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(October 2, 2024) — MLB Players, Inc., today announced a venture partnership with LEAD ONE, the new direct investment vehicle within LEAD Sports and Health Tech Partners.
This strategic alliance is designed to accelerate innovation in sports and health technology by pairing LEAD’s industry expertise with MLB Players Inc.’s commitment to growing the game of baseball at both the youth and professional levels. MLB Players, Inc., will have unprecedented access through LEAD to the most cutting-edge startups and technologies, while providing access to a pipeline of athletes who are passionate about training, nutrition and recovery and will help drive LEAD ONE’s portfolio of businesses to the next level.
Technologies centered on an athlete’s name, image, and likeness (NIL) will be an overarching focus. The new partnership will put baseball players at the forefront of products that support athlete performance, health and wellness, brand building, and advance youth development technologies to bolster the game’s future.
“Baseball players, at all levels, are focused more and more on human performance and understanding how they train, what they eat, how they recover, and ensuring that they are ready to perform at the highest level,” said MLB Players, Inc. Managing Director Evan Kaplan. “By partnering with LEAD, we will provide emerging technology companies with guidance based on our extensive experience and access to engage elite athletes for input.’’
Justin Driscoll, Principal of Investments & Portfolio at LEAD, added, “The LEAD team is inspired by the MLB Players Inc.’s impressive track record of reimagining and advancing players' interests and priorities. We are thrilled to collaborate with MLB Players, Inc., sharing a forward-thinking outlook on what our industry looks like over the next decade.
Their forward-thinking mindset perfectly aligns with a startup's innovative outlook when envisioning the future over the next decade.”