Ole Miss Baseball and Softball teams welcomed the League of Angels to Swayze Field for a night of faith, fun and baseball on Monday, Sept. 8. The event brought together those with disabilities from a variety of age groups for a one-of-a-kind game experience.
League of Angels is a baseball ministry founded by Tanner Kim, a former University of Kentucky baseball player. Kim began the company a year and a half ago in Knoxville, Tenn.
Monday’s event marked the organization’s first time both at a university and in a different state.
For Kim, the expansion is about more than baseball: It is about spreading joy and God’s love through the sport. He arrived at the idea for League of Angels during his days playing at Kentucky.
After volunteering at a baseball game for athletes with disabilities with the Miracle League — an organization dedicated to giving young athletes with disabilities access to baseball — Kim realized that baseball was about more than performance on the field. He said his faith was instrumental in assembling this organization.
“The pastor was talking about how sometimes you put down a gift that God’s given you, and then it might be time to pick it back up and use it for something else,” Kim said in an interview with UT’s Haslam College of Business. “That was soon after I decided to step away from baseball, so it really hit home for me. I felt like God put it in my heart to start this foundation.”
The evening began with the “Angel March” in which participants, referred to as angels, were escorted onto the field by members of Ole Miss Baseball and Softball. Families, friends, Greek life organizations, Bible study groups and the local Oxford High School baseball and softball teams gathered to welcome each angel while cheering and parading signs.
“The League of Angels event brought such joy to everyone in attendance,” junior history major Ava Murphy said. “Watching the teams cheer on the angels and champion them on the stage of the Ole Miss Baseball field was beautiful.”
After this warm welcome, two teams took the field: Team Hotty in red and Team Toddy in powder blue. Every angel walked out with an Ole Miss baseball or softball player. Both teams were assigned senior captains, and, just like a college game, players came through the tunnels as the announcers called out their names.
“It’s really uplifting to see the community come together to celebrate the angels,” UM alumna and event attendee Sara Grace Moore said. “It reminds us why sports matter so much – to bring us together and spread love and positivity in a world that needs that right. You could really see God bringing everyone together out there to support the angels. It was a beautiful experience.”
Adding to the atmosphere, the speakers also played each player’s walkout song. Following the National Anthem, Cami Bianco — the wife of Ole Miss Baseball head coach Mike Bianco — threw the ceremonial first pitch.
Every hit during the game was a home run; each Angel hit and ran the bases, celebrating under the stadium lights. Ole Miss players ran the bases alongside the angels, giving high fives and fistbumps along the way.
After the top of the first, everyone — angels, Ole Miss players and volunteers — gathered around the pitcher’s mound for a mid-game dance break before beginning the bottom half of the inning. Rebel athletes, angels and fans came together for a genuine moment of joy and community, singing and dancing in unison.
The evening concluded with a short scrimmage between the Ole Miss athletes and a group prayer. Of course, the real highlight of the night was the community formed. Whether at bat, in the field or cheering from the stands, everyone present helped make Monday night a testament to the unifying power of sports.
