MLBPA Builds Player-Driven Baseball Community With Infield Chatter Mobile App
Havana, Cuba – March 22, 2016 – Estadio Latinoamericano: Evan Longoria (3) of the Tampa Bay Rays during a spring training exhibition game
(Photo by Scott Clarke / ESPN Images)
Two years ago, the Major League Baseball Players Association heard loud and clear from its constituents how they wanted a better way to connect with fans. Now, they’ll have that opportunity with a player-driven baseball community and social media platform called Infield Chatter.
The mobile app, which has over 1,000 registered players, is a newly-updated version via the Apple Store and Google Play of what was initially launched in beta form 18 months ago.
According Tim Slavin, Chief of Business Affairs at MLBPA, Infield Chatter is a more “specialized” app and experience for both players and fans alike. Slavin added that getting the business model right was key to the new rollout with Honeycommb, which is the technology partner behind powering the new platform and other similar communities like Lady Gaga’s.
Slavin said that with Infield Chatter, players and the MLBPA can interact with fans in ways other platforms don’t allow, such as one-to-one video conferencing between a player and group of fans or integrating a meet-and-greet opportunity via the app. At the same time, though, he explained that Infield Chatter is just an alternative to other social media channels despite the push for players to utilize the new app.
“We’re not trying to replace Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, any of the other social platforms. They’re all great,” he said.
“Look, one of the big things for the guys with Infield Chatter is there’s no trolls here because we have more management and control over it, which is different from Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.”
It’s a sentiment shared by Oakland Athletics outfielder Rajai Davis, who said in a statement that the closely-monitored community is a safe place for baseball players to interact with their fans.
(Courtesy of Infield Chatter)
“Other social media serve their purpose, and that’s fine,” he said. “But there is a lot of crazy activity on some of those sites, and they’re not always the safest places to post personal stuff. There hasn’t been a good spot for baseball fans to gather, until now. I think this is one of the best programs that the players have agreed to work on together.”
Scott Booth, Founder of Honeycommb, said the idea behind Infield Chatter is to keep the overall experience for players and fans positive, stating that negative behavior and troll-like commentary will be dissuaded and rejected through flagging posts, reporting comments and word selection that can be completely eliminated from the platform.
In the first 90 days, the MLBPA’s Slavin said that “deeper and richer engagement” between the players and fans is an initial focal point while monetization and partnering with brands — both baseball and non-baseball — is on hold at least for now.
Infield Chatter will also have the ability to geo-locate players and teams. For example, if a user is a New York Mets fans but the Houston Astros are in town for a four-game series, the platform can surface content from players with both teams. Similarly, Slavin hopes a ripple effect from the social community will be fans recognizing that they have more in common with players than they think, even those who play in different markets or compete on rival teams.
“You might end up becoming a fan of that player or that team and follow baseball in a different way than you had in the past,” Slavin said. “I think that, too, would be a first measured success for us.”
Added MLBPA Executive Director Tony Clark in a statement: “As a former player, I know first-hand how essential it is to build an authentic and lasting connection with the fans. Unlike any other communication tool, Infield Chatter opens up the world of Major League Baseball’s devoted family of players; we are excited about its potential.”
