Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Alex Call has urged Major League Baseball and US broadcasters to pull what he called 'soft porn ads' from playoff coverage, saying he cannot comfortably watch games with his young son when a Sydney Sweeney commercial for betting platform Novig could appear at any moment.

Call, 32, posted on X on Wednesday 14 October, before the Dodgers' National League Championship Series game against the Milwaukee Brewers.

He was replying to Taylor Murphy, who had criticised several adverts shown during the playoffs, including Sweeney's Novig spot, an erectile dysfunction commercial featuring Megan Fox and a horror film trailer. Call did not name Sweeney or Novig in his own post.

'Can we please get the soft porn ads off playoff broadcasts, TBS, Fox, NBC, @MLB?' he wrote. 'My son wants to watch baseball with Dada, but how do I justify that when a half-naked women [sic] could come on screen anytime?? This is America's Pastime. Parents shouldn't have to worry about this.'

Call, who joined the Dodgers from the Washington Nationals in a 2025 trade, is not on the club's playoff roster. Genevieve Albernaz, wife of Baltimore Orioles manager Craig Albernaz, voiced similar concerns on X while watching the American League Championship Series.

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Sydney Sweeney Novig Ad at Centre of MLB Row

The commercial is part of Novig's 'Just Sports' campaign for its sports prediction market platform. Sweeney appears with little or no clothing, using footballs, basketballs, a hockey stick and other equipment to cover herself. The spot has aired during MLB postseason coverage, including the league championship series.

The campaign drew criticism before Call's post. In mid-September, four-time Olympic swimming champion Ariarne Titmus described it as 'a kick in the face to every woman who has dedicated her life to perfecting her craft', according to the BBC.

British sprinter Amy Hunt, interviewed by the BBC after finishing fourth in the 200m at the Ultimate Championship in Budapest, looked into the camera and said: 'Sydney Sweeney, this is what women in sport look like.' US gymnast Gracie Kramer called the advert disrespectful to every female athlete, and Australian Olympian Tilly Kearns also criticised it.

Sweeney, who owns a stake in Novig, has stood by the campaign. She responded to the first wave of criticism by posting images from ESPN's Body Issue, which features nude and semi-nude athletes, on Instagram Stories. She later appeared in a second Novig advert wearing white branded underwear, with her hair and sports equipment covering her chest.

Novig chief executive Jacob Fortinsky has said the platform is designed for sports fans and that Sweeney is a business partner rather than a hired face. Neither Novig nor MLB has indicated any change to the advert's rotation.

Experts Warn How Sexualised Media Can Affect Children

Psychologists have long warned that repeated exposure to sexualised imagery in advertising and entertainment can shape how children and teenagers view themselves and others.

A landmark report by the American Psychological Association's Task Force on the Sexualization of Girls linked such portrayals to body shame, low self-esteem, depression and eating disorders among girls and young women.

Researchers stress that these findings concern media exposure over time, not the effect of any single advert.

Research has linked adolescents' exposure to sexual content across television, films, music and online media with earlier sexual activity. However, these findings concern broader patterns of media exposure rather than the effect of any single advert.

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