Photography by Kevin A. Roberts
One thing often leads to another, and in this case, the one thing was a tornado. The twister struck on Good Friday in 2011, destroying the Penalty Box sports bar in Overland. Ken Nevins rebuilt his business in O’Fallon, Missouri, but few of his old customers followed, and new ones proved scarce. Then his sons came up with an idea—out of left field, pun intended—to build a Wiffle Ball stadium. Borrowed from Kevin Costner, the business plan was basically, “If you build it, they will come.” It worked. Opened last year by Joe and Shawn Nevins, Yellowbatz brought in crowds of players, corporate sponsors, and attention from local and national media. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch likened the facility to a real-life Field of Dreams.
Designed as an ode to Sportsman’s Park, the stadium, which boasts a manicured infield, white baselines, and a home run fence (102 feet to center field), sure beats the back yard for a kid’s birthday party. Nightly leagues bring in adults ages 18 to 70, including some diehards who take Wiffle Ball very seriously, throwing nasty curves and smacking long home runs with the plastic bats. “I ended up having to practice in my back yard over the summer just so I could play,” Joe says of the inaugural season. “I was, like, I can’t own this thing and be so bad.”
This year, Yellowbatz installed a new playing surface and added a replica Sportsman’s Park scoreboard. The fictional field of dreams brought old baseball players back to life. This version probably won’t, but it just might awaken your inner child. “It’s just such an innocent pleasure that people get enjoyment out of at all ages,” Joe says. “The experiences are so awesome.”
