by by Harrison Rosner, special to Gotham Baseball
For the people. For the Brotherly Love.
That was MLB’s slogan for this year’s All Star Game weekend. From July 10-14, Philadelphia was taken over by baseball–and with the United States celebrating 250 years just a week prior, it was time to shine for America’s pastime. This past weekend, the country needed the sport perhaps more than ever. In a year in which a nation’s remarkable ideals should be at the forefront of everyone’s mind, 2026 has instead been filled with toxic debate and heated civil discourse we have been forced to become used to. America has been longing for something to heal its divides which seem to grow deeper with every passing day. Of course, baseball delivered. Baseball always delivers.
All Star Weekend provided a beautiful celebration of what our sport–and our country–is all about. People from all over the world rejoiced to enjoy a few days in baseball heaven. From the games themselves to the surrounding festivities, it is safe to say MLB hit everything out of the park. That said, let’s take a dive into everything I observed throughout my time in the City of Brotherly Love.
The weekend began on Sunday with the MLB Futures Game and MLBx 3-on-3 tournament. Although there wasn’t anything special about the Futures Game production-wise, it was very entertaining throughout. Watching baseball’s best prospects go at it was a great experience, and something MLB should certainly continue promoting in the future. In the coming years, I know I’ll look back and be grateful I saw some of the game’s brightest stars before they hit the biggest stage. Despite the success of the Futures Game, though, I thought the MLBx tournament was the lowlight of the weekend. I didn’t think the game had anything different enough from the Home Run Derby to make it stand out. Many of the Citizens Bank Park fans actually stayed after the Futures Game for the start of the event, but it was too dragged out to get them to see the entire thing out.
If I were to change anything about the event, I would’ve made it more player-centered. My same criticism I often have of unsuccessful sports social media pages is my same criticism here–there wasn’t enough about the personality of the participants. I think that having the players mic’d up–or something of that nature–would be a not overly difficult but necessary change. Also, I didn’t think having three hometown teams and one Braves team made much sense. It took away from the pro-Philadelphia aspect instead of promoting it by diluting the support. The final suggestion I would have would be to try and bring in bigger celebrity names if MLBx wants to include celebrities on the teams at all. The teams of three consisted of a baseball legend, an AUSL star, and a celebrity–two of whom were Philadelphia sports legends Terrell Owens and Jordan Mailata. The other celebrities, however, didn’t add much to the event. I think MLBx has to go all out if they really want to enhance their product. Overall, the biggest flaw of the event was that it simply took too long. There were too many dead spots to keep most fans engaged. Nevertheless, the event was a huge success for the AUSL. Their athletes were definitely the bright spot in the event. The MVP, Rachel Garcia, put on an absolute show, along with Alyssa Brito.
The rest of the weekend was filled with constant highlights. On Monday, I traveled to the MLB All Star Village and the Home Run Derby. The All Star Village was the league’s most difficult task for the weekend, considering they had to build an entire baseball city from scratch. In my opinion, it was also their biggest success. Most fans don’t get the opportunity to go to the Home Run Derby or All Star Game itself. The village played perfectly in its role of allowing all fans to come and enjoy the festivities. It was a perfect mix of celebrating baseball’s past and future, giving kids countless opportunities to play while providing historical exhibits on the extensive cultural history of the game for fanatics like myself. I said earlier in the summer that I would be on the lookout for moments that remind me why I am a fan of sports in the first place. The accessibility of the Village–which included everything from sensory rooms to mini fields for kids–and the pure joy it gave to so many fans reminded me of just that. Being at the Convention Center made me proud to be a baseball fan. My review of the Home Run Derby is no different than all the other rave reviews it has gotten online. I can’t speak on the experience of watching on Netflix, but the in-stadium atmosphere was incredible. The format worked perfectly to keep the energy high, and although I was disappointed that Kyle Schwarber lost in heartbreaking fashion, it was still a spectacular event. Jordan Walker was amazing to watch, even with all the boos he faced. MLB should run the Derby back the exact same way next year. The only way it fails is if players abuse the ability to take unlimited pitches–something they avoided this year.
My All Star Weekend finished up with the National League vs. American League showdown on Tuesday. This game was all about America’s 250th birthday. The pregame was nothing short of incredible, with Miles Teller delivering an amazing speech from the infield and the nation being beautifully honored with a flyover and terrific national anthem. Although the baseball itself was not top notch, the atmosphere surrounding it was. The best part of the night was the recreation of the iconic 4th of July scene from the Sandlot, where players took the field with a young kid at each of their positions while fireworks lit the sky in the background. This moment was a true masterpiece. Watching Freddie Freeman play catch with a fan, Mike Trout walk a kid through his swing, and all the other players engage in casual conversation was special.
All in all, All Star Weekend was a massive win for baseball. It made myself and millions of others proud to be American in a time where it can sometimes be hard to do so. This weekend brought all of us together as one, and I’m forever thankful that I got to be a part of it. Baseball is–and always will be–the best.
