Miracle League return brings smiles to special-needs players

It was the bottom of the first inning, and hearts were buoyant as they always are at the Miracle League of Las Vegas ballpark on the First Christian Church grounds off Rancho Drive.

A kid on the Miracle League Braves named Colby Herrman hit a ball so far that, had he straightened it out, it might have landed in the express lane on U.S. 95. Colby circled the bases anyway. Upon further review, the tape measure foul ball was ruled a home run.

Not a single soul argued.

“These things tend to happen in the Miracle League,” public address announcer Robin Loyed explained to those who might have been watching the kids with disabilities and special needs swing the bat and throw the ball and run the bases for the first time.

The Miracle League Rockies wore purple, just like their big league namesakes. On the back of their T-shirts, in the place the player’s name usually would go, there instead was a summation of the Miracle League’s mission statement:

RULE #1 HAVE FUN.

That was exactly what was occurring, as it does every spring at the Miracle League ballpark. Except for the last one, when the pandemic shut everything down and caused buoyant hearts to sink.

Miracle comeback

As the Braves and Rockies continued circling the bases and abiding by Rule #1 during their game that was destined to wind up a 28-28 tie, Roxanne Loyed, Robin’s wife and the local Miracle League’s executive director, spoke of the pandemic’s ravages.

“We lost three players to COVID and one that died from other health-related issues,” she said. “We’ve seen a lot of the players have physical and mental regression, and a few have developed major anxiety. They haven’t been able to get out of the house and get any physical stimulation.”

Loyed said many Miracle Leaguers need consistency and continuity and sometimes struggle with change.

“From a social aspect, they have horribly missed being able to chat with their buddies and the staff,” she said, adding that playing ball via Zoom last fall helped alleviate some of the angst. Players set up fields in their backyards or in their homes where a refrigerator magnet sometimes would represent second base.

Two sisters set up their Barbie dolls and stuffed animals as spectators in make-believe bleachers, Loyed said. “As she was putting away the Barbie dolls, the 6-year-old scolded one: ‘You need to quit complaining about no concession stand; it’s COVID, you have to wait until you get home to get a snack.’ ”

Making history

The first Miracle League was founded in Conyers, Georgia, in 1999. There are now 300 such leagues. Local attorney and former UNLV soccer player Tim McGarry co-founded the local one after seeing a Miracle League segment on HBO’s “Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel.”

The local Miracle League diamond, featuring a rubberized surface that helps prevent injuries and facilitates the use of wheelchairs, was built on the site of the former Potocsky Little League field where McGarry had played as a boy.

Mayor Oscar Goodman threw out the first pitch in 2010. Others who have performed that honor include current Las Vegas Mayor Caroline Goodman and Clayton Kershaw, ace of the world champion Los Angeles Dodgers.

“You see the kids, and you understand even more so what a privilege it is to play baseball,” the big lefty said after being lit up for 11 runs in the top of the first inning by the 2015 Miracle League Cardinals, after which he did the Chicken Dance with the players, many of which have since acquired Miracle League reputations nearly as big as his.

When Calvin — nickname: Cal Diggy Jr. — came to bat for the Braves, Robin Noyed reminded spectators that on Nov. 4, 2017, the Diggy Man became the first local Miracle League player to hit a home run and sing the national anthem on the same day.

Those who were there said hearts were buoyant.

Contact Ron Kantowski at rkantowski@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0352. Follow @ronkantowski on Twitter.