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Hopefully you saw the first part of the Nationals documentary “Improbable” last night. It was filmed for a Washington Nationals audience, and they did a good job with some never seen before angles of plays, behind-the-scenes footage, and exclusive interviews. Part II of Improbable airs tonight beginning at 5:30 p.m. ET on MASN and Nationals.com followed by the World Series ring design unveiling at 7 p.m. ET. Fans can watch that part of the event on MLB Network, MASN, Nationals.com and the Nats’ Facebook and YouTube channels.
Initially, the team announced on Tuesday its plans for a virtual ring ceremony and that was cancelled yesterday when the team put out a press release and a statement:
“Our World Series rings were originally scheduled to be presented to our players and staff prior to the second home game of the 2020 season. As fans, media, employees, coaches and players continued to ask about when World Series rings would be distributed, the Nationals planned a special, first-of-its-kind virtual ring ceremony. We knew it wouldn’t be ideal, but it would offer the collective opportunity to reconnect with our fans and support important work being done in our community by Capital Area Food Bank and World Central Kitchen who has served 350,000 meals from Nationals Park during this pandemic.
“We talked to a number of our team leaders who liked the idea. We proceeded with plans to create a virtual experience that would bring players and fans together to share in the unveiling of our World Series ring design for the first time. Just like everyone else, our plans were at the mercy of the pandemic. As our fans know, May 24 is a special day in our club’s history and we worked feverishly — navigating plant closures and government shutdowns — to pull together a world-class show.
“When team leaders discussed the plan this week with the players, the players collectively decided they would prefer to receive their rings when the team could be physically reunited. We support that decision.”
The May 23rd and 24th dates for these events were selected as historical markers in Nats history for the 2019 bottom at 19-31 and the turnaround on May 24th where the team emerged from a 4-run deficit and won that game on their way to a 3-game winning streak and never really looking back en route to a Wild Card win, NLDS win in Los Angeles, a sweep of the Cardinals in the NLCS, and a showdown 7-game World Series that was one of the most exciting series in baseball history.
The hour-long ring unveiling program will have appearances by members of the 2019 team, Nationals ownership, and notable personalities from the D.C./Maryland/Virginia area. Fans can participate as well by donating to the NATS4GOOD Community Response Fund for hunger relief (or by texting RELIEF to 91347), and select messages of support will be shown during the event.
Today, MLB Network will also broadcast a day of coverage dedicated to the Nats 2019 season:
• 7 a.m. ET: Play Ball with Juan Soto, Adam Eaton and Carter Kieboom
• 7:30 a.m. ET: 2019 National League Wild Card Game
• 9:30 a.m. ET: Game 5 of ‘19 NL Division Series
• 12 p.m. ET: Game 4 of ‘19 NL Championship Series
• 2 p.m. and 11 p.m. ET: Game 6 of ‘19 World Series
• 5 p.m. ET: ‘19 World Series film documentary from MLB Productions
• 7 p.m. ET: Nationals World Series ring design unveiling ceremony
• 8 pm. ET: Game 7 of ‘19 World Series
Keep in mind, that the Nationals documentary is due to start at 5:30 pm on MASN and Nationals.com and then it will be followed by the ring unveiling show and then the Dan Kolko and Friends Live AfterParty show at 8 pm ET.
On February 24th, the Nationals sent out invitations to select people who wanted a World Series ring similar to what the players were receiving. For $15,000 you could be one of the 250 people who get this ring shown below. There are subtle differences between this ring and the players’ rings. Jostens has been doing this for a while and similarly the Washington Capitals did this as well as the Chicago Cubs.
Photo from the Jostens page of the ring limited to 108
In addition, the Nationals have also authorized Jostens to design a fan ring and other championship jewelry as well as a limited number of rings only available to season plan holders which will require a link and validation for purchase. Those links will be available tonight and they will be priced in a range from the hundreds to the low thousands.
The players’ ring is made of 14K yellow gold and white gold plus diamonds, rubies, and blue sapphires. There is an American flag, Nats Park and shark on the ring along with Fight Finished, and GO 1-0 EVERY DAY along with the teams the Nationals defeated. Set in precious rubies on top of the ring is the Nats Curly W logo. There are five stars on the side representing each elimination game won in the postseason. A total of 23 carats of diamonds are in each ring of VS quality F/G color along with 7.25 carats of rubies, and 11.75 carats of sapphires adding up to a significant number of 19 carats which was the number wins the Nats had at their lowest point of the season on May 23rd. The gold measures just 106 grams. The 12 precious cut rubies in the ring signify the 12 postseason wins.
There will also be lower pricepoint rings at www.FatFingerRings.com that are replicas of the player rings in 18k white and yellow gold plated and the diamonds are AAA grade cz’s. All of the inside inscriptions are the same. The default ring will be for the World Series MVP Stephen Strasburg but you can customize it with whatever name you want for an extra charge.
During the ring unveiling, you can text RELIEF to 91347 to get a link to donate to #Nats4Good in the COVID-19 charitable efforts. Some of the donation messages will be shown on the screen during the event.
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Following the virtual event, Howie Kendrick, Max Scherzer and Ryan Zimmerman will join a special episode of the “Kolko and Friends Live After Party” to discuss the ring design. This will stream at 8 p.m. ET on Nationals.com and the Nationals Facebook and YouTube channels.
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