne Michaels. Quirky, yes. Do we love it, yes.
Tyler, The Creator's Custom Belt Buckle
Tyler, The Creator has grown into one of the most talented musicians of our generation and his fashion sense is no less interesting. He once was a rough skater kid and has now transformed into a Gucci model whose jewelry is a key element to his look. One of his most recent pieces is an Alex Moss New York custom belt buckle that has the name of his "Fleur" brand embellished with various sizes of pearls. Tyler paired it with a pink belt for the perfect rebellious statement against traditional masculinity. It goes great with his McLaren key fob.
Future's Memorial Day Look
Future has one of the strongest brands in hip-hop, even if that brand is toxic. Nevertheless, he's always pointing fans in the direction of luxury and is an expert at getting people to want what he's offering. So him rocking Chanel pearls with a cozy Givenchy sweater for Memorial Day 2017 was an example of his trendsetting, independent spirit that we all aspire to be.
Pharrell Walking In Chanel Show
Pharrell has been a style icon for several years and besides his exciting hat selections, his jewelry is perhaps what makes him so alluring and expectation-bending. In 2016, he made a splash when he walked the runway for a Chanel show wearing a tweed jacket and multiple strands of pearls. They swayed effortlessly with his smooth walk.
Skateboard P also included lots of pearls in his official 2019 Chanel Pharrell collection. In the campaign visual, the elegant pearl necklaces are draped around bold-colored hoodies.
"Gabrielle Coco Chanel didn’t see partitions and it’s interesting because neither did the brand when it came to giving me a shot," Pharrell said in the behind-the-scenes video for the Chanel Pharrell campaign. "There doesn’t need to be boundaries as long as you can hold on to the heritage and continue to push it. ... My energy is allowed to express itself not only in the clothes in the design, in the color, in the unisex spirit, that was my wishlist."
Lewis Hamilton's 2018 Met Gala Look
Lewis Hamilton has established himself as a leading fashionista in the sports world and wears pearls fairly frequently. He's attended the prestigious Met Gala several times and made waves with his statement of gender fluidity by wearing half of a skirt at this year's affair. But in 2018, he wove the traditionally feminine element of pearls into his awe-inspiring look that he designed in partnership with Tommy Hilfiger to go with the theme "Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination." The white suit was studded with white gems, even down to the boots. The Formula 1 driver paired it with a layered pearl bracelet for a look that was *chef's kiss.
"It was exciting to work with the Tommy Hilfiger team to create a unique look that speaks to my spiritual connection," Hamilton said at the time to CR Fashion Book. "The Met Gala’s theme really resonated because God is the most important thing in my life. I am very proud of the final look."
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