Playing in front of large crowds is the dream of every ballplayer. Those who take the college route and are fortunate enough to make it to the annual World Series in Omaha get a taste of it, but five-figure attendance isn’t usually the norm until the Major Leagues. One player who made his big league debut on September 13th played in front of a big crowd at age 13.
Right fielder Scott Bandura of the San Francisco Giants played in the 2014 Little League World Series in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Because the Taney Little League was based out of Philadelphia and also featured a star female pitcher named Mo’ne Davis, one of their games during that series drew over 34,000 people. Bandura was the catcher and leadoff hitter in that game. The Bandura and Davis families were close when they were youngsters, and upon hearing that he got the call to the Major Leagues, she posted on social media.
“My brother is a Giant. Go be great”.
Earlier this season, when Bandura was at Double-A Richmond, Davis threw out the ceremonial first pitch to him before a game.
Bandura is from a mixed marriage as his mother is black and his father is white. His dad, Steve, founded a youth organization named the Anderson Monarchs before Scott was born. Scott learned the history of the game well before most of his peers today. When I say history, I’m not talking about general baseball history; I mean MLBbro type history.
In 2015, the Monarchs traveled around the country on a bus….a 1947 style replica bus. There was no air conditioning, and electronics as we know them today weren’t allowed. “I don’t care if it’s hot. This is history; that’s why we are here,” Steve Bandura told CNN about having his team go through conditions that Negro League players went through when they were playing.
The team also played a game at historic Rickwood field in Birmingham, Alabama. “My dad was the only white guy in the neighborhood when he started;e, he had to build credibility,” the younger Bandura told ESPN about some of his early memories growing up in Philadelphia. “It was job one to reconnect the kids and their families in this neighborhood to the rich history of baseball,” the older Bandura added.
Scott Bandura played college baseball but wasn’t necessarily highly touted. Excellent grades and athletic ability got him into Princeton University, but COVID essentially wiped out his freshman season.
His .363 batting average during his junior season is where scouts took notice, and the Giants took him in the seventh round of the 2023 draft. The Giants and Cardinals played a 2024 regular-season game at Rickwood Field, and for many,ny it was their first time visiting the venue and certainly the first time playing a game there. It was different for Bandura.
“It’s kind of a full circle moment,” he told MLB.com about coming back to the field for the first time since 2015. The Giants and Cardinals invited their black minor leaguers to join their respective teams to take in the experience.
A .271 batting average and 41 stolen bases across two minor league levels in 2025 didn’t go unnoticed, and the Giants realized he was close. 34 stolen bases coupled with a .320 batting average merited his Major League promotion.
Bandura collected a base hit in his first Major Leagueat-batt and his first stolen base several days afterwards. With his speed and left-handed bat, Bandura has a chance to be part of the Giants organization for a long time to come.
