LA gears up for MLB All-Star Week festivities, July 15-19
It’s time for All-Star baseball!
Los Angeles will celebrate the best of Major League Baseball by hosting the 2022 All-Star Game as well as a host of related festivities at Dodger Stadium, Santa Monica Beach and Downtown LA from July 15 to July 19. LA will be hosting the midsummer-classic for just the third time, following the 1980 game at Dodger Stadium and the 1959 contest at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
MLB All-Star Week festivities will begin on Friday, July 15 at Santa Monica Beach and on the Santa Monica Pier with Capital One All-Star Oceanfront, the first-ever MLB All-Star event to ever be held at the beach. Up on the Pier, fans can be all-stars themselves by stepping into batting cages and pitching cages, or playing interactive games. Visitors can also shop for MLB merchandise. Meanwhile, on the beach just south of the pier, fans can participate in instructional baseball and softball activities or, in the finest Southern California tradition, take daily yoga classes, all while checking out baseball-themed sand sculptures. All activities are free and will run through Sunday, July 17 from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. every day. Additionally, on Saturday, July 16, the MLB Green Team will do its part for the environment by partnering with Santa Monica-based nonprofit Heal the Bay to help clean up the beach.
Meanwhile, Downtown LA will be the center of much of the MLB All-Star action from Saturday, July 16 to Tuesday, July 19. The Capital One PLAY BALL PARK, the world’s largest baseball and softball festival will take place inside the Los Angeles Convention Center all four days and will feature interactive games, clinics and exhibits. The Capital One PLAY BALL PARK will also include autograph stations with baseball legends, Olympians and broadcasters, as well as music, food and fashion. The festival will take place each day from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. More information and tickets can be found at mlb.com/all-star/play-ball-park. The MLB All-Star Block Party in Gilbert Lindsay Plaza outside of the convention center will feature free activities such as giveaways, music and other interactive games, as well as a beer garden.
Additionally, Xbox Plaza at L.A. LIVE will feature the first round of the 2022 MLB Draft on Sunday night, July 17. Former All-Stars and Hall of Famers are among the dignitaries who will represent the 30 baseball clubs that select the players that will shape their teams’ futures. The event will also be televised on MLB Network.
Xbox Plaza and Chick Hearn Court will also be the sight of the All-Star Red Carpet Show presented by MasterCard on Tuesday, July 19. Starting at 11 am, fans will get to see MLB All-Stars joined by their families as they get the full-on glam treatment before heading up to the main attraction at Dodger Stadium. The MLB Network will also be televising these festivities.
Speaking of, for those ready to hear the magic words, “Play Ball!,” Dodger Stadium will start hosting its events on its storied diamond on Saturday, July 16. First, at 4 p.m., the SiriusXM All-Star Futures game will feature some of the best ballplayers in the minor leagues looking to put on a show before they make The Show. Some of the more notable past participants of the futures game include LA-raised New York Yankee slugger Giancarlo Stanton and Los Angeles Angels star outfielder Mike Trout. Then, the fences get brought in for some softball action at 7:15 p.m. as the MLB All-Star Celebrity Game will bring entertainers and athletes together as only LA knows how. Previous participants on the celebrity side have included Snoop Dogg, Jamie Foxx, Simone Biles, Chris Rock and Jimmy Kimmel. Former athletes who’ve gotten in on the fun include former Dodger World Series Champions Fernando Valenzuela and Steve Garvey as well as baseball Hall of Famers Rickey Henderson and Andre Dawson, and Southern California-raised softball star Jennie Finch.
Monday, July 18 at Dodger Stadium starts with the Gatorade All-Star Workout Day at 11 a.m., when fans can check out the All-Star batting practice. Then, the T-Mobile Home Run Derby, will be the first to ever be held at Dodger Stadium when it starts at 5 p.m. Fans can enjoy the spectacle of the National League’s and American League’s most notorious mashers – possibly including two-time reigning Derby champion Pete Alonso of the New York Mets – taking aim at Dodger Stadium’s iconic pavilions, the Foam Finger sculpture behind left field, and the Elysian Park Hills and San Gabriel Mountains far beyond.
Finally, Tuesday, July 19 marks the 92nd All-Star Game presented by Mastercard at Dodger Stadium, which starts at 4:40 p.m. and will be televised nationally by Fox Sports and will be broadcast across more than 200 countries and territories. At stake is bragging rights, as the National League will look to end its eight-game losing streak against the American League. While voting results and roster picks won’t be announced until early July, expect Dodger position players Freddie Freeman, Trea Turner and Mookie Betts, as well as ace-pitchers Clayton Kershaw and Walker Buehler to be in the running to represent both the home team and the National League at Chavez Ravine. As an added bonus, former two-time Dodger All-Star and Dodger World Series Champion Dusty Baker will be managing the American League squad.
