MLB stars discuss their 'important' roles in growing baseball to new fans

Fox News

29-04-2025

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred's rule changes may not be loved by baseball purists, but the proof is in the pudding.
As the length of games has significantly shrunk in recent years, Major League Baseball saw increased attendance in back-to-back years for the first time since the early 2010s in the last two seasons.
A Dodgers-Yankees World Series was going to bring in plenty of viewers anyway, but nonetheless, it's all a good sign for the sport.
Two of the biggest names in the game know that they, too, have a job to do off the field as well.
"I think it's important to grow the sport," Milwaukee Brewers star and 2018 NL MVP Christian Yelich told Fox News Digital in a recent interview. "I think it's important to attract as many new viewers as possible, obviously keep your existing audience and have it be a good product for everybody to consume. I think if you can have an impact like that as a player, you should do it."
So, in order to do that, Yelich, Dodgers star pitcher Dustin May, and Cubs shortstop Dansby Swanson teamed up with DirecTV, whose "Nothing On Your Roof" campaign with the MLB stars is telling potential providers that dishes are no longer necessary to enjoy ball games.
Yelich, May and Swanson star in the commercial for the campaign where there is nothing on their roofs – in this case, their heads. Each wore bald caps, which is quite the look for the long-haired May.
"I like my hair, and I have a lot of it, and then they wanted to do the Nothing On Your Roof, and I thought it was really cool twist on things," the 27-year-old May, who began growing it out as a junior in high school, said. "I was excited to be a part of the commercial to kind of boost that they don't need anything on your roof to be able to broadcast baseball."
Don't expect May's real hair to be gone any time soon, though.
"I definitely think my wife would be kind of irritated if I cut them off," he said.
"It was a cool concept that I thought was really unique, and an opportunity to have some fun with a couple of other guys around the league," added Yelich. "DirecTV did a great job with the set and the concept, and I thought everything turned out awesome. People are able to watch baseball, access Major League Baseball games without having to have satellite. I think it was a unique way for DirecTV to get that message across, putting us in bald caps and the Nothing On Your Roof campaign. I didn't really know how I'd look bald and stuff, but I thought that was a cool part because it looked so realistic. Once they finished with all the hair and makeup stuff, it was a lot of fun."
"So being able to partner up with DirecTV with this campaign, show baseball fans that they can consume Brewers games, Major League Baseball games without satellites, it was an easy decision to do the commercial."
As for continuing to grow the game, "We're here to put out a good image," added May. "So people want to come back and want to watch."
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