Backyard Baseball ’01: MLB Players Return in Remaster

Shortly after the release of the Backyard Baseball ’97 remaster in October 2024, Playground Productions and Mega Cat Studios revealed that Backyard Baseball ’01 will be one of the next remastered titles. Now, the game has been set for a release date in early July, and Playground Productions has confirmed that 28 out of 31 MLB players from the original Backyard Baseball ’01 will return for the remaster.

The announcement didn’t specify which of the three MLB players didn’t lend their names and younger likenesses to Backyard Baseball ’01’s remaster. But some of the confirmed returning players include Cal Ripken, Jr., Sammy Sosa, Mark McGwire, Alex Rodriguez, and Derek Jeter.

In partnership with Major League Baseball, Backyard Baseball ’01 will feature logos from MLB’s professional teams in addition to the players representing the league. Like the earlier Backyard sports remasters, Backyard Baseball ’01 will recreate the classic gameplay for touch and modern PC controls.

“We’re honored to partner with MLB to bring this iconic game to modern gaming devices for the first time,” said Playground Productions CEO Lindsay Barnett in a statement. “Backyard Baseball ’01 was a game-changer in many ways–introducing some of the sport’s biggest legends into the Backyard universe. We can’t wait for fans to relive the joy of building their dream team with both our beloved original characters and baseball’s greatest pros from that unforgettable era.”

Backyard Baseball ’01 will be released on PC via Steam and on mobile devices on July 8. The remaster of Backyard Baseball ’97 was ported to Nintendo Switch and PlayStation 5 last October. However, there’s currently no word about whether Backyard Baseball ’01 will eventually join it on consoles.