Batboy to Broadcaster
September 5th, 2025
Ever since someone put a plush toy baseball and bat in his crib at a young age, Owen Tipton has loved the game of baseball. He grew up playing Little League Baseball, playing baseball video games, and following his favorite players on social media. Growing up in Rochester, MI, he has been a Detroit Tigers fan, watching players like Miguel Cabrera, Justin Verlander, and now Tarik Skubal perform at the highest level. But Owen’s favorite baseball isn’t played at the Tigers’ Comerica Park; it’s played at Jimmy John’s Field.
The USPBL in Utica, Michigan, plays at Jimmy John’s Field. They are an independent professional minor league baseball organization housing four teams (The Utica Unicorns, Westside Woolly Mammoths, Eastside Diamond Hoppers, and the Birmingham-Bloomfield Beavers), and the USPBL has sent over 50 players to Major League Baseball. This is where Owen got his start working in baseball.
Owen, now 20 years old and a student at Michigan State University studying Communications, began working as a Batboy during the USPBL’s inaugural season in 2016. He worked as a Batboy with the Hoppers and Beavers, and looks back at those times, remembering the atmosphere of being in the dugout. Thinking back about the friendliness of the players, being eleven at the time, he was overcome with excitement and wanted to make the most of those experiences. Little did Owen know that 10 years later, he would still be working with the USPBL, but in a different capacity.
Now, 10 years later, Owen (pictured to the right, 2016) has moved up the ranks of the organization, following his passion for baseball and broadcasting, and works as a gameday broadcast announcer. Owen attributes his continued love for baseball to being a Batboy for the USPBL and being put into T-ball at a young age. When asked about being a Batboy and how it shaped his interests, he said, “Being a Batboy really gave me an initial look into the world of professional baseball, just guys doing what they love most and chasing a dream just like I am now.”
Working now as a broadcaster, Owen has come a long way, and when asked how this journey has felt, he responded, “It really feels like I’ve come full circle, firstly as a former player, and getting to Batboy gave me a deeper appreciation for the USPBL. Getting to have such high-caliber baseball in metro Detroit is such a privilege, but now to have a role in it is such a blessing.” He continued to say, “I’ve been coming to games since the first season back in 2016, and to be a part of its tenth season of operation is an incredible feeling.”
Demonstrating how significant the game of baseball and the USPBL are to him, Owen shared, “The wonderful people here have given me the opportunity to chase my dream of being a broadcaster, and have just deepened my love for the league.” Things have not always been such a storybook tale for Owen. There have been hardships during this journey. He cites overcoming changing his mindset, altering his perspective from being a fan reacting to the play of the game to reacting and speaking as you witness, and describing the game in detail in the right way. Over time, Owen has become more and more a natural broadcaster, doing both play-by-play and color commentary. “Each game is a way for me to have fun and learn what I can do better for the next… I strive to make people smile and enjoy the game further with my work, and I only wish to get better,” is what Owen (Pictured below on the right, 2025) had to say when speaking on his work as a broadcaster.
Owen dreams of working as a Play-by-Play Announcer for a major sports franchise or network and is thankful for the USPBL aiding him in achieving his goals and supporting him in chasing his dreams. Throughout the years, Owen has shared memories, developed skills, matured, and built a dream for the future. The USPBL thanks Owen for consistently giving his best effort and his continued hard work and wishes him the very best in whatever dreams he wishes to chase next. When asked if he had any advice for kids who wish to work in sports, Owen said, “My biggest piece of advice to kids out there who wish to work in sports would be to follow your dreams just like I have. Whether you wish to broadcast like me, become a groundskeeper, scoreboard operator, or anything sports-related, find any way you can to do so.”
Looking back on this experience, some of Owen’s fondest memories at the USPBL include meeting so many great people, being able to see the ins and outs of how professional baseball works, calling Dante Morton’s inside-the-park home run on the 4th of July, 2025, and simply coming in each day. Baseball has helped shape Owen into the young man he is today, and Owen has helped shape the landscape of the USPBL, from going from batboy to broadcaster. Maybe someday he will be another professional the USPBL sends to the MLB.
Written by: Aidan Scott