Major League Baseball Looks for a New Kind of Fan: Social Media, Influencers and an Olivia Rodrigo Song

Major League Baseball (MLB), the top professional baseball league in the United States, is deliberately trying to attract a new kind of fan by changing its social media content and working with influencers. It is doing so during the 2026 postseason, with the World Series approaching, and as its collective bargaining agreement with the players' union is set to expire in December.

A song that hit its target

In early October, as the Division Series began, MLB's main Instagram and TikTok accounts posted a video recapping the teams still in contention for the World Series. The clip shows players from the Milwaukee Brewers, Los Angeles Dodgers, Chicago White Sox and other clubs, set to "My Way", an album track rather than a single, by singer Olivia Rodrigo. The video has more than 2.1 million views on Instagram and 615,000 on TikTok. Commenters noted that the target audience had been reached.

Cameron Gidari, MLB's vice president of social media and innovation, says the social team are Rodrigo fans themselves and wanted that community to feel seen.

A change of approach

Gidari says the league's channels used to be more editorially focused on game facts and highlights, whereas the tone is now that of fandom. Changes to social media algorithms also pushed the shift. MLB's English- and Spanish-language accounts drew a record 19.1 billion views during the 2026 regular season.

This year the league has worked with 400 creators who posted 3,800 pieces of content combined. Creators have attended every postseason game, and about 100 are expected at the World Series. The situation was different not long ago: as recently as 2024, creators, including Jimmy O'Brien, complained about copyright takedowns. In 2025, Commissioner Rob Manfred acknowledged the league had mishandled this part of its fanbase. Creators are now also invited to regular-season games, including food, fashion, lifestyle, gaming and family influencers.

Uncertainty ahead

Last season was successful for the league: Game 7 of the 2025 World Series between the Dodgers and the Toronto Blue Jays was the most-watched World Series game since 2017. But the collective bargaining agreement expires in December. If no deal is reached, players would likely be locked out and the 2027 season could be shortened.