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“Well, there’s a little competition obviously. But I don’t think it’s as competitive as when we square off from 60 feet, 6 inches,” D-backs pitcher Zac Gallen said. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
NORTH LAS VEGAS, Nev. — All eyes turned to Fred McGriff. On the first tee at the renowned Shadow Creek Golf Course, McGriff’s group of four golfers had just embarked on a best-ball tournament as part of baseball’s inaugural All-MLB Weekend presented by MGM Rewards. The group’s first two shots had gone wayward. Now, it was McGriff’s turn, and his group needed a big shot.
Clutch as ever, the longtime first baseman grabbed an iron, uncorked that smooth, left-handed swing, and a few moments later, his ball settled squarely in the middle of the fairway.
“That,” shouted Braves third baseman Austin Riley, playing alongside McGriff, “is a Hall of Fame swing right there.”
“I should shut it all down right now,” McGriff, the newly minted Hall of Famer, laughed back.
Catcher Adley Rutschman is one of six Orioles nominated for All-MLB honors. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
In total, a dozen former and current players took part in Friday’s golf outing, alongside a handful of members and MGM casino guests. It marked the latest event in a series of them for the inaugural All-MLB Weekend, as players arrive in Las Vegas for Saturday’s main event: the unveiling of the 2023 All-MLB Teams at HyperX Arena.
“It’s cool,” said Riley. “Any time you can get together, even if you’re obviously not playing ball, but just to celebrate the years guys have had, it’s always a great honor. I hope everybody takes it in and enjoys it.”
The All-MLB Team Show presented by MGM Rewards will air at 8 p.m. ET Saturday on MLB Network. This year marks the fifth edition of baseball’s All-MLB Teams, which honor the best players at every position. But it’s the first year with an entire weekend dedicated to the event.
The weekend began Thursday night with an exclusive dinner at Rivea, a restaurant atop the Delano Hotel. For many of the All-MLB nominees in attendance, Friday’s golf outing was a highlight.
“To come out to a place like this, me being an avid golfer, it’s definitely a privilege for sure,” said D-backs right-hander Zac Gallen.
Shadow Creek Golf Course is widely regarded as one of the nation’s top courses, with Derek Jeter and Michael Jordan counted among its regulars. It played host to “The Match” in 2018, a head-to-head showdown between Tiger Woods and Phil Mickelson.
“Any time you can get together, even if you’re obviously not playing ball, but just to celebrate the years guys have had, it’s always a great honor,” the Braves’ Austin Riley said. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
So Friday’s event wasn’t exactly the fiercest competition the course has ever seen. Bartolo Colon misplaced his rental clubs and missed the first tee. The group featuring Phillies second baseman Bryson Stott and longtime outfielder Dexter Fowler called an audible and teed off in the middle of the back nine instead. (Quicker round, that way.)
Asked for his expectations prior to the round, D-backs outfielder Corbin Carroll said: “Some bad golf. Might find some trees on a course like this. But it’s always a fun time.”
The group of current players competing in Friday’s event included Riley, Gallen, Carroll, Stott and Baltimore’s Adley Rutschman and Kyle Bradish — all six of whom are All-MLB nominees, many of them favorites.
“I have a reverence for the game, a reverence for the guys I compete against,” Gallen said. “So just to see them in a non-competitive manner, just be able to hang out … and whatnot, this is a lot of fun.”
Wait. Non-competitive? Gallen quickly clarified.
“Well, there’s a little competition obviously. But I don’t think it’s as competitive as when we square off from 60 feet, 6 inches.”
Dexter Fowler was one of a dozen former and current players who took part in Friday’s best-ball tournament. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
Fair enough. Of course, those battles from 60 feet, 6 inches are what brought this group of stars together in the first place.
The All-MLB Teams recognize the best player or players at each position across the Majors this past season, with both first-team and second-team selections. (Three outfielders, four infielders, one catcher, five starting pitchers and two relievers make each team.) Fan voting accounts for half of the selection process, with the other 50% coming from a panel of media members, broadcasters, former players and other officials throughout the game.
On Friday, however, those awards took a temporary backseat, while current and former players alike swung away at Shadow Creek. The two Orioles, Rutschman and Bradish, were paired together. The two D-backs, Carroll and Gallen, were as well. One group saw Colon and former Dodgers outfielder Andre Ethier, longtime foes on the diamond in the 2000s and early 2010s.
And then there was the Braves-themed group featuring Riley and McGriff. At the turn, Riley noted that McGriff had continued doing the heavy lifting for the group. On one of the course’s early par 5s, Riley hit his shot close to the pin. McGriff hit his closer.
“It’s not every day,” Riley would later say, “that you get to say you played a round of golf with a Hall of Famer.”
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