MLB trainers host virtual PLAY campaign
Major League Baseball's athletic trainers have teamed up to bring the PLAY campaign to kids and parents virtually in 2020.
The annual PLAY events -- PLAY stands for Promoting a Lifetime of Activity for Youth -- are normally hosted in all of the Major League stadiums during the baseball season, with clinics run by team athletic trainers with help from the players. But with COVID-19 putting the face-to-face events on hold this year, the PLAY campaign is going virtual.
The Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers Society released a YouTube video for a virtual PLAY campaign to help share the messages they normally teach kids at the stadium PLAY events.
In the video, MLB athletic trainers from around the league -- including the Indians' Jeff Desjardins, the D-backs' Ryan DiPanfilo, the Royals' Nick Kenny, the Brewers' Rafael Freitas, the Twins' Michael Salazar and the Tigers' Matt Rankin -- explain how kids can stay healthy and keep playing at home, whether they’re inside or outside.
They talk about everything from doing warm-up activities, to eating fruits and vegetables instead of junk food, to always having good sportsmanship and playing fair.
The PLAY campaign helps educate kids about the importance of living a healthy and active life, the dangers of performance-enhancing substances and the importance of inclusion for all people with and without disabilities.
David Adler is a reporter for MLB.com based in New York.