Play Ball Live powered by Zoom with Ken Griffey Jr., CC Sabathia and Harold Reynolds to stream live on MLB's YouTube channel and X account this Friday, June 5, at 4 p.m. ET
June 2, 2026 – Timed to the start of Major League Baseball’s annual PLAY BALL Weekend, first ballot Hall of Famers Ken Griffey Jr. and CC Sabathia will team up with former All-Star Harold Reynolds to co-host Play Ball Live powered by Zoom on MLB’s YouTube channel and X account (@MLB) this Friday, June 5, at 4 p.m. ET. Originating from the Jackie Robinson Training Complex in Vero Beach, Fla., the site of the MLB Breakthrough Series, the interactive stream produced by MLB Network is designed to engage, excite and inspire youth baseball and softball players all over the world. Griffey, Sabathia and Reynolds will offer their keen wisdom on how to improve as a player, share instructional tips and memories from their playing days, and life lessons learned along the way. Special guests will join the show, including 2018 AL MVP Mookie Betts of the Los Angeles Dodgers and three-time AL MVP Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees. Youth players and coaches are encouraged to join the stream, ask questions and interact with the trio.
“I want to keep sharing my knowledge and teaching the game to the next generation,” said Griffey, who most recently served as a Global Ambassador for the 2026 World Baseball Classic, providing content for WBC and MLB Network platforms. “It’s important for me to give back and try new things like this show on Friday. I’m a big fan of CC, both as a player and person, and Harold is one of my closest friends in baseball. We’re going to have some fun and hopefully pass some things on to the kids who love our game.”
“When this opportunity came my way with Ken and Harold, I quickly said yes,” said Sabathia, who has contributed to MLB Network content since 2021, including the Clubhouse Edition broadcasts. “My son Carter will be participating in the Breakthrough Series, so to get the chance to help him and his teammates out while also giving back on the show will make for a great day. I really just want to find out how Jr. developed one of the prettiest swings this game has ever seen.”
“This is going to be one of the most fun broadcasts I’ve ever had the chance to be part of,” said the Emmy Award-winning analyst Reynolds. “I can’t imagine what it would have been like to be a kid and getting the chance to listen to two Hall of Famers talk ball and try to help me out. Ken and CC are two of the best ever to do it, so I intend to set them up and let them do their thing.”
Friday’s stream is a segue into MLB’s PLAY BALL Weekend, which will feature events all over the world as part of a continued effort to increase participation in baseball and softball. Baseball and softball participation has grown significantly in the 11-year period since PLAY BALL was established according to the 2026 report from the Sports and Fitness Industry Association (SFIA). Highlights from the report include casual baseball participation, for ages 6+ has increased +144% since 2014, the year prior to the program’s establishment, plus in each of the last five years, baseball and softball combined to be the overall most-participated team sport in the U.S. among kids aged 6-12. All-Star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. of the Kansas City Royals was named MLB’s first-ever official PLAY BALL Ambassador in 2025.
Serving as a robust production house, PLAY BALL Weekend Live is the latest content project MLB Network will produce for MLB’s digital platforms. Quick Pitch host Abby Labar delivers a “Abby’s Picks” for MLB’s YouTube channel on a regular basis, recapping the night’s game action. MLB Network is part of the production and segment creation process in the revied weekly *This Week In Baseball* series, which debuts every Friday on X. In addition to TWIB, MLB Network continues to produce and edit content for the newly launched MLB Clubhouse channel on YouTube.