It’s a hot, sunny Sunday afternoon on Field 16 of the Blue Valley Recreation baseball complex.
The Bluejays baseball players, dressed in their royal blue and white uniforms, take their positions on the field.
In the outfield, one player is doing push-ups while another sits down and draws pictures in the dirt. A player on first base takes out his cell phone, calls one of his friends sitting in the stands with the other fans and proceeds to have a conversation with him while the game continues.
Repeatedly striking out, unnecessarily sliding into home plate and cheering just because a player actually hit the ball is not uncommon for this team.
As you can see, this is not your typical baseball game. This is a Bluejay’s baseball game.
The Bluejays, made up of senior boys from Blue Valley and Blue Valley Southwest, is a recreational team who played every Sunday and Monday throughout June and July this summer.
The Bluejays baseball players, dressed in their royal blue and white uniforms, take their positions on the field.
In the outfield, one player is doing push-ups while another sits down and draws pictures in the dirt. A player on first base takes out his cell phone, calls one of his friends sitting in the stands with the other fans and proceeds to have a conversation with him while the game continues.
Repeatedly striking out, unnecessarily sliding into home plate and cheering just because a player actually hit the ball is not uncommon for this team.
As you can see, this is not your typical baseball game. This is a Bluejay’s baseball game.
The Bluejays, made up of senior boys from Blue Valley and Blue Valley Southwest, is a recreational team who played every Sunday and Monday throughout June and July this summer.
Senior Connor Lotz said the team was made strictly for having fun.
“We made the team because we all wanted to play and just have a reason to mess around,” he said.
Since some of the players rarely got hits, Lotz said everyone cheered crazily when the players finally did.
“My favorite memory was when [senior] Ben [Marquardt] got his first hit,” he said. “We all went insane, and it was hilarious because he hadn’t gotten a single hit before that.”
Senior Scott Urso said he enjoyed getting to socialize with his teammates while playing baseball.
“The best part about being on the team was probably just getting to mess around with my friends and do stupid things while we were still able to play an organized baseball game,” he said. “We messed around because there isn’t really any point in trying to win other than bragging rights.
Only two of the teams actually took it seriously. I think it was definitely more to just have fun.”
Bluejays superfan senior Meghan Kennedy said she has many memories from going to the games.
“The funniest thing I remember from all the games I went to was definitely when [senior] Kyle [Nunnally] called [Bluejays superfan senior] Mallory [Hickey] from the outfield,” she said. “I was sitting on the bleachers, and all of a sudden Mallory got a call from Kyle. Everyone on the bench was like, ‘Why is Kyle calling you? He’s supposed to be playing.’ It was just really funny because you wouldn’t expect them to do that.”
“We made the team because we all wanted to play and just have a reason to mess around,” he said.
Since some of the players rarely got hits, Lotz said everyone cheered crazily when the players finally did.
“My favorite memory was when [senior] Ben [Marquardt] got his first hit,” he said. “We all went insane, and it was hilarious because he hadn’t gotten a single hit before that.”
Senior Scott Urso said he enjoyed getting to socialize with his teammates while playing baseball.
“The best part about being on the team was probably just getting to mess around with my friends and do stupid things while we were still able to play an organized baseball game,” he said. “We messed around because there isn’t really any point in trying to win other than bragging rights.
Only two of the teams actually took it seriously. I think it was definitely more to just have fun.”
Bluejays superfan senior Meghan Kennedy said she has many memories from going to the games.
“The funniest thing I remember from all the games I went to was definitely when [senior] Kyle [Nunnally] called [Bluejays superfan senior] Mallory [Hickey] from the outfield,” she said. “I was sitting on the bleachers, and all of a sudden Mallory got a call from Kyle. Everyone on the bench was like, ‘Why is Kyle calling you? He’s supposed to be playing.’ It was just really funny because you wouldn’t expect them to do that.”
Urso said the Bluejays games were a good way for his friends to still get together during the summer.
“Playing with a lot of my friends was really fun because a lot of us were busy throughout the summer, so it was sometimes the only time we could all hang out,” he said.
Urso said there were many funny memories from the season.
“After every game, this try-hard team would throw water in our dugout,” he said. “So, the last time we played them, we caught on. After we shook hands, I saw the kid getting the water jug so I just sprinted over and grabbed it and threw it on the ground. Then, [senior] Jake [Ackland] dumped the water all over the other team.”
Kennedy said watching the Bluejays play was a highlight of her summer.
“Baseball is one of my favorite things, so being able watch that twice a week with a bunch of friends was an awesome experience,” she said. “The players on our team just took each game as a joke, and they didn’t really care if they missed a routine fly-ball or if they lost by 14 points. I have so many great memories from going to the games on Monday nights and then the occasional Taco Bell or Sonic run afterwards with the team.”
“Playing with a lot of my friends was really fun because a lot of us were busy throughout the summer, so it was sometimes the only time we could all hang out,” he said.
Urso said there were many funny memories from the season.
“After every game, this try-hard team would throw water in our dugout,” he said. “So, the last time we played them, we caught on. After we shook hands, I saw the kid getting the water jug so I just sprinted over and grabbed it and threw it on the ground. Then, [senior] Jake [Ackland] dumped the water all over the other team.”
Kennedy said watching the Bluejays play was a highlight of her summer.
“Baseball is one of my favorite things, so being able watch that twice a week with a bunch of friends was an awesome experience,” she said. “The players on our team just took each game as a joke, and they didn’t really care if they missed a routine fly-ball or if they lost by 14 points. I have so many great memories from going to the games on Monday nights and then the occasional Taco Bell or Sonic run afterwards with the team.”
