How a Philly student became an MLB All-Star correspondent
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Isabella Gonzalez. Photo: Courtesy of the Gonzalez family
Before every school concert, Isabella Gonzalez worried she'd freeze in front of the crowd. Now, she quiets her nerves the same way a veteran hitter settles into the batter's box: trusting her preparation.
Why it matters: The 12-year-old Philadelphia elementary school student will stand shoulder-to-shoulder with veteran sports reporters and interview some of baseball's biggest stars during Monday's MLB All-Star Media Day.
The big picture: Gonzalez is among several Philly-area students selected to take part in the All-Star Game festivities through a global educational program run by the Players Trust, the MLB players union's charity.
- She'll partner with another student correspondent who's flying in from Tokyo for Media Day.
- The student correspondents program is only in its second year, but it's already making an impact. One participant last year was so inspired by Mets star Francisco Lindor's answer to her question about motivation that she turned it into a school essay, Players Trust executive director Amy Hever tells Axios.
Zoom in: One of Gonzalez's teachers nominated her for the program.
- To earn a spot, Gonzalez produced a sizzle reel and wrote a script explaining how the experience could shape her future.
- Public speaking once terrified her. To calm her nerves, she'd rehearse presentations in her head before falling asleep, imagining them going well instead of badly.
- She calls them her "positive what-ifs."
What they're saying: "Practice makes perfect," Gonzalez, who aspires to become a doctor, tells Axios.
- Rocking her Phillies jersey during the interview, she says her friends and family still can't believe she'll be in the same room as players they've only watched on TV or from the stands at Citizens Bank Park.
Her father helped her research the players and prepare questions. The one she's most excited to ask:
- "What would 12-year-old you think of what you're doing today?"
Reality check: Sometimes players are prickly with beat reporters who cover their daily machinations.
- But questions like Gonzalez's are the kind that players often embrace, Hever says.
- "We actually found that players would seek out the students and actually felt more comfortable, were excited and looking forward to speaking with the students," she says.
Flash forward: When she thinks about how her older self might answer her question, Gonzalez knows what'd she say.
- "Speaking always made me feel a little weird," she says. "So I think 24-year-old me would be very proud of how far I've come with this."