Orioles Slugger and Cancer Survivor Trey Mancini to Release NFTs During MLB's Home Run Derby

Baltimore Orioles first baseman Trey Mancini is turning his appearance in Major League Baseball's Home Run Derby on Monday into an opportunity to raise money for charity.

And, yes, it involves non-fungible tokens (NFTs).

The NFTs will be available on the Ureeqa platform just before Mancini steps into the batter's box at Denver’s Coors Field.

Proceeds from the auction will go toward colon cancer awareness via the Trey Mancini Foundation, a charity that supports those facing the illness. Mancini, 29, missed last season after undergoing chemotherapy for his Stage 3 colon cancer. His comeback this season has inspired many.

"This drop is extremely important to me,” Mancini said in a statement. “Not only is it my first experience with NFTs, but the cause is near and dear to my heart.”

It’s the latest MLB tie-up with the world of digital collectibles. MLB’s Candy.com announced last week it will auction a physical 2020 Los Angeles Dodgers World Series ring as part of an NFT drop. In April, Topps announced it will issue MLB-licensed baseball cards as NFTs.

The Mancini NFTs were designed in collaboration with the team at BitBoy Crypto.

“Since Trey’s NFTs are going directly to charity, this project has a special place in our hearts,” BitBoy founder Ben Armstrong told CoinDesk in an email. “We believe that one of the greatest use cases for blockchain is helping people and this is a great illustration of that.”

There will be a 48-hour auction for the Mancini NFTs. The winner of the top-shelf item will get the bat used by Mancini in the Home Run Derby plus signed cleats, signed batting gloves and a one-on-one hitting lesson.

For baseball fans on a budget, there will be 500 Mancini NFTs inspired by a 1982 rookie card of Orioles legend Cal Ripken Jr. for $195 a pop. 

Update (July 11, 14:26 UTC): Clarifies who was involved in designing the NFTs.