How a 12-year-old Philly girl wound up interviewing baseball’s best players at the All-Star Game

In the center of Ashburn Alley at Citizens Bank Park, Yoshinobu Yamamoto was surrounded by dozens of media members standing shoulder-to-shoulder, pushing their way through the crowd with mics in hand to ask the Dodgers pitcher a question.

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And standing shoulder height to the other media members, getting pushed around in the middle of it all, was 12-year-old Philadelphia native Isabella Gonzalez.

“So, I’m actually claustrophobic, I hate tight spaces,” Gonzalez said. “But when I was over there, because of how wild it was, I started to get smushed in. Everyone slowly started closing in.

“So, I felt someone’s shoulder go on my cheek. I didn’t want to be rude and fully shove them. Because like everyone was ahead of me, so I’m like rushing over. It was so chaotic. But I think it was easy to deal with because I can just be like, ‘Oh, excuse me.’ Or give them a light [shove].”

Despite her fear of tight spaces, she found her way to the front of the crowd, took a deep breath, and let her voice be heard.

My name is Bella. Congratulations on making it to All-Stars. I’m from Philly, but my family background is from Costa Rica and Puerto Rico. I have a question for you.

After getting out of the crowd, she let out a sigh of relief and was onto her next assignment: an interview with Phillies pitcher Jesús Luzardo — and this interaction would hold a special place in Gonzalez’s heart.

Earlier this year, Luzardo filmed a video for Gonzalez informing her that she was selected to serve as a Players Exchange Student Correspondent, where she would be interviewing MLB players during All-Star media day. Since then, he’s been a favorite for the Phillies fan.

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“My favorite [interview] was Jesús Luzardo,” Gonzalez said. “Obviously, he made a video for me. So, knowing that he was the player who made me a video and that the whole class had to watch me see that video, it made me happy because I feel like I could make a few connections toward him. My dad always told me about him … He was just telling me that he’s a really good guy and be proud that’s the man who made you a video.”

Gonzalez, a seventh grade student at Decatur Elementary School, has been part of the MLB’s Players Exchange program for a year. The program, designed for 11- to 14-year-old students, teaches collaboration, communication, and global connection through insight from MLB players.

Ahead of media day, Gonzalez was able to prep with her own media tour — making an appearance on PHL17.

Now, after conducting a number of her own interviews, pushing through crowds of media members, and overcoming a fear of tight spaces, the 12-year-old is already thinking about a career in reporting.

“Everyone’s like, ‘You speak so fluently, you sound so good,’” Gonzalez said. “I’m like, maybe that’s going to be my future. One of my aunts messaged my mom and was like, ‘We’re going to have a reporter in our family.’ I was on the news on Friday and my mom was like, ‘I’m surprised how comfortable she was.’ How I got comfortable was I was just pacing around the green room.”

And after a day full of interviews in the heat, Gonzalez tied her hair up, tossed on her Phillies hat, grabbed her claw clip and was ready to enjoy the rest of the All-Star Weekend experience — attending the Home Run Derby and the All-Star Game.

“What I found the most best about the whole thing was being able to learn more about the players and being able to ask any questions,” Gonzalez said. “I also like how they didn’t just give a tiny answer. They told you the reason behind the answer.”

MLB All-Star Game in Philly

Baseball’s biggest stars are descending on Philadelphia for the 96th All-Star Game at Citizens Bank Park on July 14. Follow all of The Inquirer’s coverage here.

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