Catawba Ridge High student to play in Miracle League All-Star Celebration in Georgia

Kelly Lea said her son Levi has grown more than a foot since he started playing in the Miracle League at Rock Hill’s Miracle Park.

Levi started playing baseball in the league in the spring of 2022.. But, Kelly said, his height isn’t the only major change she’s seen from her son over the past two years. She’s also noticed that Levi, who has autism, has undergone several positive behavioral changes.

“He had never done baseball before,” Kelly said. “So not only did he get the sportsmanship skills, but he learned how to be part of a team and how to have patience — waiting his turn to go out and hit the ball and just learning to be a good sport, win or lose.”

A rising freshman at Catawba Ridge, Levi was nominated to represent Rock Hill at the sixth annual Miracle League All-Star Celebration in Covington, Georgia, in October.

The event celebrates Miracle League athletes from all over the country in addition to athletes from Puerto Rico, Canada and Mexico, complete with an all-star baseball game featuring league nominees.

Levi Lea is the youngest person to represent Rock Hill at the event, and said it’s an honor to be selected to attend.

“I’m really glad to have been given this experience,” he said. “I’m really happy that (my coaches) do think that I’m that good.”

Levi said his favorite team is the Durham Bulls. His goal for the All-Star Game is to hit a home run out of the park.

What is Miracle Park?

Miracle Park is located on Eden Terrace, across the street from Winthrop University’s athletic facilities. The main goal of the park is to allow people of all abilities to enjoy its features and hosted events.

The park opened in September 2021 as the first phase of development, re-purposing an old baseball field. The site features an all-inclusive playground, a traditional baseball field, the Miracle League baseball field, a building for staff offices, and two public bathrooms.

It was built as part of the public-private partnership that Rock Hill uses to help fund city projects.

“We’re the only municipality that services the therapeutics arm for (York County),” said Mark Sexton, director of the City of Rock Hill’s Parks, Recreation and Tourism department. “We already have a history of that where we service kids with all abilities, whether it be through programs or athletics. We’ve already worked with Area 11 Special Olympics, so this was an opportunity to expand on that and to build an all-inclusive park, which I don’t think anyone would argue with.”

Miracle Field, the all-inclusive baseball field at the park, is where the city hosts its Miracle League baseball games.

All parts of a traditional baseball field are there: Bases, a pitcher’s mound, batters’ boxes and a well-defined infield and outfield. However, the field’s surface is made of Pebble-Flex, a synthetic rubber material that allows the field to be completely flat.

“If you have a walker or rollator or a wheelchair, you smooth right over it,” Miracle Park programmer Terry Hagen said. “The bases are not raised; they’re built in so there’s no trip hazards. Also, it’s porous and a little bouncier, so it’s better on your joints. And then if somebody falls, they’re not going to get cut like they would on a dirt surface or a rock surface or on concrete because it’s rubber.”

Miracle League is a baseball league for players of all ages; the oldest competitor in the league is 86 years old.

The league hosts two baseball seasons — one in the fall and one in the spring — and plays a competitive game against Charlotte’s Miracle League baseball team every year.

The league attracts a variety of players from all walks of life — like Hall Mitchell, a 15-year-old rising sophomore at Rock Hill High School.

Mitchell, who has Down syndrome, is known for being a very social and joyful person, playing in Rock Hill’s Miracle League since it began. Hagen said Mitchell is always having a great time at the league and brings boundless energy with him.

Hall’s mother, Jenny, said her son has always been “uninhibited and social,” but playing in the league has opened up an avenue that had previously been shut off to him.

“He’s always been interested in sports,” Jenny said. “But frankly, for a kid like Hall or any other kid with special needs, the access to sports is just not there because it’s not so appropriate for them to compete with typical kids. So (the Miracle League) is a way for them to compete with folks who are at their same level and still get all different aspects of playing on a team, but it’s maybe not quite as rough.”

What’s next for Miracle Park?

The current Miracle Park facilities are part of the first phase of a three-phase plan for all-inclusive facilities in Rock Hill.

According to the Rock Hill Miracle Park website, the next phase includes:

▪ Large multi-purpose field suitable for football, soccer, lacrosse, kickball, basketball, volleyball, pickleball and more.

▪ Second Miracle League baseball field.

▪ A 2,600-square foot Education Building, with indoor space for programs and storage for adaptive equipment.

▪ Additional parking.

▪ Therapeutic fishing pond.

The final piece of the puzzle is a 8,200-square-foot retail space at the corner of Richmond Drive and Cherry Road.

Miracle Park executive director Kylie Carroll said they need to raise at least $2.5 million for the next two phases, carrying a projected price tag of up to $6.5 million. Phase two is part of the public-private partnership, while the retail space will be funded with the help of MaxAbilities of York County, a disability services and support organization based in York.

Sexton said the final two phases of the development “gives (the city) the ability to expand a footprint and further service our community for kids and adults of all abilities.”

Carroll said that once funding is secured, the developments will take 12 to 15 months to complete.