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Walk-up music is a phenomenon that has become more and more prevalent in recent years for baseball and softball players at all levels. It’s a trend that started at the major league level and has worked its way down to the kids. For some, it’s probably the highlight of their baseball experience, so why not let them have some fun? Plus, who hasn’t walked into a house at some point in their life and wished that they had their own entrance music to let everybody know that they’ve arrived?
I made this argument back in 2022 when a Koji Uehara entrance video from the 2013 playoffs resurfaced, running to the mound to Darude’s “Sandstorm” to uproarious, concert-level applause. The link is gone now, so let’s try again.
Remember, there was a time not too long ago that the only music that we had at Fenway was from the organist. Granted, it was a funeral in there most of the time up until 2004, but this was certainly a park that lagged behind most of the modern parks in terms of atmosphere.
I wasn’t sure how I felt about walk-up music at the high school level, mainly because of the people in charge of starting and stopping the music on time. When disco music is still playing in the pitcher’s wind-up, that’s a problem. However, after seeing a kid get into the box with Maxine Nightingale’s “Right Back Where We Started From” on the speakers, I decided I just couldn’t fight it anymore. When family members texted me from the World Baseball Classic in Puerto Rico that Abraham Toro had chosen French Montana’s “Pop That” as his walk-up song, complete with video footage of the historic event, I knew I need to write this article at some point.
A good walk-up song needs to be upbeat. It needs to be a groove. For a batter, it needs to work as a short snippet, maybe ten seconds long. You need fans to hear it in the stadium, stop in the middle of a sentence, and say “Oh!!” And, of course, it should never be country music. (I’m fully aware that I’ll lose at least a third of the readers with that last sentence. I’m not sorry that my selections below are devoid of country songs.)
Every Major League Baseball team has a page within their website that compiles the walk-up songs of most of the players. Inexplicably, there isn’t a landing page within mlb.com where you can toggle across the 30 teams. Lucky for you, I’ve put a link to every one of those teams’ pages below, so that you can bookmark this article for eternity for future updates. And all Spotify song links are “clean” versions, so that you won’t get fired if you read this at work.
Music is very subjective, so if you disagree with anything below, I encourage you to write your own piece on the matter. Here is my list of the best walk-up song choices across each of the 30 MLB teams, mostly in alphabetical order by team, with the exception of the Top-5 that are ranked at the end.
Arizona Diamondbacks Corbin Carroll: Miguel – Waves (Tame Impala Remix)
Atlanta Braves Dylan Lee: The Hollies – Long Cool Woman (In A Black Dress)
An oldie that aligns with a pitcher’s entrance. Tremendous guitar in the song opening, which works better for a long jog to the bump, rather than a short ten-second walk.
Baltimore Orioles Kyle Bradish: David Guetta – Memories (ft. Kid Cudi)/Adley Rutschman: Kid Cudi – Alive
Few albums in this century are more of a joy than Kid Cudi’s “Man On The Moon” (2009). Rutschman’s choice of “Alive” is a strong one from that album (also the walk-up of the Red Sox’ Caleb Durbin), although personally I would have gone with “Cudi Zone.” Either way, the Cudi vibes are high in the Orioles clubhouse, and I appreciate that.
Chicago White Sox Randal Grichuk: Good Neighbours – Home
A very short list on the White Sox website, for whatever reason.
Cincinnati Reds Hunter Greene: Jay-Z – Public Service Announcement
“Allow me to reintroduce myself: my name is HOV.” Dave Chappelle yelling that phrase at work executives during the “When Keeping It Real Goes Wrong” sketch was a personal favorite.
Cleveland Guardians Shawn Armstrong: Johnny Cash – God’s Gonna Cut You Down
Colorado Rockies Jake McCarthy: WWE (Jim Johnston) – Kurt Angle
As I mentioned in the Uehara piece, entrance music means the most to WWE fans, specifically during the Attitude Era of the 90s. Jim Johnston was a damn legend, writing and recording all of the WWE theme songs. Kurt Angle gets the easy nod from the Rockies, but I certainly would’ve gone with The Great Chris Jericho’s “Break The Walls Down” if it was me.
Detroit Tigers Tyler Holton: Tears for Fears – Everybody Wants To Rule The World
Tremendous choice. For my money, the single best song of the 80s. A hat tip to Gru as well, who flawlessly covered this song at a prison in Despicable Me 4.
Kansas City Royals Bobby Witt: Tame Impala – The Less I Know The Better
Can never go wrong with Tame Impala. The edibles are strong in Kansas City, I’m told.
Los Angeles Angels Zach Neto: The Notorious B.I.G. – Big Poppa
If I were Neto, I’d mix the Will Ferrell/Robert Goulet version in for one at-bat each game just to throw everyone off. “Poppaaaaaa…”
Miami Marlins Leo Jimenez: Dua Lipa – Levitating
WEEI has a shocking number of bangers that they use coming out of commercials on the Sox radio broadcast. Wu Tang Clan’s “Gravel Pit” … Sabrina Carpenter’s “Espresso” … A Flock of Seagulls’ “I Ran (So Far Away).” Whoever is tasked with the commercial outro music deserves a significant raise. I didn’t know I liked Levitating until I heard the version that features Joe Castiglione.
Milwaukee Brewers Jacob Misiorowski: WWE (Jim Johnston) – The Miz Theme
(See Colorado Rockies write-up). If this week’s #1 overall pick, Roch Cholowsky, does not come out to one of the numerous versions of The Rock’s entrance song, alongside a People’s Eyebrow, it will be a major whiff.
