Annual Online Auction at MLB.com/wintermeetingsauction Continues to Offer Special Baseball Experiences & Unique Items Donated by MLB, MLB Network, MLB & MiLB Clubs, and Others
Effort Led by Texas Rangers and Houston Astros in Continued Commitment
To Supporting Families and Children in Uvalde
For the ninth time, and first since 2019, Major League Baseball, all 30 MLB Clubs, Minor League Clubs and other partners have organized a charity auction during Baseball’s Annual Winter Meetings to benefit a special cause close to the game. The auction this year, which was spearheaded by the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros, will support the establishment of a new Boys & Girls Club in Uvalde, TX, a much-needed resource for Uvalde youth and their families as they continue to heal from the aftermath of the Robb Elementary shooting. This newly established Boys & Girls Club aligns with MLB’s commitment to provide physical, educational and mental enrichment programs for young people through Boys & Girls Clubs of America, the official charity of Major League Baseball.
This year’s auction, which is now LIVE at MLB.com/wintermeetingsauction until Thursday, December 8th at 8:00 p.m. (ET), continues to provide some of the most memorable baseball experiences, including special interactions with Major League players, Hall of Famers, managers, as well as once-in-a-lifetime on-field opportunities and treasured items. All items and experiences have been generously donated by all 30 MLB Clubs, Minor League Clubs, the Office of the Commissioner, MLB Network and the Baseball Hall of Fame & Museum in Cooperstown, NY.
Following are some of the many special experiences and items, on which fans can now bid:
- Special Meet & Greets with baseball superstar Mike Trout, young rising stars (Andrés Giménez, Steven Kwan, Alek Thomas, Daulton Varsho, Christian Walker), and MLB Managers (Oliver Marmol, Dave Roberts, Scott Servais and Buck Showalter).
- Experiences with today’s All-Star players and young stars
- On-field catch and photo shoot with Jazz Chisholm (Miami Marlins)
- Play MLB The Show ’23 with Josiah Gray (Washington Nationals)
- On-field catch with Ryan McMahon (Colorado Rockies)
- Infield lesson with Jose Miranda (Minnesota Twins)
- Personal bullpen sessions with Jorge Moncada (Tampa Bay Rays) or Brady Singer (Kansas City Royals).
- Special experiences with Hall of Famers, including:
- Dinner with Harold Baines (Chicago White Sox) or Mike Schmidt (Philadelphia Phillies)
- 18-hole round with two friends and Ivan “Pudge” Rodriguez (Texas Rangers)
- Win your own luxury suite at Petco Park (San Diego Padres) or have your child’s birthday party in a luxury suite at Minute Maid Park (Houston Astros)
- Ceremonial first pitch opportunities at Wrigley Field (Chicago Cubs), Great American Ball Park (Cincinnati Reds), Progressive Field (Cleveland Guardians) or Comerica Park (Detroit Tigers)
- Incredible ballpark experiences, including:
- VIP batting practice experiences at Chase Field (Arizona Diamondbacks) and Guaranteed Rate Field (Chicago White Sox)
- Behind-the-scenes experience at Camden Yards (Baltimore Orioles), including viewing the manager press conference, batting practice from field and watching an inning with Orioles General Manager Mike Elias
- Kid can walk out the line-up card and also receive four tickets for his/her family on the “Green Monster” at Fenway Park (Boston Red Sox)
- A full kids-only experience at Angel Stadium (Los Angeles Angels), which will include announcing Angels players over the public address system
- Watch a game with New York Mets Owner Steve Cohen at Citi Field
- Meet New York Yankees players following a behind-the-scenes tour of Yankee Stadium, which will include a special opportunity to hold artifacts from Yankees players past and present
- Be the PA announcer for an inning at Oakland Coliseum (Oakland Athletics)
- Be a part of the grounds crew at PNC Park (Pittsburgh Pirates)
- Be a “balldude” or “balldudette” at Oracle Park (San Francisco Giants)
- Watch batting practice from the field and receive premium seats at Rogers Centre (Toronto Blue Jays).
- Learn the Business of Baseball:
- Be a team photographer with the Royals or Rays
- Go behind-the-scenes and shadow the Twins Communications department, including a “white glove” archives tour, Rocco Baldelli media session, and watching game from the press box)
- Shadow a department within the Oakland A’s of your choice, which can include baseball operations, broadcasting, business relations, the Office of the President, and others
- Be a Rays broadcaster for the day, which includes Kevin Cash media availability, pregame media meal and being a part of the broadcast for two innings.
