First lady Michelle Obama took her anti-obesity pitch to the ballpark on Tuesday. She visited Camden Yards in Baltimore to announce a new relationship with Major League Baseball and the MLB Players Association in supporting the “Let’s Move!” campaign, one started by the first lady in the hopes of ending childhood obesity in the US.
According to this MLB press release, she attended a skills clinic that members of both the Baltimore Orioles and the Tampa Bay Rays conducted for young people participating in Major League Baseball’s Reviving Baseball in Inner Cities (RBI) and Boys & Girls Clubs of America programs. As the first lady was quoted, “The truth is, guys, you are supposed to be getting at least 60 minutes of activity every single day. That’s what has led athletes to be the great players they have today. Because they never stop moving. That’s what you guys need to do and that’s why we’re here.”
MLB and MLBPA has partnered with the USDA and the Ad Council to produce TV and radio PSAs that will feature a member of each of the 30 Major League clubs. Fans will start to see the PSAs at the ballparks, on the MLB Network and on MLB.com, and, of course, at various media outlets. This partnership with the “Let’s Move!” campaign extends Major League Baseball’s involvement with youth fitness, having expanded its “Wanna Play!” initiative back in February, which encourages kids ages 6-12 to increase their physical fitness by incorporating baseball and softball.
Photo by studio08denver via Flickr.