Minnesota Twins Ryan Jeffers: Playaz Circle – Duffle Bag Boy
New York Mets Bo Bichette: Kendrick Lamar – tv off
The most frequently played song on Alexa in our home. “Make sure it’s the edited version!!”
New York Yankees
Not a single good option, so they’re getting skipped. Typical of a once-proud franchise that has won one title in this century.
Philadelphia Phillies Bryce Harper: Moby – Flower
The Phillies don’t post their walk-up songs, so I’m taking it upon myself to post this clip from 2022. Bryce Harper’s first at bat at home in the World Series, after hitting the game-winning home run in the NLCS. Incredible job from Fox letting the walk-up and crowd noise tell the story, followed by a first-pitch home run, which John Smoltz basically predicts will happen. Imagine not liking baseball? (Also, a reminder of how great the pitch clock is as we go more than a minute waiting for the first pitch of the at-bat).
Pittsburgh Pirates Mitch Keller – Wiz Khalifa, Empire Of The Sun – The Thrill
Empire of the Sun’s “Walking On A Dream” is an all-time favorite and was under consideration for the Top Five. This strong alternate version will have to do.
Sacramento Athletics Jeffrey Springs: Blackstreet – No Diggity
San Diego Padres Ron Marinaccio: Yolanda Be Cool – We No Speak Americano
“It sounds like the music they play at The Olive Garden. The Olive Garden kicks ass.” The immortal Beavis and Butthead broke this song down back in 2011.
Butthead: “Remember when you asked that waitress at The Olive Garden to dance, and then she slapped you, and the manager threw you out?”
Beavis: “Oh yeah. That was cool.”
San Francisco Giants Adrian Houser: Creedance Clearwater Revival – Run Through The Jungle
Seattle Mariners J.P. Crawford: Dr. Dre – Xxplosive
A 12-second perfect instrumental to start the song, and then not a single lyric that could be played at a family-friendly event. Arguably the ideal choice!
Honorable Mention: Josh Naylor: Eminem – Stan
As if we shouldn’t be concerned enough about Naylor, after learning that he stabbed a teammate in the minor leagues, he walks up to “Stan”?? A “prank that went a little too far.” I’ll say!
St. Louis Cardinals Gordon Graceffo: Eminem – Square Dance
Speaking of Eminem, 2002’s “The Eminem Show” album was his peak, in my opinion. The only thing that I ever “re2pected” about Derek Jeter was that “Square Dance” was his walk-up song for one season.
Texas Rangers Cole Winn – Yeah Yeah Yeahs: Heads Will Roll (A-Trak Remix)
The Fenway Park P.A. will briefly drop this remix in between pitches a few times a game, and it’s always welcome.
Washington Nationals Zack Littell: Dire Straits – Money For Nothing
As mentioned earlier, the epic guitar solo in “Money For Nothing” could only work for a pitcher’s entrance to play throughout the lengthier first-inning warm-up pitches.
Top Five Walk-Up Songs
5. Chicago Cubs Pete Crow-Armstrong: Djo – End Of Beginning and MGMT – Time To Pretend
Two-for-two from PCA. He nails the local theme featuring the lyric, “When I’m back in Chicago,” from End Of Beginning. And then the iconic groove of Time To Pretend … more on that album later.
4. Tampa Bay Rays Bryan Baker: Avicii – Levels
We’ve all heard this one a thousand times. Perhaps on a dance floor, or perhaps to get through the final few minutes of your workout. It never gets old. I’ll run through a wall to this song, or just to the pitcher’s mound, either/or.
Honorable Mention: Taylor Walls: Lil Jon & The East Side Boyz “Get Low”
Yup. Taylor “to the window, to the” Walls. I see what you’re doing here, and I approve.
3a. Los Angeles Dodgers Landon Knack: Mark Morrison – Return of the Mack
3b. Toronto Blue Jays Adam Macko: Mark Morrison – Return of the Mack
If you have a name that includes “mack” or rhymes with “mack”, you don’t have much of a choice but to walk out to this song.
I don’t have such a name, but I’d still walk up to it since it just might be the greatest song of my lifetime.
Leaving Edwin Diaz’s “Narco” intro out of this list feels reckless. But Timmy Trumpets felt like more of a Mets connection than Dodgers. And for all we know, Diaz is probably only using Narco as his cockfighting intro music these days.
2. Boston Red Sox Roman Anthony: MGMT – Electric Feel
Cheating a little, as this was Anthony’s walk-up song last year, and he’s currently taking a tour of lovely Fort Myers in July, but maybe getting back to his rookie-season roots will turn his luck around in 2026. The “Oracular Spectacular” (2007) album is an absolute masterpiece, especially when you consider that many of the songs were meant to be ironic, making fun of modern pop music. In the behind-the-scenes making of “Electric Feel”, you hear the band asking if, by attempting to make the song better, “do you mean worse?” It was the soundtrack to his first career at-bat, and if the Sox are going to make any kind of postseason run, we need Roman and these vibes back in the lineup asap.
1. Houston Astros Joey Loperfido: M.I.A. – Paper Planes
Loperfido is curiously missing from the Astros website at the moment, but I heard it earlier this season, and immediately made sure I had a screenshot of the heroic player in question.
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Paper Planes was played on alternative rock stations, it was played on hip-hop stations, and eventually pop stations. Hell, Jay-Z and T.I. made “Swagga Like Us”, which had an entire chorus out of one single lyric from the song. The intro is incredible, the chorus is unmatched, and if you don’t react with an “Oh!” when Joey Loperfido walks to the plate, then I’m not sure we can be friends.
Paper Planes would be my 2026 walk-up song (to the buffet).
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