TV sitcom stars Alec Baldwin and John Krasinski will carry the flag for New Era Cap this season as stars of a season-long campaign centered on MLB rivalries that will be played out across eight separate TV ads. New Era agency Brooklyn Brothers shot the first five ads for MLB’s longtime on-field cap supplier last week with Baldwin, a Yankees fan, and Red Sox fan Krasinski on Manhattan’s Upper West Side. The first ad breaks Friday on regional and national telecasts of the first Yankees-Red Sox game of the season. New Era has generally employed MLB players or pop musicians in its marketing, so using the two stars from NBC’s Thursday night lineup is a departure. "We looked around for relevant personalities with affinities for these teams and these guys had worked together before and were just the right fit," said New Era President Pete Augustine, referring to the ’09 film “It’s Complicated” that featured both Baldwin and Krasinski. Augustine: "Typically, we’ve been a one- or two-commercial-and-done company, but we’re hoping that fans tracking these across this season will really be unique." He said the campaign is three times the size of last year’s effort. The spots will run during games throughout the season on ESPN, Fox, YES Network and NESN. Cable channels including Comedy Central, Adult Swim, Spike, FX, SportsNet N.Y. and others will also participate. The “Rivals Are Forever” tagline is part of the TV, social media and POS marketing, as well as a campaign in-stadia and at MLB team shops, that will feature other traditional MLB rivalries. New Era’s tie to TV stars comes as fellow on-field MLB rights holder Majestic Athletic is using players in its TV ads for the first time.
