Players from all 30 MLB teams to compete in virtual league

April 10 (UPI) -- A player from each of Major League Baseball's 30 teams will compete in a virtual league on MLB The Show to help raise money for the Boys & Girls Club of America and Canada during the coronavirus pandemic.

Major League Baseball, the Major League Baseball Players Association and Sony Interactive Entertainment announced the creation of the league Friday in a news release.

The online video game league will begin Friday night. There will be 11 All-Stars, five World Series champions and eight players aged 25 or younger participating. Each player will face-off once in a three-inning game, for a total of 29 matchups per player.

Eight players will advance to the post-season after the three-week regular season. The post-season will mirror the MLB post-season and include a World Series.

Fans will have a chance to interact with the players through various streaming services. MLB, the players union and Sony will donate $5,000 on behalf of each participating player to a Boys & Girls Club affiliate in his team's community.

The winner of the tournament will win an additional $25,000 donation to the Boys & Girls Club in their community. A total of $175,000 will be donated as part of the virtual league.

MLB Network host Robert Flores will provide commentary, recaps, analysis and do player interviews during the virtual season. Standings and statistics for the league will be posted daily at MLB.com/playersleague. The website will include season-ending awards following the regular season.

The virtual post-season will begin April 30 and include best-of-three series for the divisional and championship rounds. The World Series will be a best-of-five series.

Four MLB players participated in a smaller MLB The Show tournament in late March, with Cincinnati Reds pitcher Amir Garrett beating Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Blake Snell in the championship. Garrett wore his full Reds uniform while competing in the tournament.

Garrett will have a rematch against Snell for the first game of the new MLB The Show Players League. First pitch for that game is planned for 9 p.m. EDT Friday and can be watched on Twitch and YouTube. Additional streaming information will be available on MLB and player Twitter accounts.