Dodgers, MLB unveil stacked All-Star Week slate
Juan Toribio
@juanctoribioLOS ANGELES -- The Dodgers and Major League Baseball were ready to host the 2020 All-Star Game, but due to the coronavirus pandemic, Los Angeles was awarded the game in 2022. The Dodgers expect to make the wait worth it.
On Tuesday, the Dodgers and MLB unveiled the All-Star schedule featuring fan fests from Friday, July 15, through Tuesday, July 19. The All-Star events will take place at three iconic Southern California sites: Dodger Stadium, the Santa Monica Pier and Beach, and L.A. Live.
“[The fans] are hungry for this game, and they are very excited that [Los Angeles] is finally going to have it,” said Dodgers president & CEO Stan Kasten. “As you know here in L.A., we are the city of big events and big parties. That’s what we’re going to have in July -- five days of a big, big event and a big, big party.”
MLB All-Star Week will open with its first-ever beach event on July 15 at the Santa Monica Pier and Beach. With no admission charge, the oceanfront will feature casual and instructional youth baseball and softball activities on the beach directly south of the pier. It’ll also be home to daily yoga classes.
On Saturday, July 16, MLB Live in Downtown Los Angeles gets things started with a Play Ball event that will run through July 19. This fan-focused event blends together baseball, softball, music, technology and fashion. Tickets are now available at AllStarGame.com for the indoor portion at Play Ball Park. Any tickets purchased before May 6 cost only $10 with promo code PPOS. Activities outside the convention center are free.
Also on July 16, Dodger Stadium will host the SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game. That’ll be followed by the MLB All-Star Celebrity Softball Game, which is expected to have some of the biggest stars in sports and entertainment. It’ll be the first time the two events will be held on a Saturday. After all, this is Hollywood.
“What a marriage for event and site,” said Dodgers broadcaster Joe Davis, who will be calling his first Midsummer Classic for FOX. “We’ve got the sunshine. We’ve got the ballpark. We’ve got in this city of stars all the best players in the sport coming together to celebrate.”
The events will continue into Sunday, July 17, when the first round of the MLB Draft will take place in DTLA. The 30 clubs will be represented by former players and club officials within a group that will feature Hall of Famers and former All-Stars.
The weeklong festivities will all lead up to the main events. The T-Mobile Home Run Derby on Monday, July 18 -- part of Gatorade All-Star Workout Day -- will be the first Derby hosted by Dodger Stadium since 1980. Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner predicted that a few players will hit a homer out of Dodger Stadium -- something that has been done only five times during a game.
On Tuesday, July 19, the celebratory week will wrap up at Dodger Stadium with the MLB All-Star Game presented by Mastercard. It will be 42 years since the last Midsummer Classic took place in Los Angeles. That number is particularly important because it helps honor the life of Jackie Robinson, whose No. 42 is retired across baseball.
“There’s something serendipitous about that,” Kasten said. “Everyone knows how that number resonates in our sport -- not just in baseball, but in all sports around the country, 42 is a special number.”
Dodgers stars Cody Bellinger, Mookie Betts, Trea Turner, Justin Turner, Clayton Kershaw, Freddie Freeman and Walker Buehler were all in attendance for Tuesday’s news conference. The group accounts for 25 combined All-Star appearances. They won’t be the only stars in attendance during a week that promises to deliver quite the show.
“I hope I make it -- it’ll be fun,” Kershaw said. “This is such a great place to play, and I think everybody knows that. All the road teams that come in and get to play here, they say what a great place Dodger Stadium is, and we’re excited to share it. It’ll be awesome.”