(Reuters) – Major League Baseball announced on Wednesday a global Home Run Derby tour that will bring back former All-Stars and World Series champions who will swing for the fences at stops in London, Seoul and Mexico City in 2022.
Inspired by the popular Home Run Derby held on the eve of MLB’s All-Star Game, the event was created with the goal of attracting a new audience to baseball.
The teams competing represent four of MLB’s most historic clubs: the Boston Red Sox, Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees.
The event kicks off at London’s Crystal Palace Park on July 9 followed by visits to Seoul on Sept. 17 and Mexico City on Oct. 15 at venues still to be announced.
Each team will consist of competitors from four categories, including former MLB players, pro women’s baseball/softball player, individuals from a team’s development system and “influential content creators.”
“I think Home Run Derby X is a great way to bring more eyes to baseball on a worldwide level and it will feel great to represent the Dodgers organization in these events,” five-time All-Star Adrian Gonzalez, who retired from MLB last month, said in a news release.
“I’m looking forward to meeting baseball fans in different parts of the world.”
Jonny Gomes and Nick Swisher, who won World Series titles with the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees, respectively, and former Chicago Cubs All-Star catcher Geo Soto are also taking part in the tour.
The tour will be played on a reduced version of a baseball field, with home plate mounted on a stage while teams compete in a bracket style competition at each event.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
