Major League Baseball will hold its second annual All-MLB awards show on Thursday, airing live on MLB Network from The Cosmopolitan in Las Vegas at 8 p.m. ET. Roy Wood Jr., host of last year’s inaugural event, is back for a second go-round.
“I would be happy to do this for the same amount of time that Jimmy Kimmel did the Oscars,” the comedian and former “The Daily Show” correspondent told CBS Sports. “I think that comedy, especially really good comedy, especially hosting, is about having a relationship with the audience. Not the viewers at home, the audience in the room.”
The awards handed out will be the All-MLB team, the Hank Aaron Awards for best offensive performance, the Mariano Rivera and Trevor Hoffman Relievers of the Year, the Edgar Martinez Outstanding Designated Hitter of the Year and the Comeback Player of the Year.
A who’s who of current players will be on hand, from Mookie Betts, Dylan Cease, Emmanuel Clase, William Contreras, Garrett Crochet and Jarren Duran to Ryan Helsley, Jose Iglesias, Shota Imanaga, Mason Miller, Paul Skenes and Tarik Skubal. There will also be a group of former players headlined by CC Sabathia, Andruw Jones, Gary Sheffield and Nick Swisher.
Ahead of the awards show, CBS Sports talked to Wood about everything from the best former player to host the event (David Ortiz), whether or not A-Rod could execute a joke and watching film of himself from his first-year performance just like the players do.
“I was just as nervous as the players are because you’re not sure what you’re getting into,” Wood said of last year’s gig. “I think at the end of it all, it was just an opportunity for current players to be celebrated by their peers and their predecessors. It ended up being a really cool thing. In an odd way, it’s like an awards ceremony mixed with a family reunion that is all baseball.
“So now, understanding and knowing what the energy and the vibe will be all week, I think I’m more equipped, from a comedic and hosting standpoint, to acknowledge certain things that are happening during the week. And to put the players and everyone in attendance at ease because we’re kind of building this thing as we go. As a comedian, I have to get you calm to know that I’m not here to attack everybody in the room and hopefully get people to loosen up a little bit.”
As for learning from his first time around, Wood did admit to studying the tape.
“I think the main thing I took away from last year is that the veterans are cool with whatever. Bartolo Colon was cool with every joke. Fred McGriff was cool with every joke. And I feel like that’s gonna be the same game this year. I think letting the current players see the vets be chill will help to unbutton that top button,” he told CBS Sports.
“Even when you look at the actual monologue that I’m starting with this year, we’re starting with some of the retired players and some of the more established players. Then you work your way into the new guys that are kind of a little too cool for school and hopefully by then they’ll see that it’s a loose room and everything is chill.”
What about specific people he plans to include in his jokes?
“We’ve got Ken Griffey in the room and Sheffield, CC Sabathia. I’m talking about the old guard. If I can make a Nick Swisher joke, I will be on Cloud Nine,” he said. “It starts with the people who have already made their money and already have their legend, so they have no fear of their reputation being tarnished. They walk in the room already legends. So you start there and then you can get into Paul Skenes if you want to.”
Speaking of Skenes, at least one joke that has been left on the cutting room floor due to some unforeseen circumstances.
“I had a joke about how Paul Skenes is the only athlete that hasn’t disappointed the city of Pittsburgh this year, but Russell Wilson came out and they are 7-2 now,” Wood said. “When I wrote that joke, Wilson was on the bench, so now I have to, like, tweak that joke a little bit. That one doesn’t track!”
Still, there’s plenty of material to choose from.
“On one hand, I have to talk about Juan Soto and everything he’s done and who he might sign with,” Wood said. “But also Ryan Helsley led the NL in saves, so that deserves to be mentioned and I need to figure out a joke off of that.
“The monologue is about connecting the casual fan to the game, but you can’t forget about the die-hards. So it can’t be a Shohei Ohtani fest. You can talk about Ohtani, you can talk about the Dodgers, but Paul Skenes had a really good season and you probably didn’t see all of it because he played for the Pirates. I want to do a joke about William Contreras and how quick he can throw out runners.”
Most of all, though, Wood views the assignment as an annual one because he feels like he’s growing with the show as it establishes itself. Plus, his love for baseball runs deep. Beyond his fandom and last year’s hosting gig, the Alabama native hosted a four-part “Road to Rickwood” podcast about the Birmingham Black Barons and the history of Rickwood Field leading up to this summer’s game.
“I’m not saying it’s mine mine mine [as he mimics calling a fly ball] hands off, but I do feel like what I know now, after hosting some of the things I’ve hosted, the baseball player and the baseball fan are two of the most guarded people when it comes to opening up and accepting someone,” Wood said. “It’s just such a special group to be a part of it because it’s such a special game and if you don’t see the beauty of the game, then I don’t think you should be trusted to tell a joke about it.
“I don’t think I’m the only comedian that’s a baseball fan, but I do have a two-year head start on a relationship with the players.”
So where does the show go from here?
“I can’t speak for MLB, but my hope is this becomes the type of class reunion/graduation vibe event every year for the players,” Wood said. “As a host, I get to play a role in laying the foundation. So I don’t take that lightly.”
