MEXICO CITY — When the Houston Astros face the Colorado Rockies this weekend, it will be the seventh regular season series played in Mexico. The presence of Major League Baseball in the country, however, goes far beyond that.
Mexico became one of six countries in the world with an MLB office in 2016. For Rodrigo Fernandez, head of the organization south of the border, the regular season series may be the biggest event, but it is far from the only one held in the country .
Among them, the MLB office runs a program called First Pitch to promote the game among children. Another is the MLB Cup, a national tournament for 11- and 12-year-olds that recently finished its fifth championship.
“For us (the series) is the icing on the cake because we have a lot of activities throughout the year,” Fernandez told the Associated Press. “The MLB Cup is broadcast on ESPN and is the biggest tournament of its kind in Mexico. These children are the future of Mexico.”
The MLB office in Mexico, alongside the Mexican baseball federation, held the 28-team tournament. The finals were played in Mexico City.
“We want to send the message to kids that we are interested in them playing baseball. Many of them will probably end up being signed by the Mexican Baseball League, but they will also play for their age group’s national team,” Fernandez said.
Fernandez has been the sole director of the office since its creation in 2016. Before taking over, he worked as general manager of operations for World Wrestling Entertainment for Mexico and Latin America.
In addition to Mexico, Major League Baseball has offices in London, Tokyo, Beijing and Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. The office is located inside a luxurious tower adjacent to the sophisticated Artz Pedregal shopping mall, in the south of the city.
While Fernandez’s position remains the same, some of MLB’s goals in Mexico have changed. In 2016, MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred said he wanted to see if Mexico could be a potential location for expansion. But a year ago, Manfred said he “was never close to the idea of Mexico as an expansion opportunity.”
“Commissioner Manfred has a great commitment and interest in Mexico, but several factors made us change our strategies and now solidifying local leagues is the main step for us,” said Fernandez.
MLB’s Mexico office already works closely with the Mexican baseball federation and is trying to establish a closer relationship with the Mexican Baseball League, led by league president Horacio de la Vega.
Since de la Vega took over in 2021, the league has seen an increase in attendance at stadiums, games being broadcast on national TV and streaming services. This helped increase the sport’s popularity among a new generation of fans.
“I think (fan attendance) has increased, before there were a lot of elderly people in the park,” said fan Carlos Hernandez, 63, before the game between Diablos Rojos and Tigres in Mexico City. “And now there are more fans, especially young ones.”
According to Othon Diaz, president of Diablos Rojos, nine years ago 53% of the team’s fans were 55 years old or over and now 74% of them are under 45 years old.
For some of these hardcore fans, having an MLB regular season series is nice, but only for those who can afford it.
Fernandez said tickets for the Astros-Rockies series sold out within an hour and now the asking price on the resale market is $70 to $580.
“It’s a good show, but the ticket prices are a little high. With the cheapest option you could come (see the Diablos Rojos) for half a season,” said Hernandez, who went to see the Diablos with his wife and two children.
Mexico hosted MLB games for the first time in August 1996, when the San Diego Padres faced the New York Mets in Monterrey. The Padres faced the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2018. And in 2019, the Cincinnati Reds faced the St. Louis Cardinals, and the Houston Astros faced the Los Angeles Angels.
Mexico City was supposed to host a series between the Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks in 2020, but it was canceled because of the coronavirus pandemic. Last year, the Padres played the San Francisco Giants.
According to Fernandez, there are plans to bring regular season games to Mexico every year until 2026, although not necessarily in the same location. Meanwhile, work continues to help spread the popularity of baseball in the country.
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