Live From MLB All-Star: FOX Sports' Production Is Bigger Than Ever in Steamy Atlanta With UmpCam, FlyCam, Drones, and More Addition of onsite entertainment show adds new dimension to the operation By Jason Dachman, Editorial Director, U.S. Tuesday, July 15, 2025 - 3:32 pm
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FOX has once again rolled out an on-field set for studio programming on FS1 and pre/postgame shows.
Between the pageantry, musical acts, and playful atmosphere each year at the Midsummer Classic, the MLB All-Star Game can often seem like a game in name only. The fact that it's an exhibition game and MLB's midseason tentpole makes it a perfect breeding ground for FOX Sports' latest in technological innovation.
The All-Star Game is always interesting because it's a show and a celebration of baseball rather than a proper game, says Mike Davies, SVP, technical and field operations, FOX Sports. And, since it's an exhibition, it allows us to try new technologies that can potentially enhance the coolest aspects of the game of baseball. That means we can talk to the players more during the game and can show things you wouldn't normally see.
Topping the list of cutting-edge production tools being deployed tonight in Atlanta: a mix of UmpCam and MindFly bodycams on the four umpires in the infield, an extended FlyCam cabled system running down the rightfield line, two AR-enabled drones in the air, and a whopping 10 player-mic kits - the most ever deployed for an All-Star Game.
In addition, FOX is deploying a subswitcher in the cloud via Grass Valley AMPP to help control the multiple sources fed into the main switcher, testing an EVS replay instance in the cloud, supporting the league on the new Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) Challenge System, and airing a re-creation of Hank Aaron's iconic record-breaking home run. And, as has become common on FOX Sports' biggest shows, Cosm is onsite with five of its own immersive camera systems producing a Shared Reality experience for its venues in Los Angeles and Dallas.
FOX Sports ops/technical leads: (from left) Sid Drexler, Mike Davies, Francisco Contreras, Brad Cheney, and Tom Lynch
On the Ground in ATL: A Bigger-Than-Ever Presence in a Compact Compound Given Truist Park's small broadcast-compound footprint, FOX, ESPN, and MLB Network have spread their facilities throughout The Battery surrounding area. FOX and MLB Network are sharing tight quarters in the traditional compound, with the former rolling out Game Creek Video Encore A, B, and C units; Prime Office trailer (part of GCV's Prime One fleet); and B8; also onsite are an executive trailer from Event Ready and several 8 10 pods housing the features and digital teams and storage space. CP Communications is on hand with its own mobile unit and, as usual, plays a major role in the All-Star operation, handling all RF coordination/transmission and managing a complex comms system with more than 150 beltpacks running on a private 4G/5G wireless network.
Game Creek Video Encore A, B, and C are among the facilities onsite in Atlanta for FOX Sports.
One of the biggest things I'm proud of this year, says FOX Sports Lead Technical Producer Tom Lynch, is the communication between the production and technical teams, as well as with the other networks here. Within FOX, we speak daily with the production team to make sure we are all on the same page. It has been a massive effort, and I don't remember putting this much effort into a [single event] in quite a while. Having that kind of relationship with production certainly makes things easier.
In a rarity for All-Star, FOX Sports will produce the live broadcast of all musical performances at tonight's festivities, which include Atlanta hip-hop icons Jermaine Dupri and Ludacris, country music all-stars Zac Brown Band and Kane Brown, and singer-songwriter Lauren Spencer Smith. The front bench inside Encore will produce the line cut for the performances, and the entertainment team will handle the audio side. To bring it all together, FOX has provided a significant audio and comms infrastructure, comprising 40+ beltpacks, five KP panels, and 12 monitoring locations, and an on-stage telescopic robo from NEP Specialty Capture and an RF M VI camera from Faction/CP Communications.
I have been doing All Star Games since 2002, and I can't remember having so much going on, says Francisco Contreras, director, field operations, FOX Sports. We already have a very big show here, but, since FOX is also technically and operationally supporting the entertainment portion of the event this year as well, it adds a whole new and exciting dimension to an already very cool event.
In fact, the MLB All-Star operation has grown so vast that FOX has opted to institute a subswitcher for the first time in an effort to alleviate the pressure on the main TD, who must juggle 70-plus video sources at once. And continuing the theme of innovation here in Atlanta, FOX has deployed a virtualized Grass Valley K-Frame CS X cloud-based switcher using GV's AMPP platform. Rather than running the instance in the cloud, however, FOX is deploying a 32-I/O GV Node server running on a 2RU server in the truck with COTS hardware.
As these shows have grown - not only All-Star but also Postseason - we've gotten to a point where we need a subswitcher, says Brad Cheney, VP, field operations and engineering, FOX Sports. As we were looking to manage our resources here onsite, we wanted to add another actual physical switcher [surface] with the firepower of GV Kayenne but without having to add the physical infrastructure that would require. We contacted Grass Valley, and they came up with this solution.
Not only does it give us the ability to subswitch, but it also adds redundancy for us should we need it,
