Scott Bandura: One Call Away from the Big Leagues

In 2014, the Taney Little League team made it to the largest stage possible for 12-year-old baseball players. After winning both the Pennsylvania state tournament and the Mid-Atlantic regionals, this Philadelphia team found themselves at the Little League World Series. Their main battery was Mo'ne Davis on the mound and Scott Bandura behind home plate. 

"It was an awesome experience," Bandura remarked. "Especially with us being the somewhat local team, we were able to draw some insane crowds."

Seven years later, in the summer of 2021, Bandura played for the DC Grays, with Mo'ne Davis as an intern for the team. Five years later, Bandura is playing Triple A baseball for the San Francisco Giants—one call away from the biggest stage for a baseball player. 

Bandura attended college at Princeton University in New Jersey. The wake of the COVID pandemic destroyed his hopes for a freshman season, with the Ivy League being the only sports league that didn't play in 2021. That was the summer he played for the Grays. 

"It was my first taste of college baseball," he reminisced. "There were five of us from my little league team and we all stayed in an Airbnb together." Bandura had the most hits for the Grays and the highest batting average that season. 

An injury made him redshirt his sophomore year. The next year was different. In 2023 he played the entire season and finished First Team All Ivy while breaking the school record for total bases in a single season. 

Later that year, Bandura got drafted as an outfielder in the 7th round by the Giants as an outfielder. He started pro ball after only having 200 at bats in college. Now, Bandura is playing Triple A in Sacramento, California. 

The climb to the big leagues takes resilience and grit. But baseball at any level demands persistence from those who want to succeed. 

"It's such a long season with so many ups and downs, especially as a hitter. It can wear on you, but you have to keep the big picture in focus," Bandura emphasized. He stresses that more than anything, success in baseball requires mental toughness. "If you start living and dying on the result of every event, it's gonna break you down mentally more than anything."

It is a battle that all baseball players face. Bandura's ability to be steady in those ups and downs allowed him to climb the ladder of professional baseball.

"At the forefront it's just keeping that gratitude in mind that we still get to play this game we've been playing since we were little kids." It is important to recognize this as an athlete because it keeps you in touch with the love of the game. The same passion and drive that carried this little leaguer to succeed has taken him to the professional level. 

In the offseason of 2024, Bandura returned to Princeton to finish his classes, write his thesis, and ultimately graduate in December. The drive to accomplish is everpresent, and it doesn't limit itself to the baseball field. This DC Grays giant has a past and internal drive that have prepared him for future success.