MLB Plans All-Star Parade, Plants Lady Libertys
Major League Baseball is planning a Chevy-sponsored parade of Hall of Famers to precede this year’s All-Star Game in Yankee Stadium.
It’s part of MLB’s hype for what is already an historic mid-summer classic during Yankee Stadium’s final season. MLB will also plant facsimiles of the Statue of Liberty around the city, bearing logos of the 30 MLB teams, and the Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants, on their robes and torches.
The 42 8.5-foot-high Lady Libertys will be cemented in place next week as hard-to-miss reminders about the game.
The All-Star Game Red Carpet Parade presented by Chevy will step off from Bryant Park in midtown Manhattan at 1 p.m. on July 15. It will air on Fox in tape delay an hour ahead of the All-Star Game at 8 p.m.
The 40 Hall of Famers, including Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Bob Feller, Frank Robinson and Yogi Berra, will ride on flatbed trucks with other All-Star greats from both leagues on a long red carpet along Manhattan’s Sixth Avenue. MLB team mascots will give gifts to fans along the parade route.
“This will be one of the greatest parades in New York City history,” Tim Brosnan, MLB executive vice president of business, declared.
No details were immediately available from Chevrolet on how many of its vehicles, or which ones, would be showcased in the event.
MLB is also using the All-Star Game to push pro baseball’s new eco-friendly profile. Baseball is sponsoring construction of a Bronx playground using 85% recycled materials. All-Star totes made of 80% recycled material will be handed out to fans in seven cities, with retailers in New York, Chicago, St. Louis and Toronto also selling the bags.
Hybrid buses will ferry fans to the DHL FanFest at the Jacob Javits Convention Center from two midtown locations. The FanFest is a sprawling display of baseball activities and sponsor booths during the week preceding the All-Star Game.
