3 Things To Watch

Honoring the Negro Leagues

While there will be no Field of Dreams game in Iowa this season — that site is being developed into a youth baseball and softball complex and could host future MLB games — the league is offering another specialty game: MLB at Rickwood Field. The June 20 game between the Cardinals and Giants will take place at the oldest professional ballpark in the country and former home of a Negro Leagues team in Birmingham, Ala. MLB is billing the event as a tribute to the Negro Leagues and 92-year-old Hall of Famer Willie Mays, who played for the Birmingham Black Barons in the late 1940s, in conjunction with Juneteenth. The newly renovated Rickwood Field (shown below) will also host an MiLB game between the Birmingham Barons and the Montgomery Biscuits on June 18.

Rickwood Fieldgetty images

Joining the Netflix Party

As the Red Sox look to rebound from consecutive last-place finishes in the American League East, they’ll have an extra set of cameras following them this season. Netflix is chronicling the 2024 team in what will be the streaming giant’s first MLB docuseries. “What really appealed to us is the Red Sox truly seemed like they would open the doors in an amazing way to give fans something they hadn’t seen before,” said Gabe Spitzer, Netflix vice president of nonfiction sports.

The series isn’t expected to be “Drive to Survive” for baseball, with episodes developed in real time. Instead, director Greg Whiteley won’t stitch together the narrative until the season has run its course. “His vision from the beginning is, ‘How can I create the documentary version of ‘Moneyball?’” Spitzer said.

Netflix has a second Red Sox project — a documentary that examines the team’s 2004 curse-busting championship season — arriving on the platform later this year.

City Connect Unveiling

Nine teams are set to unveil new City Connect uniforms this season — the Blue Jays, Cardinals, Dodgers, Guardians, Mets, Phillies, Rays, Tigers and Twins — leaving only two teams that haven’t done so: the A’s, ostensibly because of their plans to move to Las Vegas; and the Yankees, who do not appear ready to embrace an alternate design.

This year’s batch of specialty uniforms will all debut before the All-Star break, though specific dates have not yet been announced. The Dodgers were a part of the inaugural 2021 City Connect program, making them the first team to have a second design.

3 People To Watch

Billy Chambers

Billy Chambers

MLB executive vice president of local media

As the RSN landscape continues to shift and MLB explores creating a national product that would combine its local rights with its out-of-market package, Chambers and his team will lead the league’s efforts in regional television. Chambers was hired in January 2023 and promptly brought on three hires. He has since added two more full-timers to his lean staff, which will handle the production and distribution for three teams this season — the Diamondbacks, Padres and Rockies. “My goal is to have a big Fox or ESPN game look the same as my games,” Chambers said, “except my games are on a regional budget.”

M. Scott Havens

M. Scott Havens

New York Mets president of business operations

Havens, the former CEO of Bloomberg Media, is the only new top business executive across MLB’s front offices heading into this season. He reports to owner Steve Cohen and has been very busy since starting at Citi Field in January: he has spearheaded the development of a new strategy and analytics team; led a renewed focused on first-party data collection via a soon-to-come loyalty program; increased paid marketing efforts; and worked directly with the organization’s partnerships department to expand more aggressively into media, including original content sponsorships. He also oversaw a round of layoffs in mid-March, trimming the business side of the front office by about two dozen staffers.

David Rubenstein

David Rubenstein

Pending Baltimore Orioles owner

Rubenstein’s purchase of the Orioles from the Angelos family (at a valuation of $1.725 billion) will likely become official in the coming weeks, at which point the Baltimore native will take the reins as the team’s control person. On March 4, Rubenstein went on X to directly engage Orioles fans with four separate posts after a visit to Camden Yards, his latest effort in establishing the type of genuine rapport with the O’s fan base that was not present with the club’s soon-to-be former owner. Rubenstein, who founded private equity firm The Carlyle Group, is taking over a franchise on the rise, with young stars including catcher Adley Rutschman.

3 Questions To Watch

Can attendance continue to climb?

MLB enjoyed an impressive 9.2% year-over-year increase in total attendance last season, the biggest jump in the 30-team era, which began in 1998. Matching that gain will be tough, but the league is positioned well to at least see some growth in ’24. The same factors that drove crowds last year — including the improved pace of the game due to the pitch clock, the expanded postseason field, and a revamped, balanced schedule in which every team plays each other at least once, among other factors — should continue to have an impact. Extensive renovations at Toronto’s Rogers Centre and Cleveland’s Progressive Field should help attendance in each venue, and improved star power on teams such as the Yankees (outfielder Juan Soto) and Dodgers (slugger Shohei Ohtani) should boost crowds both at home and on the road.

getty images

What’s going on with the A’s?

In early March, the A’s finally released renderings of their planned ballpark on the Las Vegas Strip, though uncertainty still looms — including where the team will play from 2025 through ‘27. Team President Dave Kaval has said discussions are ongoing concerning the three options in play — remaining at the Oakland Coliseum or pivoting to Class AAA ballparks in either Sacramento or Salt Lake City — and that a decision needs to be made by the time MLB releases its 2025 schedule this summer. After the Tropicana Las Vegas is demolished later this year, Kaval said the A’s plan to break ground on the site in 2025, with the aim of being ready to open in 2028. The A’s continue to work with the Las Vegas Stadium Authority board of directors toward a lease agreement. In the meantime, the fan base, upset over team leadership’s decision to leave Oakland, is planning more reverse boycotts at Oakland Coliseum, including at Opening Day on March 28.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred

Ready to talk expansion?

MLB hasn’t expanded since 1998, the longest drought since its first modern expansion in 1961. Growing to 32 teams is not imminent, but it is on the horizon. Commissioner Rob Manfred told reporters in February that he does not anticipate two new expansion teams to be playing before his current and final term is up in January 2029, but hopes to have “the process in place” before that time. Nashville and Salt Lake City continue to gain traction in the eyes of executives across the league, while cities such as Austin, Charlotte, Mexico City, Montreal, Portland and Raleigh also appear as viable expansion markets.