- Exclusive autographed items:
- Jersey from Matt Olson and World Series baseball from Ronald Acuña Jr. (Atlanta Braves)
- Baseballs from Hall of Famers Eddie Murray, Jim Palmer and Brooks Robinson (Baltimore Orioles)
- A special National League MVP & Cy Young Award package featuring a bat from Christian Yelich and ball from Corbin Burnes (Milwaukee Brewers)
- Unique Opportunities:
- Receive up to five recorded greetings from Yankees players for any special occasion, including birthdays, graduations, baby reveals and more
- Tickets to a Fenway Concert Series Show in 2023 (Red Sox)
- MLB Ticket Packages:
- 2023 MLB All-Star Week in Seattle – tickets to all events at T-Mobile Park (All-Star Game presented by Mastercard, T-Mobile Home Run Derby, SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game and All-Star Celebrity Softball Game) as well as the MLB Draft. Package also includes an opportunity to watch batting practice from the field before the T-Mobile Home Run Derby.
- 2023 World Baseball Classic – tickets to the semifinal and championship games at loanDeport Park in March
- Minor League Clubs: Packages similar to the above have been donated by dozens of Minor League Clubs all throughout America, including:
- The chance to have the Double-A Mississippi Braves’ ballpark named after the winning bidder for one day, complete with a groundbreaking ceremony and a ballpark logo featuring the winner’s name.
- An MLB-authenticated game used baseball from the April 8, 2022, game between Single-A Tampa and Lakeland, where Tampa’s Rachel Balkovec became the first woman to manage an affiliated professional baseball game.
- Dozens of opportunities to throw out a ceremonial first pitch, watch games from luxury suites and join radio broadcasters on the air for half of an inning.
- Hall of Fame: An exclusive, behind-the-scenes tour of the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum archives, where you will hear little known stories about Hall of Famers and learn about the greatest collection of baseball artifacts in the world
NOTE: The above is not the full list of items and experiences, but rather a sample of some of the more unique offerings through this auction. A full list of items and experiences can be found here.
This charity auction is, in part, a continuation of efforts led by both the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros to support Uvalde. These include:
- Astros –
- In July, 60 Astros employees, volunteers, Astros Youth Academy families & front office staff visited Uvalde to host a PLAY BALL activation with kids in the community. The group also hosted Memorial Hospital with Orbit and the Astros Shooting Stars team. Astros Owner Jim Crane hosted a Uvalde family brunch with special gifts were presented to the families who lost loved ones in the Robb Elementary tragedy.
- In August, the Astros filled 10 buses of Uvalde families, first responders, educators and members of the community to an Astros game where they had early access to the park. They heard from Astros players Lance McCullers, Jose Altuve and Alex Bregman as well as Manager Dusty Baker.
- The Astros have also pledged a 5-year commitment to Uvalde Little League, which includes new fencing around four fields, a new concession stand, new uniforms and field maintenance and upkeep.
- Rangers –
- Through support from the Texas Rangers Baseball Foundation, Rangers fans, and Rangers ownership, more than $100,000 was donated within days of the tragedy to the fund established to support the families of the victims.
- The Rangers hosted the Mystery Ball Fundraiser during Rangers home game and sold out within minutes to direct additional funds for the families, totaling an additional more than $25,000. Additionally, Rangers wives sent special gifts to the families as well.
- The Rangers donated hundreds of special Rangers items, including bobbleheads for the Convocation welcoming the Uvalde ISD employees back to school and campus.
- Rangers players and coaches wore two special t-shirts during batting practice on June 3, 2022 prior to the game with Seattle at Globe Life Field to pay special tribute to the Uvalde community. The orange t-shirts marked National Gun Violence Awareness Day, which has been recognized since 2013. On this day, people are encouraged to wear orange, the color hunters wear to protect themselves and others, to honor those who have been killed by gun violence. A maroon t-shirt also was worn to honor the 19 children and two teachers who were killed in the unspeakable tragedy at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas on May 24. Maroon is the school color for Robb Elementary.
ABOUT THE WINTER MEETINGS CHARITY AUCTION
Since its inception in 2012, the Winter Meetings Charity Auction has raised nearly $2 million toward a variety of causes, including lung cancer research in honor and memory of Orioles Public Relations Great Monica Barlow, a youth baseball and softball field in memory of Mets Public Relations Great Shannon Forde, a scholarship fund in memory of the late, beloved baseball executive Katy Feeney, for iconic institutions – the Jackie Robinson Foundation and Negro Leagues Baseball Museum, and most recently, for the five organizations leading the fight against Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), otherwise known as Lou Gehrig’s Disease.
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