July 24, 2024
Arlington, TX - The 2024 MLB Players STEM League Global Championship wrapped up Tuesday, July 16 after a weekend of competition, learning, and home runs in Arlington, TX. Steven Garcia of Arlington, TX, and Beckett Jones of Arlington, TX claimed the title of Global Champions in a thrilling tournament competition. This year’s event included participants from the U.S. including Puerto Rico as well as Colombia.
The action reached a climax on Sunday as students competed in the tournament portion of the event at the Maverick Activities Center (MAC) at the University of Texas Arlington. After opening rounds of play, Garcia and Jones progressed all the way to the final round, where they competed against Carson Gregg, representing Metro Sports Fieldhouse of Arlington, TX and Tristan Macias, representing Texas ACE of El Paso, TX in the Clint Independent School District. Both teams demonstrated finely-honed math skills and strategy, with Garcia and Jones closing out the tournament with the win after going into two extra innings.
Learn Fresh and MLB Players Trust co-hosted the Global Championship event in conjunction with All-Star Week, and the event featured exciting experiences for students in addition to the tournament competition. To kick it all off, students had a chance to meet their peers, get to know their teammates, and draft their teams on Friday evening.
Students kicked off Sunday’s action with a warm welcome from Arlington City Council members followed by a series of speakers, including Tony Clark, the Executive Director of the Major League Baseball Players Association, and a special video message from Marcus Semien from the Texas Rangers. Round 1 began with twelve teams representing seven U.S. states, Puerto Rico, and Colombia. A total of three rounds were played, followed by the semi-finals and the highly anticipated championship round.
After a break, students wrapped up the activities at the MAC with a special session hosted by NASA. NASA Flight Director, Fiona Antkowiak, delivered a presentation about her personal life, which included playing basketball in middle school, career, and experience, followed by an animated question and answer session. Next, Elicia Dynae Fullwood, Education Programs Specialist, led students through an interactive STEM activation that taught them about concepts such as gravity and drag, among others.
The following day, students and their families had the opportunity to go on a tour of AT&T Stadium where the Dallas Cowboys play football. Afterwards, they explored All-Star Weekend activations at Play Ball Park before arriving at Globe Life Field for the Home Run Derby. The winning and runner-up teams had the opportunity to walk on the field during batting practice, where they were able to speak with players, take photos, and collect signatures from some of their favorite players.
Launched in partnership with MLB Players Trust, MLB Players STEM League is a baseball-inspired STEM program for middle-school age youth. Built around a board game and curriculum, the program brings to life the energy of baseball while cultivating students’ math and social-emotional skills. The program launched in 2022 within the United States, and has since grown to serve students in Latin America and the Caribbean. During the 2024 season, MLB Players STEM League served 200 educators and over 10,000 students across all regions.
The student participants in this year’s Global Championship were selected based on qualifying criteria and nominations from their program educator. To qualify for application to the Global Championship, students must reach All-Star Student status during the season by displaying a high degree of growth through the program, a dedication to practicing good sportsmanship, and an ability to overcome adversity either inside or outside the classroom. Students must also complete a minimum of 15 MLB Players STEM League games over the course of the season. Students meeting these criteria were nominated by their program educator to apply, and participants were then selected from the pool of applicants.
Congratulations to all student participants in this year’s Global Championship! Click here to view our photo album.
2024 MLB Players STEM League Global Championship Winners:
- Steven Garcia (He/Him) - Arlington, TX - Metro Sports Fieldhouse
- Beckett Jones (He/Him) - Arlington, TX - Metro Sports Fieldhouse
Runner-Ups:
- Carson Gregg (He/Him) - Arlington, TX - Metro Sports Fieldhouse
- Tristan Macias (He/Him) - El Paso, TX - Texas ACE in the Clint Independent School District
Sportsmanship Awards:
- Lasell Phun (She/Her) - San Francisco, CA - Bay Area Community Resources (BACR)
- Leonardo Vargas (He/Him) - Cúcuta, Colombia - Project Beisbol
