'Little sluggers' at Scottsdale NICU suit up for Arizona Diamondbacks' Opening Day

Yahoo

28-03-2025

Arizona's smallest Arizona Diamondbacks fans were ready for Opening Day and "stepping up to the plate," said HonorHealth Senior Media Relations Strategist Bill Baer.
Babies in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at HonorHealth Scottsdale Shea Medical Center were showing off their team spirit in a photoshoot coordinated by the events team.
Mary Luster, director of the NICU, said this tradition began a few years ago for Halloween and has become something quite enjoyable for everyone involved.
These photoshoots have become such a popular event in the NICU, that the events team has started to set them up for different holidays and events at different times of the year to ensure they have something for everyone.
"The events team determines what photos they are going to do each year. They know it's really fun, and everyone enjoys it, so they try to do it for many different times of the year," Luster said. "We may not get every baby but try to do a little something for everyone."
The photoshoots provide staff, families and patients a bit of levity in what is often a difficult time, so the staff loves to go the extra mile to make every day as special as possible for the babies in the NICU.
"NICU babies are precious, all babies are, but these require extra care and support, and every day is a victory," Baer said.
"These little sluggers are rocking their team gear in the NICU, proving that big team spirit comes in the smallest packages," Baer said.
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Scottsdale NICU babies step up to the plate for Dbacks' Opening Day