Tee ball player connects at White House all-star game

WASHINGTON - It could have been just another day in the life of 6-year-old Kelsey Brauer, the way she sat on the picnic bench late Wednesday afternoon, guzzled some grape juice and gobbled up an apple.

Almost.

Except for the part about being on the South Lawn of the White House, and having an extraordinary view of the president's residence, backyard and Rose Garden.

And it's not every day you blast a single to right field in tee ball and have first base coach Ryne Sandberg give you a high-five.

Not to mention having your picture taken with the president and Hall of Famer Frank Robinson, after shaking hands with President Bush and getting an autographed ball.

But to look at Kelsey enjoying a postgame feast, she was handling it all like a wily veteran.

"It was fun, but it was hot,'' Kelsey said. "I think my favorite part of the day was the tour of the White House. That was cool.''

That was long before she took the field as one of 51 participants - one from each state and D.C. - in what the president called, "The first tee ball All-Star Game at the White House.''

It was the 19th White House Tee Ball Game played since 2001, and Kelsey, a Rolling Meadows resident, was chosen a few weeks back to represent Illinois.

That was her reward Wednesday for being a pretty good tee ball player in the Palatine North Little League, and for writing a two-page letter to the president asking to be selected.

Before the game started, President Bush led the teams in reciting the Little League Pledge - loving the country, respecting the law, doing one's best - and then country star Kenny Chesney sang the national anthem. Then the president yelled, "Play ball!''

"The funny thing you think about is how you'd like to get your kids to the White House someday, but she got us here instead,'' said her beaming father, Marc. "Her older brother (Colin) and older sister (Morgan) play travel baseball and softball, and if you had asked me in April if the best moment of the year would come from tee ball, I wouldn't have put it on the list.''

And that's part of the reason the older siblings didn't accompany Kelsey on the trip.

"We wanted this to be about Kelsey,'' Marc said. "She's been to a lot of their games and they've had their moments. This day was all hers.''

Split into four squads, and playing a doubleheader, each player got a single at-bat that couldn't have been more dramatic had it taken place in the seventh game of the World Series at Yankee Stadium.

Wearing her Illinois jersey No. 5, Kelsey stood alertly in right field, chasing down a couple balls, as she awaited her team's chance to bat.

And when she got her chance, Kelsey hammered it between first and second for a clean single.

"I was so nervous,'' said her mother, Shawna. "But I wasn't worried. She's a great hitter.''

Most of the parents were impressed by the field, complete with painted lines, temporary stands and ESPN's "Mike & Mike'' calling the game, all in a secluded, tree-lined area of the lawn.

The president sat in the stands, comfortable in short sleeves on a 94-degree day, and talked to everyone around him, while watching each at-bat, and he joined in as Chesney sang, "Take Me Out to the Ballgame.''

Kelsey was oblivious to this discussion as she watched all the activity around her, finishing her apple and standing up.

"I liked that,'' she said, pointing to the back of the White House, where the team got its picture taken in front of the residence. "I liked when the president came and took the picture with us. This was fun.''

And with that, Kelsey grabbed her pink glove and started off as if she was in search of a game of catch - on the South Lawn of the White House, in the middle of a picnic.

Not a bad way for a 6-year-old to spend an afternoon.