MLB Players, Acky Bright Set Baseball Manga ‘GalaXic Baseball League’

MLB Players, Inc., OneTeam Partners, manga artist Acky Bright and Viz Media are launching “GalaXic Baseball League,” a science-fiction manga series built around real, active Major League Baseball players. Digital chapters will debut July 2 on the Viz Manga app in the U.S. and Canada, followed by a print volume in October.

Billed by the partners as the first original manga IP to incorporate active professional baseball players, the series draws on the officially licensed names, images and likenesses of current MLB stars through the MLB Players, Inc. and OneTeam Partners arrangement. Players depicted include Aaron Judge and Jazz Chisholm Jr. of the New York Yankees, Juan Soto of the New York Mets, Yoshinobu Yamamoto of the Los Angeles Dodgers, Fernando Tatis Jr. of the San Diego Padres, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Toronto Blue Jays, Kyle Schwarber of the Philadelphia Phillies, Jung Hoo Lee of the San Francisco Giants, Paul Skenes of the Pittsburgh Pirates and Tarik Skubal of the Detroit Tigers, among others.

Story and artwork were created by Acky Bright, whose credits include the 2024 McDonald’s “WcDonald’s” global packaging rollout – the first time a single artist designed the iconic packaging across 30-plus territories – and collaborations with DC Comics and Marvel. Bright operates out of BW NYC Studios, Inc., his New York-based creative outfit. His signature “kawa-kakkoii” style – a Japanese phrase blending the concepts of cute and cool – shapes the series’ bold black-and-white aesthetic.

“As I watched the 2023 World Baseball Classic final, I kept seeing people saying, ‘Reality just outdid manga!’ That became the seed for this entire story,” Bright said. “I hope readers can escape into an epic that brings the heart and soul of baseball to life in another galaxy.”

Guiding editorial development is Sasaki Hisashi of Viz Media, a former editor-in-chief of Weekly Shonen Jump – the manga magazine behind global titles including “One Piece,” “Naruto” and “Demon Slayer.”

“When Acky shared his idea of fusing the global language of manga with the global passion for baseball, it ignited a spark in my manga editor’s soul,” Sasaki said.

Set in a future where baseball has evolved into a high-stakes interplanetary competition, “GalaXic Baseball League” follows legendary players and two unlikely heroes as they confront a plot threatening both Earth and the sport itself. Beyond his illustration work, Acky Bright is known for live-drawing performances on large canvases without preliminary sketches, including his U.S. debut solo exhibition “Acky Bright: Studio Infinity,” held at the Japan Society in New York through January 2025.

Viz Media, founded in 1986, publishes English-language editions of major manga titles including “One Piece,” “Naruto” and “Jujutsu Kaisen.” OneTeam Partners, established in 2019 as a joint venture among five athlete associations – including the NFL Players Association and MLB Players Association – manages group licensing rights across sports, media and consumer categories.