The NFL has shrewdly found a way to showcase its product throughout the year. Even when nobody is on the gridiron, people are consuming the most popular sport in America. Whether it is the draft, schedule release or training camp, football is embedded in people's minds. Put simply, the league feels like a spectacle. Baseball is hoping to similarly transcend the season of play and continue to resonate with the masses, and it is using the links as its avenue.
The Capital One MLB Open will take place from Nov. 12-14 at Las Vegas, Nevada's Shadow Creek Golf Course and will include 60 current and former players representing all 30 franchises, per MLB.com. Former MVP Mookie Betts, soon-to-be two-time Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal, Hall of Fame pitcher John Smoltz, New York Mets great David Wright, 2007 MVP Jimmy Rollins and the often underrated Justin Turner are confirmed to compete in the event, via Talkin' Baseball.
Smoltz, an accomplished starter and reliever across his 20-year run with the Atlanta Braves, is an avid golfer and should stand out as a player to watch. He qualified for the 2018 U.S. Senior Open and is clearly stoked to represent the Bravos in the upcoming MLB open. He is not the only one who can hit the greens with regularity, however.
Betts, who recently celebrated his fourth World Series championship following the Los Angeles Dodgers' thrilling Game 7 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays, should also hold his own in Vegas. The outfielder-turned-shortstop is a man of many talents, with his most famous non-baseball conquest coming at the bowling alley. Betts posted a perfect 300 in the past, and now he will try to let it rip in Shadow Creek.
No matter who emerges as the top guy at this tourney, this is a wonderful opportunity to engage people with MLB personalities away from the diamond. The league has long been criticized for how it presents its talent. Well, perhaps the tides are turning.
The action will lead into the MLB Awards and air on TNT on Nov. 18.
