Bon Jovi Central Park Show Highlights MLB All-Star Events

(l to r) Bon Jovi, Bloomberg, BofA's Brian Moynihan And MLB's Tim Brosnan

MLB yesterday at City Hall in N.Y. officially announced that it will host a free concert in Central Park featuring Bon Jovi on July 12 as part of the lead up to the July 15 MLB All-Star Game at Yankee Stadium. MLB corporate sponsor Bank of America (BoA) will serve as the concert's presenting sponsor. Tickets, which will be required to attend the first come, first serve event, will be distributed at N.Y. ballparks beginning tomorrow. While the majority of the tickets will be given to fans at Yankee Stadium, others will be distributed at Shea Stadium, KeySpan Park in Brooklyn and RCB Park in Staten Island. In addition to the concert, MLB also will host the DHL All-Star FanFest Giveaway for MLB Banking Customers. BoA is supporting the event with a month-long promotion, offering two tickets to an evening at the FanFest for customers who open both an MLB checking account and credit card at a N.Y. Metro banking center by July 12. BoA will support its promotion with print, radio, online and point-of-sale activation, as well as a new MLB-themed TV spot. In addition, BoA is teaming with MLB and Little League Baseball to dedicate newly renovated fields in N.Y.'s Castle Hill neighborhood (MLB). MLB.com's Jon Blau noted no more than 60,000 fans will be allowed to attend the Bon Jovi concert, which N.Y. Mayor Michael Bloomberg said he "hoped would be the largest concert in the history of Central Park's Great Lawn" (MLB.com, 6/30). On Long Island, Glenn Gamboa notes the concert will be the "first major show" on the Great Lawn since Dave Matthews Band played in '03 (NEWSDAY, 7/1).

STAR-STUDDED AFFAIR: MLB.com's Jack O'Connell reported Baseball HOFers Brooks Robinson, Willie McCovey, Goose Gossage, Harmon Killebrew, Tommy Lasorda, Fergie Jenkins and Bruce Sutter will be among 20 other HOFers recognized in a ceremony prior to the All-Star Game. The HOFers also will participate with current MLBers in the All-Star Game Red Carpet Parade, presented by Chevy, in Manhattan from 1:00-3:00pm ET prior to that night's All-Star Game. Former MLBers Robin Yount and Robin Roberts also will participate in the weekend's festivities (MLB.com, 6/30). USA TODAY's Michael Hiestand reports Fox for its coverage of the game "might bring in six or seven [HOFers] to call an inning" with announcers Tim McCarver and Joe Buck. Fox Sports VP/Communications Dan Bell: "That's something we're considering." Fox also plans to use new Diamond Cams "offering [HD] and wider views." But Hiestand notes "those tiny cameras, placed in the field itself, so far haven't been able to pan or tilt" (USA TODAY, 7/1).