Background

Get ready to have that baseball sized hole in your plush heart filled. Bleacher Creatures is a new company that has introduced three lines of officially licensed Major League Baseball and National Football League plush toys. The 7” plush, 14” plush and 10” puppet plush lines feature some of today's most recognizable sports stars.

For purposes of our review, we received a 7” plush Cliff Lee, 14” plush Chase Utley, and a 10” puppet plush Troy Polamalu.

The Facts



Bleacher Creatures
Manufacturer: Bleacher Creatures
Authorized Likeness: Chase Utley, Cliff Lee and Troy Polamalu
Material: Plush
Designs and Dimensions: 14” Plush; 7” Plush; 10” Puppet

Tag

Only the MLB plush characters had a tag attached to them (we received the NFL plush well before the line was released, so I'm assuming that's why it did not have one).

On the front panel, the circular swing tag features an illustrated version of the player, their name and number, and the team logo. Inside, the tag gives you some great information about your player: Name, Number, Date of birth, Hometown, Bats, Throws, Height, Weight, Debut Date.

Our Opinion

If you follow the Plastic and Plush Twitter account, you'll get a good deal of sports talk there (predominantly Philadelphia sports talk). I am glad whenever a new sports inspired toy line is released, especially if they are able to get league licenses. Now only does Bleacher Creatures have the Major League Baseball, National Football League, National Hockey League and National Basketball Association licenses, they also have licenses with the Players Associations.

That Player Association license is what allows them to release plush figures in the form of actual players. Currently, there are three Bleacher Creatures lines: 7” plush, 14” plush and 10” puppet plush. I'll take a further look at each one below.

The 7” plush that we received is Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Cliff Lee. I can see this size being very popular with kids. They're fairly small, soft enough to cuddle with, and can be played with. That might be why his arms are wide open...he's waiting for a hug.

The 14” plush is the line that will appeal to collectors. These can be displayed amongst your collection, since they stand on their own (thanks to flat plastic pieces in the feet). Of the three Bleacher Creatures lines, I think this is the one that also best resembles the player – this one being Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Chase Utley.

The 10” puppet plush Bleacher Creatures are probably the most functional of the three lines. It works like a normal puppet. You can move the mouth and manipulate the arms. We ended up getting the Pittsburgh Steelers All-Pro safety Troy Polamalu puppet. If you're not a sports fanatic, you probably have seen him in shampoo commercials (hence the flowing hair).

The overall quality of the Bleacher Creatures is slightly above average. There are a few threads around the sewn hands, but nothing specific to note. The printing on the 7” and 14” plush jerseys looks great, as does the vinyl applied to the puppet's jersey.

Overall, I think the Bleacher Creatures line might just be my favorite new plush line of 2011. How could you not be excited about stylized plush versions of officially licensed sports stars?

You can pick one up at the following:

Bleacher Creatures Store: 14" plush - $23.99; 7" plush - $11.99; 10" puppet plush - $23.99

Bleacher Creatures Grades

Plush Quality: 8/10
    Stitching: 8/10
    Material: 8/10
Softness: 7" - 8/10; 14" - 7/10; 10" puppet - 8/10
Packaging/Tag: 9/10
Cuteness: 8/10
Fun Factor: 9/10
Value: 7" - 9/10; 14" - 9/10; 10" puppet - 8/10

7" plush Cliff Lee: 8.8/10
14" plush Chase Utley: 9.3/10
10" puppet plush Troy Polamalu: 8.4/10