WASHINGTON — What design would go on a Washington Nationals World Series Championship ring? A baby shark perhaps? The man who knows isn't telling.
Chris Poitras is the Division Vice-President and COO for Jostens Pro Sports and College Businesses.
"This is what they play for," he said while standing over a table of a dozen championship rings.
Jostens, based out of Minneapolis, is the primary creator of those gigantic blinged-out major league rings. If the name Jostens sounds familiar, it might be because they're also responsible for making high school class rings, year books and other memorabilia.
It's a company that prides itself in being able to capture big moments, like a World Series win.
"We're literally taking everything that we see publicly, our conversations with the teams and we're trying to create that entire story to help them celebrate," Poitras said.
Those celebrations include the hardware seen on the fingers of the Stanley Cup winning Washington Capitals.
As for the World Series, Poitras says they've already had discussions with both teams about some initial ideas for what their Championship ring might look like.
"What would their logo look most beautiful in?" he said. "We're playing with different materials, different metals to help tell that story in a unique way to bring their logo to life."
Poitras said the rings need to do more than just look good. They also need to tell a full story.
"How many wins? he said. "What are some important moments in the season, in team history?"
The basic design process can take up to 12 weeks. Then, each ring has to be specially finished.
"Every single ring will have the player's name, their number and different potential assets inside," Poitras said. "For example, the St. Louis Blues every single inside of the ring had the player's signature."
On top of those special details, the timeline also depends on how many rings each team wants to order.
Poitras said in 2017 the Astros ordered more than two thousand rings. That was enough to give a ring to every part-time associate including beverage and retail.
From start to finish, as many as 50 people might work on each ring. Let's just hope this year, those rings are #ALLNATS.