The Little League World Series is underway as some potential future stars of baseball get to play on an international stage in Williamsport, PA. One of commissioner Rob Manfred's best ideas has been the creation of the Little League Classic, which takes place in Williamsport during the Little League World Series, allowing the participating kids to see a big league game up close and personal.
The Classic began in 2017, when the Pittsburgh Pirates and St. Louis Cardinals played in it, and has become an annual staple on the baseball calendar ever since. The lone exception came in 2020, the season impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, but teams who get to participate have seemed to genuinely enjoy the experience, which helps break up the monotony of the 162-game schedule in the dog days of August.
2026 Little League Classic: Start time and how to watch
This year's Little League Classic will take place on Sunday, Aug. 23 at 7:00 p.m. ET on ESPN. The participating teams are the Atlanta Braves and Milwaukee Brewers, with the latter serving as the host team for the contest.
The two teams are currently in the middle of a three-game series that saw the first two games played in Milwaukee on Friday and Saturday. The middle game was set for an early first pitch to give the teams travel to Pennsylvania and participate in some festivities associated with the contest.
Karl Ravech, Eduardo Perez and David Cone are slated to be on the call for the main broadcast. ESPN has also announced a special alternate telecast on ESPN2 with Mike Monaco providing play-by-play alongside Todd Frazier and Devon Travis. The theme of the alternate telecast is an alumni edition since both Frazier and Travis played in the Little League World Series in the past, with the trio joined by other special guests who have also participated in the event as kids.
How to stream the Little League Classic
Both the primary and alternate broadcasts will be available to stream on the ESPN app. Customers who subscribe to the Disney bundle containing Hulu, Disney+ and ESPN+ should also be able to access the game on those platforms as well.
Key storylines for the Little League Classic
Playoff Seeding
The Braves and Brewers entered the weekend leading their respective divisions and are jockeying to secure the best possible seeding in the National League's postseason bracket. These teams met earlier in the season, with the Braves winning two of three in Atlanta back in June, and a potential tiebreaker could mean the difference between hosting a Wild Card series or getting a bye in the first round.
Star Power Galore
Some of baseball's most recognizable stars will be on the field in Williamsport, with Atlanta's lineup featuring stalwarts like Ronald Acuna Jr, Matt Olson and Drake Baldwin. Milwaukee's top players may not be household names outside of Jacob Misiorowski, who isn't pitching here after starting the opener on Friday, but former Brave William Contreras, Brice Turang and Jackson Chourio are exciting young talents who can put on a show.
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