On a July night in Augusta, Kansas, Wichita State hitter Jaden Gustafson stepped up to the plate to face off against Wichita State pitcher Drew Iverson, with Wichita State coaches sitting behind home plate. However, the Shockers weren’t competing in the game.
Gustafson, representing the Hutchinson Monarchs, a summer baseball team in the Jayhawk Collegiate League, smashed a home run off Iverson to give the Monarchs the lead over the Kansas Cannons.
“I still haven’t heard the end of it, honestly,” Iverson, a sophomore, said.
It’s just one quirk of summer league baseball, where players from around the country get placed on various traveling teams to get playing time, practice their technique and have some fun.