SHOP TALK : Before Baseball Season Begins, Take Time Out to Buy Souvenirs : Rather than carrying picket signs, fans can show support by donning the apparel from their favorite teams.

For the first time since major league baseball players walked out last August, the words “play ball” have replaced “on strike” in America’s struggling professional sport.

As the season begins this week, many fans will no doubt protest by ignoring the games. But for others, the crack of the bat will entice them once again to root for their favorite teams.

These days, the ideal way of demonstrating support for a particular club might very well be to carry a picket sign. But it’s probably best to stick with the old standards, such as baseball caps, T-shirts and jackets.

That’s what we did last week when we went shopping for apparel with the names and logos of the Los Angeles Dodgers and California Angels, the closest we have to home teams here in Ventura County.

We checked out the stock at a sampling of sporting goods stores throughout the county: Big 5 Sporting Goods in Thousand Oaks, Sport Chalet and Sportmart in Oxnard, Champs Sports at Oxnard’s Esplanade Mall, and The Pro Image at the Buenaventura Mall.

Here’s a rundown by store:

Big Five Sporting Goods (in Janss Village): If you like cartoons as much as you like the Dodgers, you can pick up a League Leader-brand cotton T-shirt with uniformed Flintstone characters for $11.88, down from $15.99. A three-quarter sleeve Dodgers T-shirt by Russell Athletics was $17.88, down from $24.99, and the same shirt with short sleeves was $13.88 (from $18.99).

A mesh Dodgers jersey by Majestic Athletic was $49.99, a hooded Dodgers cotton/polyester sweat shirt, also by Majestic, was $34.88 (from $49.99), and a Starter nylon Windbreaker with hood (Dodgers) was $49.88 (from $59.99). As for caps, there was a nylon adjustable one (Dodgers) from Starter for $19.99 and a Twins Enterprise cap (Angels) for $4.99.

Sport Chalet: If you shop here, make sure to check out the discount racks. There are some quality bargains to be found. We spotted a New Era-brand fitted wool Angels cap for $9.97, marked down from $20.99. On the regular-priced shelf there was a cotton/polyester Dodgers cap by Starter for $12.99, and a Sports Specialties polyester/wool cap (Dodgers and Angels), for $15.99.

Sportmart: If you’re looking for Angels gear, we suggest this store. We’ll begin with T-shirts. For the Angels, we found a Jostens Sportswear cotton T-shirt in red, blue or gray for $12.96, a gray cotton Nutmeg-brand shirt for $18.96, and a Starter cotton shirt with player name and number on the back for $16.96 (also in a Dodgers version). As for other Dodgers T-shirts, there was a Jostens-brand Warner Bros. cartoon shirt (cotton/rayon) for $14.96, and a Peanuts cartoon shirt (cotton/polyester) for $12.96.

In caps, there was a New Era fitted wool cap for $18.96 (both teams), an American Needle-brand adjustable wool Dodgers cap for $16.96, and a Dodgers spring training cap for $16.96.

Sportmart also had a Pro Player-brand Dodgers jacket for $59.96 and a pullover Windbreaker for $39.96. And the store even had cotton shorts for both teams. Blue with gray trim was $18.96. Blue without trim (Dodgers only) was $7.47.

Champs Sports (Esplanade): The store was pretty well-stocked in both Angels and Dodgers clothing. For both teams, they had a Russell Athletic cotton T-shirt for $16, a Russell Athletic embroidered T-shirt for $27, a New Era fitted wool cap for $21.99, and an adjustable American Needle wool cap for $14.99.

For the Angels, they also had a cotton Starter T-shirt with one gray sleeve and one blue sleeve for $19, a Starter jacket for $110, and a polyester team jersey by Majestic Athletic for $55.

For the Dodgers, the store carried a Starter Windbreaker jacket for $60 and the Majestic Athletic polyester jersey with player name and number on back, for $75.

The Pro Image (Buenaventura mall): The store has several varieties of Dodgers jackets, ranging from $49 to $109. They also have a cotton Windbreaker from Hummer Sportswear for $22.50 (down from $44.99.) There were also Starter jerseys for both teams for $64.99, and a Starter cotton Dodger T-shirt with a player’s name on the back, for $9.99 (down from $19.99).

In caps, the store had a New Era wool version for $19.99 (both teams), a Starter polyester/wool/lycra cap for $22.99 (both teams), and a Starter cotton/polyester cap for $12.99 (Dodgers).

So go ahead, buy the souvenirs. Just don’t throw away the receipt, pending further labor negotiations.