Baseball
Kris Bryant Auctions Cleats for a Cause
Baseball MVP Kris Bryant announces auction of baseball cleats in honor of Wings for Life Foundation.
National League MVP and World Series hero Kris Bryant recently shined a light on spinal cord injury (SCI) research by having three respected Chicago street artists design three distinct pairs of Adidas Energy Boost Icon 3 baseball cleats for him to wear for “Players Weekend,” a holiday Major League Baseball celebrated Aug. 25-27, 2017 to allow players to customize what they wear in games.
WFL cleat
© Oscar Castillo
Now, those three pairs of cleats are being auctioned to support spinal cord injury research through Charity Buzz, an online auction house that brings together hundreds of the world's most acclaimed celebrities, inspiring luminaries, and beloved brands to give fans unforgettable access to their interests and passions. Plus, every winning bid supports an incredible cause.
Go to charitybuzz.com/KBcleats to see and bid on Kris Bryant’s cleats!
Wings for Life cleats
© Oscar Castillo
Each pair was autographed by the artist and an official Major League Baseball hologram sticker is on the back of each cleat as the certificate of authenticity.
Bryant wore one pair per day against the Philadelphia Phillies over a three-day weekend and each pair had a theme of “Wings” to raise awareness for SCI research. The inside sole had the Wings for Life mark. Each pair also celebrated one of the three cities that have given Kris Bryant his wings in life - Las Vegas, San Diego and Chicago.
Over the three games of the series, Kris Bryant went 4 for 11 with a homerun and a sizzling .364 average.
Wings cleats
© Oscar Castillo
SCI is a cause near to Bryant because he is friends with Cory Hahn, a former All-American high school baseball player who was paralyzed sliding into 2nd base in 2011 while a freshman at Arizona State University. SCI also touched former Dodgers and Hall of Fame legend Roy Campanella, who fractured the fifth and sixth cervical vertebrae and compressed the spinal cord in a car accident in 1958.
Who are the artists?
The Las Vegas edition cleat was designed by artist Joseph Perez – aka “Sentrock” – using inspiration from Bryant’s hometown of Las Vegas.
“I knew a lot about Kris beforehand, so I mostly researched the Wings for Life Foundation, which he supports and is really doing inspiring work,” said Sentrock. “My motivation was to highlight the idea that when Kris is playing, he is in his wings. When I’m creating art, I’m finding my wings.”
Kris Bryant cleats
© Oscar Castillo
The San Diego edition cleat was designed by street artist JC Rivera, in honor of Bryant’s University of San Diego days when he became a nationally known name in the world of baseball.
JC Rivera knew of Bryant already as a great baseball player and someone good for the Cubs and the community. He had customized gear before, but not for an athlete.
“It’s exciting to know that Kris Bryant is going to wear them,” said Rivera. I wanted to incorporate my bears and make it look like it was part of it. Representing Chicago and adding the touch about San Diego, which is where Kris went to college, is what inspired me in creating these.”
Special cleats
© Oscar Castillo
The Chicago edition cleat was designed by artist Max Sansing, who was born in Chicago and has a history with Kris Bryant dating back to Summer 2016 when he collaborated on a stunning mural of the player that is still up in the heart of Chicago’s Wrigleyville.
“I've never done this before, given that most of my art is large-scale, portrait based,” said Sansing. “I mainly looked up shoe styles that Kris has worn in the past and went ahead putting my spin on it. It's already a beautiful shoe by Adidas Baseball and I didn't want to do anything to clash with its design. I wanted to tread the line of art and sports shoe design.”
Adidas Energy Boost Icon 3's
© Oscar Castillo