youtube-video-thumbnail

Second Base: Around The Horn

2

August 9, 2017  |  Jonathan Bender, John G. McGrath  |  2 min read

In this week’s episode, get to know Kansas City’s long and dynamic history of sandlot baseball. Learn about it from Royals’ historian Kay Cee, and discover a hidden modern sandlot game in Kansas City.

Call of The Sandlot takes you back to the time when kids played until their mothers called them in for dinner. KCPT and Flatland look back into our local baseball history to tell you why sandlots disappeared and how Sam and Ana Beckett, a Kansas City couple, and the Kansas City Royals are looking to bring the tradition of the sandlot back.

Discover what it was like for Frank White to play baseball while growing up in KC, and see how the Royals are hoping to instill leadership skills and discover untapped talent with the Urban Youth Academy being built in Parade Park behind the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum. Get ready to heed the Call of the Sandlot

In next week’s episode, we look at what happened to sandlots in Kansas City, why the Urban Youth Academy was created and what it takes to create a modern day sandlot.

Explore this four-part series on Wednesdays through Aug. 23 on flatlandkc.local. The entire series airs as a television program at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Aug. 24 on KCPT.

Reading these stories is free, but telling them is not. Start your monthly gift now to support Flatland’s community-focused reporting.

Nick’s Picks | World Cup, Data Centers, Juneteenth and More …

June 15, 2026

The World Cup finally comes to Kansas City, Jackson County considers data center moratorium, and more …

Related Stories

Cassandra Wainright teaching at the 2016 Concerned Clergy Coalition of Kansas City.

Passing the Baton | Pastor Cassandra Wainright’s Life of Service

Pastor Cassandra Wainright became the first female president of the Concerned Clergy Coalition of Kansas City. Watch her story on "Passing the Baton."

Read More >
Senior U.S. District Judge Fernando J. Gaitan Jr.

Passing the Baton | Groundbreaking African American Lawyer

Senior U.S. District Judge Fernando J. Gaitan Jr. reflects on a long, groundbreaking legal career as part of our "Passing the Baton" series.

Read More >
A view of the Crossroads and the downtown skyline from a nearby office.

Art House | The Hard Work Behind Hearty Laughter

Kansas City filmmakers Lolo Loren and Patrick Poe discuss how to provoke laughter in comedies such as "Almost, Sorta, Maybe" and "Vegan Apocalypse."

Read More >