Major League Baseball today announced the 2019 finalists of its national youth skills competitions – MLB Pitch, Hit & Run and the MLB Jr. Home Run Derby. Forty-four children (ages 7-14) from around the United States and Canada will compete on Saturday, July 6th at 7:30am E.T. during MLB All-Star Week at Progressive Field, the site of the 2019 MLB All-Star Game Presented by Mastercard.

The list of 24 finalists for the MLB Pitch, Hit & Run National Finals competition includes the top three baseball and softball participants from four age divisions (7-8, 9-10, 11-12 and 13-14). In 2019, youth from the U.S. and Canada participated in more than 4,200 competitions in either the baseball or softball sectors of each age division.” Each of the 30 MLB ballparks hosted team championships from late May through early July. Rhys Hoskins of the Philadelphia Phillies, Eric Hosmer & Matt Wisler of the San Diego Padres, J.P. Crawford of the Seattle Mariners, and are all Pitch, Hit & Run alumni. First overall pick in the 2019 MLB Draft Adley Rutschman (Baltimore Orioles) is also an alum of the program, having competed in 2006.

The fourth annual MLB Jr. Home Run Derby National Finals will feature 20 young sluggers who have advanced from over 1,800 local competitions across the U.S. and Canada. The winners of the MLB Jr. Home Run Derby contest in both age divisions – 14u & 12u – will be recognized at the T-Mobile Home Run Derby at Progressive Field on Monday, July 8th.

The finalists of both competitions will attend various All-Star Week activities, including PLAY BALL PARK (July 5th – July 9th), All-Star Sunday featuring the All-Star High School Home Run Derby, All-Star Legends & Celebrity Softball Game and SiriusXM All-Star Futures Game (July 7th) and Gatorade All-Star Workout Day featuring the T-Mobile Home Run Derby (July 8th).

Both competitions are part of the PLAY BALL initiative, which is baseball’s collective effort to encourage young people and communities to engage in baseball- or softball-related activities, including formal leagues, special events and casual forms of play. PLAY BALL events have become MLB’s signature youth engagement activity during the professional and amateur baseball and softball calendar, especially on key dates throughout MLB’s Championship Season and through the Postseason & World Series. PLAY BALL events demonstrate the positive way the game can serve as an outlet for physical activity, fun with friends and learning how to play the sport at its most basic levels. PLAY BALL also serves as the League’s youth umbrella in which all associated programs and events derive from the initiative’s consistent, simple message: However You Play Ball, PLAY BALL! PlayBall.org is the PLAY BALL initiative’s online home and is accessible via MLB.com, USABaseball.com, USASoftball.com and other partner websites. PlayBall.org also links to USABaseball.com, which provides players, parents and coaches with the information and resources to help with proper play and instruction. Health and safety information, including through the Pitch Smart program, also is available. In addition to flagship partnerships with USA Baseball and USA Softball, PLAY BALL is also supported by the U.S. Conference of Mayors, Minor League Baseball, Little League International, and MLB Corporate Partners Chevrolet, Scotts and Kingsford.