MLB to host interactive watch parties in Virtual Ballpark for select games every Wednesday in September

By | September 3, 2024

Major League Baseball announced today that the league’s virtual ballpark will host an interactive watch party for a select regular season match-up each Wednesday in September. The first of these four virtual ballpark experiences is the Minnesota Twins vs. Tampa Bay Rays game on Wednesday, September 4th at 6:50 p.m. ET. Fans from around the world can access the virtual ballpark for free on any internet-connected device at https://www.mlb.com/virtual-ballpark, simply by logging in with their MLB account. MLB’s virtual ballpark was developed last year in partnership with Improbable, a London-based technology firm that specializes in creating and managing virtual spaces.

Each interactive watch party in the virtual ballpark features a three-dimensional representation of the game, powered by MLB’s Gameday 3D product, synced with the live game broadcast. In addition to watching the game up close from previously impossible angles, fans can talk with each other using spatial audio and participate in a scavenger hunt throughout the ballpark. New for the 2024 season, fans can chat directly with their friends using a new party system and earn points to use at the virtual shop for special digital jerseys.

The lineup of games to be shown in the virtual ballpark includes:

Standard local broadcasts on each team’s respective RSN will still be available for fans to watch via cable, satellite and streaming, including MLB.TV for out-of-market fans.

The virtual ballpark utilizes and syncs MLB’s Gameday 3D technologies into the virtual stadium as a way for fans to transport themselves into a fully immersive three-dimensional baseball environment. It offers a unique opportunity to experience the action live, from any angle in the ballpark. MLB launched Gameday 3D during the 2023 season to provide fans with alternate viewing of select games online. The first-of-its-kind immersive animation leverages the industry’s most advanced tracking data and the latest computer vision technology. By utilizing the same Sony Hawk-Eye cameras in each Major League ballpark that provide Statcast data, Gameday 3D incorporates the position and orientation of each player and then generates a 3D re-creation of the game in real-time.

MLB’s virtual ballpark debuted last season as an additional opportunity for baseball fans to immerse and engage in unique digital baseball experiences wherever they may be. MLB’s new virtual ballpark – a first for a professional sports league – launched and opened to fans with a special online watch party for the 2023 MLB All-Star Celebrity Softball Game presented by Corona. MLB also streamed a 2023 regular season game and Postseason game in the virtual ballpark to provide alternative viewing options for fans worldwide.

Fans can find additional information and access the virtual ballpark directly on MLB.com/virtual-ballpark from their device of choice.

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