SEATTLE -- Manny Machado is proud of where he came from. That'll be evident in the inaugural Players Weekend from Friday to Sunday, when all players will wear colorful, non-traditional uniforms featuring alternate designs.
Although he plays in Baltimore, the Orioles' third baseman went with "Mr. Miami" as his nickname, which will be adorned on the back of his Players Weekend jersey.
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"We play this game because of where we came from and how we grew up," Machado said. "Anything we can do to represent that, we're going to try and do that in any way we can."
Machado is not the only player paying homage to his upbringing. Mariners first baseman Yonder Alonso is "Mr. 305," and Cubs outfielder Jonathan Jay is "305 J," with 305 being the area code in Miami.
The three players all have a "Miami" group chat, according to Alonso, and they collaborated so each player added a slice of South Beach to their nickname.
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"It was always really [about] putting into perspective what the Players Weekend is all about and have it for a good memory in our life," Alonso said.
Each player will wear a special patch on his sleeve showing the progression of a child evolving into a Major Leaguer. Under that logo is white space, and every player will mark a name of a person who they are grateful to for helping them advance their careers, such as family or a coach.
Both Alonso and Machado noted that acknowledging their upbringing was important. The patch is another vehicle to show their appreciation for that formative period in their lives.
"We'll see when they come out what I write on it," Machado said. "But it's all meaningful things. It's for a great cause, getting kids to go out there and play and do great things out there -- just the things that we used to do when we were growing up, trying to get them to like baseball again and get out there and stay active and stay out of trouble."
Players will wear specially designed caps by New Era and unique socks from Stance. During pregame workouts and postgame interviews, they will wear T-shirts highlighting a charity or cause of their choice.
Along with the opportunity to have their nickname on the back of the jerseys made by Majestic Athletic, players can also wear and use uniquely colored and designed spikes, batting gloves, wristbands, compression sleeves, catcher's masks and bats.
Game-worn Players Weekend jerseys will be auctioned at MLB.com/auctions, with 100 percent of net proceeds donated to the MLB-MLBPA Youth Development Foundation, a joint effort established in July 2015 by MLB and the MLBPA, with an initial commitment of $30 million focused on improving the caliber, effectiveness and availability of amateur baseball and softball programs.
The uniforms will first be worn by the Pirates and Cardinals during the MLB Little League Classic to be played in Williamsport, Pa., on Sunday during the 2017 Little League World Series. That game will take place at Bowman Field, home of the Williamsport Crosscutters, a Phillies affiliate in the Class A Short-Season New York-Penn League.