The MLB DREAM Series, a collaboration between Major League Baseball and USA Baseball that took place over the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday weekend. since 2017, it has served as a great stepping stone for some of the best young players in the game today.
The annual amateur baseball development experience is designed to help diversify the talent pool of minor leaguers and catchers, and is part of the broader MLB Develops program, which produces similar events throughout the year to provide education and training from current and former Major League players, managers and coaches.
Since its inception, the DREAM Series has grown from an idea to a prestigious event with 15 alums selected in the first round of the MLB Draft. How was it successful?
Commitment and continuity.
“The consistent dedication of the MLB coaches and players involved, creates a cycle,” said Chris Young, and fellow former All-Star outfielder Cliff Floyd will host MLB Network’s Hot Stove morning show live for the ninth annual DREAM series Friday at 10 a.m. ET in Tempe, Ariz.
“And when you have players who have been in the DREAM Series over the years coming back and passing that knowledge down, it just creates this full circle where this looks very achievable.”
The dream is to reach the Major Leagues. And when determination meets opportunity, you see the kind of results the DREAM Series has produced, where players from different backgrounds and veterans who might have a hard time getting noticed can hone and showcase their skills in front of big league scouts.
As they watch young people strive to reach the heights they have reached in their careers, Floyd and Young marvel at the incredible value these athletes have gained through the program.
“If you were to catch me in my youth and ask me how much I could reach for a Major League player, it was zero,” Young said. “This program gives these players access to big league knowledge and big league wisdom and things that we had to learn from afar.”
This year’s instructors include former MLB outfielder and manager Jerry Manuel, former All-Star catcher and manager Mike Scioscia, former pitcher and current Twins bullpen coach LaTroy Hawkins and former pitcher and Yankees bullpen coach Mike Harkey — all of whom will join Floyd and Young on Friday’s show.
And that’s just to name a few. Former major leaguers Marquis Grissom, Brian Hunter, Darren Oliver and more will be in attendance.
Joining the show will be DREAM Series alumni, including Montgomery, Nationals middle infielder and 2023 All-Star Futures Game MVP Nasim Nuñez and the fourth overall pick of the 2022 draft by the Pirates, Termarr Johnson. Angels outfielder Jo Adell, another DREAM Series alumnus, will also be a special guest.
Among the more than 80 diverse senior (mostly African American) high school pitchers and catchers participating are Rookie Shepard, Anthony Murphy, Dexter McCleon Jr. and Brandon Williams, each of whom will join Floyd and Young to discuss the role the DREAM Series played in their development.
“When you say ‘DREAM Series,’ that’s exactly what it is,” Floyd said. “‘It’s a big dream.’ … I was impressed last year seeing all this talent at such a young age, how mature they were and how grateful they were for the opportunity.
“But I also know Jerry Manuel and a lot of the coaches and instructors, so I knew this wasn’t just to show up for a few days and apologize. This was to learn something and bottle it up and take it with you on your journey. And they’ve done a great job every year.”
As the ninth installment of the DREAM series kicks off on Friday, what is clear is how the actual dream of the event itself is coming true.
Following the conclusion of the DREAM Series on Monday, MLB Network will air a new MLB Tonight: A Talk Show highlighting the impact of the series and ongoing diversity efforts across Major League Baseball at 7 pm ET.
“To me, it’s a proof of concept,” Young said. “That what the league has set to try to open up more opportunities and create an event that high-level players want to attend is working. For players, it is good to know that even if you are trying to achieve your dream, there was someone before you who was able to achieve that dream.”
“It all starts in Arizona on Friday,” Floyd said. “And I couldn’t be more excited to be a part of it, man. Just sitting on our Network and talking about how big it is. This is huge.”
