Opening Day At Home

3.26.20

Today was supposed to be Opening Day for baseball. All thirty teams, scheduled to play and begin their official seasons. Unfortunately, Coronavirus happened, and the season is suspended indefinitely. This was going to be the earliest start to a baseball season, instead, it will be months late. What is typically my favorite day of the year, is now sad, but of course MLB is doing their best to make it a happy, baseball-filled, day!

First off, they’re definitely killing it on social. We’ve got to sit back and see how basketball has handled things on their social. League Fits, a whole brand based on players walking through the tunnel before a game, is going completely old school, sharing looks from players in the past decades. ESPN and Spots Center has done well with their fair share of highlights. MLB started by sharing a message to the fans, that today, it is okay to play ball in the house. One of the biggest things we’ve been told in our youth, not to play ball in the house. I think we can all come together and say now is the time to make that exception.

Additionally, they’ve taken so many memorable moments in baseball, and highlighted them with quotes from players. What went through Josè Bautista’s head when he had that legendary bat flip?

“I knew it was gone, I was enjoying it.” - Josè Bautista

These quotes are followed by a great clip of the action. Truly a great way to stay in touch with the players, and keep the fans pumped up about their favorite teams and memories.

Besides just being super active and aware on social, #OpeningDayAtHome will be trending across media platforms. Major League Baseball has decided to nationally broadcast thirty games, representing some of the most memorable wins, one for each major league team. All games will be streamed on MLB.com, and across social channels using the hashtag. Every game has a memory, and the organization did a great job selecting the games to be played today. Each game having its own fun name. “Game 162, for all the marbles,” “Joey Bats’ epic flip,” several no-nos, and of course, “The Game 4 Miracle.”

The Game 4 Miracle is one of my favorites, only less to what is to come this series. Red Sox are down 3-0 to the Yankees in the ALCS. No one has ever came back and won it all after this. The Red Sox swept the rest of the series from the Yankees, and won the World Series this year. I remember it like it was yesterday. My mother, father, and brother had fallen asleep on the couch. My sister was upstairs asleep, she didn’t care. The final out and I screamed so loud I woke everyone up. We had just won the World Series for the first time in eighty-six years. It was a crazy ride, that all began Game 4 of the ALCS. My family and I will be celebrating this replay for #OpeningDayAtHome.

Of course, Opening Day is different this year due to something serious that is happening in the world, today. The MLB made a $1 million joint donation to Feeding America and Meals on Wheels, as well as a $30 million commitment to emergency relief for ballpark employees. #OpeningDayAtHome is an opportunity for awareness, so fans can contribute to MLB official charities as well, such as the Boys and Girls Clubs of America.