Jimmy Fallon is set to make his biggest return to baseball since Fever Pitch.
The host (a bit belatedly) rang in Major League Baseball’s Opening Day by announcing that The Tonight Show will sponsor a Little League team, in partnership with Ford.
“This summer we’re teaming up with Ford, and we’re going to sponsor a Little League team,” Fallon announced on Thursday’s show. “I’m so excited about this.”
According to Fallon, one lucky team will be renamed “the Jimmy Fallons” and supplied with all new gear.
“We’re talking new equipment. We’re talking matching T-shirts,” he boasted. “And right now, that’s all we’re talking.”
According to the contest’s official rules, the selected team may also be featured in Tonight Show content.
But first, Fallon has to acquire said team. To that end, he invited interested Little League teams to post videos—60 seconds or less—explaining why they want to be a “Jimmy Fallon” on social media (Facebook, Instagram, X, or TikTok), using the hashtag #FallonFordLittleLeague.
The campaign is part of a larger baseball-centric effort for Ford, which earlier this week became the official automotive partner of the MLB, including its affiliated leagues, Minor League Baseball and Little League Baseball and Softball.
Watch the contest announcement above.
Fallon’s own relationship with Ford dates back more than ten years, with the Tonight Show host collaborating with the automaker on everything from pre-taped sketches to original songs and in-studio games (including a Mustang giveaway for one lucky audience member). Most recently, Fallon took The Tonight Show to Detroit for a Ford-sponsored episode.
It’s not the first time a late-night host has sought to sponsor a baseball team. Last May, John Oliver launched a campaign on Last Week Tonight to sponsor a Minor League team, resulting in 40% of all MiLB teams applying. (Oliver wound up rebranding the Erie SeaWolves into the Erie Moon Mammoths.)
More information on The Tonight Show and Ford’s Little League sponsorship contest is available at FordFallonLittleLeague.com.
Such a tool
The misplaced ego of this guy, is stunning. If he were being completely honest about “himself ,he’d nsne them Lorne’s Michaels.