The globalization of baseball has grown as rapidly at the youth level in the past several years as it has in the Major Leagues. Another example of this popped up on Thursday, when MLB and USA Baseball announced that the "Fun At Bat" program will be available to more 2,000 elementary school students in Ibiuna, Brazil.

Fun At Bat is an introductory and character-building bat-and-ball program designed for use in physical education classes. The free program currently reaches approximately 3.5 million children in all 50 states, Washington D.C., Puerto Rico, Mexico and London, and now it's headed to Brazil, administered by Confederação Brasileira de Beisebol e Softbol (CBBS) and Ibiuna City Hall, with support from MLB and USA Baseball.

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“The interest of baseball and softball within Brazil is a great growth opportunity for our sport,” said Tony Reagins, Major League Baseball's executive vice president of baseball & softball development. “With Fun At Bat delivered in an academic environment, the program gives kids a chance to be closely engaged with the game while also learning about developing positive leadership and teamwork characteristics.

"We appreciate the partnership we have with USA Baseball as we introduce kids in Brazil to the sport at its most basic levels, which we believe will be the beginning of a lifelong passion for baseball and softball.”

Fun At Bat promotes fun and active lifestyles for children, while also teaching the fundamental skills of bat-and-ball sports. The program -- available in English, Spanish and Portuguese -- also includes a literacy component focusing on character development and teaching traits such as leadership, teamwork and responsibility.

Fun At Bat is part of the Play Ball initiative -- the sport's largest collective effort to encourage young people to participate in baseball- or softball-related activities, including formal and casual forms of play. Since the initiative’s launch in 2015, the Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) has reported a 55 percent increase in casual baseball participation in the United States.

The expansion of Fun At Bat to Brazil is MLB’s latest efforts to grow the game among young people throughout the world. Specifically in Brazil, in 2019 and ‘20, MLB has held Play Ball events in multiple cities throughout the country, which is a continuation of youth-focused programs held throughout the years by MLB.

"We are excited to expand the Fun At Bat program to the students and teachers in Brazil,” said USA Baseball executive director and CEO Paul Seiler. "The program continues to serve as a fun, safe environment for students to learn the sport in countries all across the globe, and we look forward to continuing to work with Major League Baseball and the [CBBS] to bring the program to more schools throughout Brazil."