Alex Rodriguez in ESPN’s Latest Marketing Campaign

ESPN kicked off a multimedia ad campaign on Saturday to promote its coverage of the World Baseball Classic, which will be televised beginning March 5 on ESPN and ESPN2.

The campaign features New York Yankees Star Alex Rodriguez, along with several other major league baseball players. Last week, Sports Illustrated reported that Rodriguez tested positive for performance enhancing steroids years ago (before the league instituted a drug policy against these substances).

There have been reports that A-Rod may now have to testify in front of Congressional panel. With such controversy, Rodriguez is probably not the best front man to be featured in such a campaign. However, the spots were filmed prior to the news that A-Rod tested positive.

The marketing campaign, tagged “National pastime. International stars,” features Jorge Cantu, Derek Jeter, Ichiro Suzuki and Rodriguez paying respect to their respective Mexican, American, Japanese and Dominican heritages as they prepare to participate in this global baseball tournament. It features national cable TV spots, print ads, online ads and radio spots, as well as local outdoor advertising in Los Angeles, Miami and New York. Branded items such as posters, pocket schedules and even snacks in sports bars will be distributed.

If A-Rod were the only player in the spots, the whole campaign could be in a lot of trouble (or it could be even more popular because of the scandal). But since he is among a group of players, the impact of his role in the steroids scandal should not effect the overall effectiveness of the campaign.

If you are a baseball fan, try to catch some of the 39 games in tournament. ESPN and ESPN2 will be televising 23 of the games, with the MLB Network picking up the other 16 in the United States. Many of the games will also be simulcast on ESPN360.com. All 39 games will be televised in Spanish on ESPN Desportes.

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