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MLB, Dodgers, and Dodgers Foundation Maintain Commitment to All-Star Legacy Projects This Year

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Major League Baseball announced today that the 2020 All-Star Game presented by Mastercard, which was scheduled to be hosted by the Los Angeles Dodgers and the City of Los Angeles, is being cancelled.  With the Atlanta Braves already named as host of the 2021 All-Star Game in Atlanta, the Dodgers will host the next available Midsummer Classic in 2022. 

Based on the health circumstances created by the COVID-19 pandemic that are beyond MLB’s control along with governmental directives prohibiting large gatherings, the league determined it is unable to conduct the All-Star Game and its week of surrounding fan activities this year.

“Once it became clear we were unable to hold this year’s All-Star festivities, we wanted to award the Dodgers with the next available All-Star Game, which is 2022,” said Baseball Commissioner Robert D. Manfred Jr.  “I want to thank the Dodgers organization and the City of Los Angeles for being collaborative partners in the early stages of All-Star preparation and for being patient and understanding in navigating the uncertainty created by the pandemic.  The 2022 All-Star celebration promises to be a memorable one with events throughout the city and at picturesque Dodger Stadium.”

Said Dodger President & CEO Stan Kasten, “As excited as we were to host this year’s All-Star Game, we know that it will be worth the wait and that Dodger Stadium and Los Angeles will host a world-class event in 2022. We’d like to thank Commissioner Rob Manfred for re-awarding All-Star Week to Los Angeles so quickly, as well as Mayor Eric Garcetti and Councilmember Gil Cedillo for their continued support of this premier sporting event, which will have lasting benefits for our community.”

Major League Baseball, the Los Angeles Dodgers, and the Dodgers Foundation (LADF) will honor their commitment to four All-Star Legacy Projects totaling $1.7 million.  Originally scheduled to be revealed leading into the All-Star Game this year, the four projects will be unveiled at another time in 2020 (or when it is safe to gather) and will benefit the communities of South Los Angeles, Downtown Skid Row, Lincoln Heights, and Chinatown. (Additional All-Star Legacy Community project details are below).

“COVID-19 has forced us to make a lot of tough calls and sacrifices — and while it may have disrupted our plans for this year, we can’t wait to welcome baseball’s best to Los Angeles for the 2022 All-Star Game,” said Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. “The Dodgers have always brought Angelenos together and baseball has helped America heal time and again. I look forward to welcoming fans from all over the world to our city and Dodger Stadium for this Midsummer Classic.”  

“I am thrilled that Council District 1 – home to the legendary Dodger Stadium – will get to host Major League Baseball’s All-Star Game here in 2022. This jewel event will give Los Angeles the opportunity to showcase all it has to offer fans from across the country, and we continue to be committed to making this an event that will leave a significant and lasting impact on our community,” said Los Angeles City Councilmember Gil Cedillo.

This 2022 All-Star Game will mark the fourth time in franchise history that the Dodgers will hold the Midsummer Classic, including the third time in Los Angeles and the second at Dodger Stadium, which last staged the event in 1980.  Previously, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum was the site of the second All-Star Game of the 1959 season and in the franchise’s Brooklyn lineage, Ebbets Field hosted the 1949 All-Star Game.

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2020 All-Star Legacy Project Descriptions

All-Star Dodgers Dreamfield Upgrades at Gilbert Lindsay Park (South Los Angeles)

Located in South Los Angeles, Gilbert Lindsay Park was built on the site of the first “Wrigley Field,” where the Pacific Coast League (PCL) Angels played from 1925-1957 and the Los Angeles Angels played in 1961. The current Dodgers Dreamfield at Gilbert Lindsay Park, originally renovated in 2005, will receive significant upgrades to support programming, provide a safe and quality place for young women to play softball, and to strengthen community engagement. Enhancements will include a field makeover, new fencing and warning track, new bullpens, solar scoreboards, upgrades to the sprinkler system and the addition of a concrete path and ADA-accessible bleachers. The field will be home to the Natasha Watley Softball League and LADF’s Dodgers RBI program partners.

All-Star Dodgers Dreamfields at Lincoln Park (Lincoln Heights)

One of the city’s oldest parks, Lincoln Park offers six acres of playing fields, green space and walkways next to the Los Angeles River, in addition to extensive programming offered through the adjacent Lincoln Park Recreation Center. This project will renovate the two existing ballfields to include field makeovers, new lights and fencing with windscreen, new bullpens, new solar scoreboards, dugout roofs and foul poles, and upgrades to the sprinkler/watering system. The upgraded fields will be utilized by the City of Los Angeles Department of Recreation and Parks and LADF’s Dodgers RBI programs.

All-Star Dodgers Dreamfield at William Mead Homes (Chinatown)

Boys & Girls Clubs of West San Gabriel Valley operates six locations in Los Angeles, including the William Mead Clubhouse, which supports nearly 200 members. In partnership with the Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles, this project will renovate an existing ballfield (currently unplayable) into a safe and quality place to play for Clubhouse kids and nearly 3,500 youth in the community. Renovations include a complete field makeover and installation of fencing, windscreens, scoreboard, backstop signage and more. Upgrades will also be made to the Club’s outdoor space creating a safe, enjoyable space to engage teen members.

All-Star Veterans Courtyard (Downtown Skid Row)

The Veterans Service Center, operated by Volunteers of America Los Angeles, is the first point of contact for homeless veterans in Downtown LA. In collaboration with veteran-led organization The Mission Continues, this effort will upgrade existing outdoor gathering space facilities in Skid Row/Downtown LA for veterans receiving day services and those in long-term housing on site, with the following: painting and cosmetic repairs to existing structures and new lighting, new landscaping (refreshed green space, garden beds) and meditation garden, new outdoor dining space, upgraded workout equipment, new benches, and additional beautification projects.

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(Article courtesy of LA Dodgers)

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