John Kim 
Sneaker collaborations are usually left to sneaker boutiques because the guys who drive the culture are the ones who “know best”. New Balance has already teamed up with almost every relevant sneaker shop out there, but now that the MLB season is in full swing, the active brand has sights set a bit higher with this official collaboration with Tampa Bay Rays star Evan Longoria. He kept his New Balance 530 design clean with an all-black upper with pigskin suede and denim uppers to reflect his off-the-field style choices, while some subtle hints to Evan appear within the lambskin lining (mimicking a baseball glove), the speckled midsole (representing the dirt on the baseball diamond), and emphasis on the “3” on the lace dubrae to honor Longoria’s jersey number. The shoes are up for bat on May 30th at Private Sneakers for $160, so get a first look here and let us know what you think about NB reaching out to its MLB athletes to design their classic models.
