Hear me out. MLB All Star needs to be a weekend jaunt. I know the regular schedule would make this a logistics issue, considering series matchups occur over the weekend, but how much more fun would MLB All Star festivities be if it was on the weekend?
Headliner Event for Sports
Let’s compare the other headliner events for the other big two. NBA All Star and NFL Super Bowl weekends are must-attend weekends for fans of the sport. The who’s who come out for these events. The parties, the glamour (NBA I’m looking at you, cause you know I think NBA games, etc are very much a fashion show), the celebrities – it’s insane. People travel for the Super Bowl even if they don’t have game tickets just to be in the vicinity of the party that is the Super Bowl. There’s parties everywhere and honestly, is a lot more appealing. NBA All Star weekend is the same way, the Slam Dunk competition I think easily beats the Home Run Derby. Is HRD fun to watch? Absolutely! Even though I kinda hate the format – but, the dunk competition in general has a little more excitement. Again, this is my opinion.
Now, HRD, let me give you your flowers, because you are a gem. You’re an absolute show. The talent these guys have to hit monster home runs in three minutes is insane and exciting to watch. However, I think the All Star festivities on MLB’s front need a little more oomph. How can we grow the baseball community here and get people who don’t necessarily watch baseball to participate in the festivities that is All Star even if they are watching from home. Like the Super Bowl, people who don’t watch a down of football all season, will at least tune in the Super Bowl even if it is for the snacks and commercials. NFL still gets a viewer that way.
Excitement
As much as I love baseball, and yes, MLB All Star is on my list for next year and has been for a while, it doesn’t seem as appealing and as exciting as the other premiere weekends for the other sports. Is it a well-attended event? Yes, the events looked packed from my perspective while watching on tv. However, in comparison to the Super Bowl and NBA All Star, I get fomo scrolling through social media and seeing who all is in attendance while I’m sitting on my couch. The celebrities come out for these events. Maybe this is a popularity thing? I don’t know. I’m just talking and creating a discussion here.
Attendance and Accessibility
If MLB All Star was on a weekend, would there be more attendance? Would this make the event more accessible? The summer event makes it very accessible considering kids are out of school, parents can take vacation from work, etc. But the main events are on a Monday and a Tuesday. So travel wise, you need to be out the weekend (no problem) and three (maybe four) days during the week. If I were planning this All Star trip for next year at LA (Hey Kailee I already have half of it set) we would leave Thursday, have Friday and Saturday to do LA things – maybe squeeze in a home game of a team close by (if schedules align); squeeze in some Disney; Monday and Tuesday are reserved for the main events; Wednesday is recovery and any last LA things and then Thursday is travel. That’s a full week of crazy. If MLB All Star were to be a weekend thing, I would still leave Thursday; Friday is touristy stuff; Saturday and Sunday are the main events; I would return home on Monday.
These thoughts are just my brain running rampant. I think all of this goes back to the fact that I believe MLB needs to do a better job at marketing the game and it’s current players. How can we get these All Stars to be universal household names like Tom Brady, Patrick Mahomes, Lebron James and Steph Curry are for the other sports? Have some thoughts you’d like to add? Comments are open!
