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Day of MLB Little League Classic is unbelievable experience for LLWS players

By Jon Gerardi 4 min read

Sitting just three rows back from the field at Bowman Field, Boerne, Texas players Boone Blalock and Kasen Martinez took in the atmosphere at the MLB Little League Classic by watching both the Milwaukee Brewers and Atlanta Braves take batting practice an hour or two before first pitch on Sunday night.

At any MLB ballpark in America, those tickets would run you upwards of four figures right behind the plate a few rows back.

At Bowman Field for the MLB Little League Classic? They're free, and the experience is absolutely priceless for the kids.

"The fact we're this close is insane because normally, these seats are really expensive and we get them for free," Martinez said.

"100%, yeah (it's awesome). It's cool being out here in Pennsylvania too," Blalock said. "I mean, seeing Texas all day we can go see Pennsylvania."

If you were to talk to any of the members of the 20 Little League World Series teams who were seated just rows from the field on Sunday at Bowman Field, they no doubt would echo Blalock's and Martinez's sentiments.

The MLB Little League Classic is truly a once-in-a-lifetime experience for the Little Leaguers who travel from all over the world to the Series, and it's almost indescribable for them.

Prior to the game, the teams welcome players arriving from the airport and also interact with them at Volunteer and Lamade Stadiums.

Blalock was able to get an autograph from Jacob Misiorowski of the Milwaukee Brewers before heading to Bowman Field. Martinez was able to get a bunch of selfies at the complex too.

"I got Jacob Misiorowski autograph. I mean he throws gas, so it's pretty cool," Blalock said with a laugh.

"It was cool to meet Misiorowski because he's so good and he pitches so hard," Martinez added. "He's really good at his game."

While meeting the big leaguers was beyond awesome for Blalock, Martinez and their Boerne, Texas teammates -- in addition to every other Series player -- the fact the big leaguers knew them by name made it awesome for the kids.

Every day throughout the summer, the MLB players are the center of the spotlight for the Little Leaguers who watch their favorite teams and players.

On Sunday, it was the Little League kids who got the spotlight and attention with MLB guys in the stands at Volunteer and Lamade watching the action of 11- and 12-year-olds competing.

"Totally, yeah. It's really cool that they actually know who we are and not just we know who they are," Blalock said.

"They know who we are and that's cool because we're just normal kids and they know exactly who we are because we play on this stage," Martinez agreed.

Getting to the Little League World Series is a tough trip for all 20 teams who qualified. It's a long summer which culminates to a trip to South Williamsport and while that is a great experience, meeting the MLB players on Sunday for the Braves and Brewers was just as cool for the kids.

"I think it's really cool to meet all the Braves players and Brewers players," Blalock said. "It's cool they have them here for the Little League World Series."

"It's really cool to meet all these players. How like good they are and the fact they came out here to play for us and play in this stadium because of us is really cool," Martinez said.

The final score of Sunday's game didn't matter for the Little Leaguers -- XXX won the matchup at Bowman Field by the way, X-X -- the experience, atmosphere and memories meeting the big leaguers is what stood out the most.

Just ask any of the kids, they'll be the first to tell you.

Starting at /week.