By Mark Seavy

As Major League Baseball (MLB) focuses on the next generation of fans, entertainment properties and location-based experiences are joining the line-up. 

In addition to licensed products—for example, sports product manufacturer Foco has produced bobbleheads, plush, and backpack clips for children’s book author Mo Willems’ The Pigeon, Elephant, and Piggie characters—this effort has also included ballpark takeovers. 

These events aren’t entirely new. MLB’s Colorado Rockies have had “Star Wars Night” at Coors Field in Denver, CO for 11 years with the next one slated for July 19th. But baseball is increasingly spotlighting these experiences in a bid to bring families and specifically younger fans to the ballparks. 

“These are attracting a different fan. Baseball has its diehards but a lot of what they are doing is trying to attract a new fan [to the game],” said Tori Cook, SVP for Franchise Management at Hidden Pigeon Co. (HPC), the company behind Willems’ licensing program. “What we saw was a way to bring in families [both to the team and to the book property].” 

Toei Animation has a one-day One Piece promotion for the Los Angeles Dodgers game against the Chicago White Sox on July 3rd. Straw hats—a signature accessory of the streaming series’ Luffy character—will be given to the first 40,000 ticketed fans and will be accompanied by a post-game drone show. A similar One Piece promotion was held at the Boston Red Sox’s May 3rd game, which featured a co-branded jersey.  

And Pittsburgh-based Fred Rogers Productions has a “Beautiful Night in the Neighborhood” event with the Pittsburgh Pirates slated for June 27th. It will feature both a sing-along to the theme from Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood in the seventh inning and a post-game drone show by Zambelli Fireworks with characters from Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood. 

“Baseball is a generational story that is a rite of passage, and we are trying to make that connection to Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood as well and it is great transition to Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood,” said Katie Huber, Senior Director of Licensing at Fred Rogers Productions. “With families in the ballpark, it is a great way to expose them to both properties.” 

Moving forward, the exclusive products and experiences connected to these entertainment partnerships are becoming more extensive.  

HPC held character promotions during New York Yankees games last year and is renewing them for the current season in July as well as organizing a “Teachers Appreciation Night” scheduled for September. The events have featured The Pigeon, Elephant, and Piggie content on the scoreboard and products for sale on site through the Yankees’ in-stadium team store, including licensee Foco’s Pigeon bobbleheads (2,000 units were available last year and 10,000 units will be available during an event on July 13th) and also including t-shirts, tank tops, hoodies, and New Era caps. In doing so, HPC has also worked with Legends, which merchandises the team store. It also has a similar bobblehead promotion set for the Kansas City Royals on September 5th. OT Sports is supplying co-branded apparel for both the Yankees and Royals. 

In addition to MLB, other professional sports leagues are also getting involved.  

For example, HPC is working with minor league baseball, including the Triple AAA International League, and signed an agreement with OT Sports for the National Hockey League potentially starting with 2025-2026 season, Cook said. And Toei partnered with the Los Angeles Lakers for a One Piece promotion on February 28th that included a co-branded t-shirt and poster as well as putting visuals of 10 characters from the streaming series on social media. 

“These promotions get into the communities, the tickets are accessible [price wise], and you can take the entire family out,” Cook said.