MLB will also soon release creative starring entertainment personalities discussing the rule changes—like the pitch clock, no infield shifts and larger bases—to let fans know how the game will change for the better.
Why Wieden+Kennedy
Behind every brand platform is a brand truth to build off, and Timpone needed an agency could serve as more than just a creative partner.
“Not only are they known for their partnership with great brands, but they also have just really good insights around uncovering the brand truth,” Timpone said. MLB handed Wieden+Kennedy the account without a competitive pitch. The league engaged multiple agencies last season to get its 2022 campaign off the ground, but ultimately the needs of the league caused it to gravitate toward W+K.
Timpone wants to focus on bringing creativity internally across baseball, not just within the marketing department. The brand truth they uncover will be implemented across everything MLB does from how it helps it market its players, in-stadium experiences and how the league uses its flagship office and store in Midtown Manhattan. MLB is entrusting that Wieden will help the league further its goals of reaching fans not just through the game, but integrating baseball better into culture through a number of different outlets like food, fashion and music.
W+K has two of its creative legends—Jim Riswold and Hal Curtis, who helped build Nike into the marketing juggernaut that it is today—leading the account for the shop, according to Lieberman. The agency will work most closely with Lauren Fritts, svp, brand and experiential marketing, MLB, who is part of a three-pronged leadership team beneath Timpone. Barbara McHugh, MLB’s svp for audience development and marketing operations and Scott Weisenthal, MLB’s svp, creative and content marketing, round out the trio.
Creators at the center
The league is also leaning into creators with various initiatives in the past that brought TikTok creators to the All Star Game, Celebrity Sluggers series and MLB Creator Class.
The Celebrity Sluggers series, which featured six videos with rising young actors, have garnered over 2 million views on YouTube, while MLB Creator Class—nine TikTok creators repping teams across the league—generated nearly a quarter of a billion views on the app.
The league is also using an app called Greenfly, which was conceived by former MLB All Star Shawn Green, to fuel its Player Social Program. Players receive images and videos to share on social to promote themselves and the game, with more than 1,800 players enrolled in the program. MLB’s marketing team set up a house during Spring Training for players to visit and interact with each other outside the game and get guidance on how to best build their brands and following.
Nowhere was this program more evident than at the World Series, where MLB was handing the mic to players like Chisolm to show off their personality on the league’s biggest stage.
