In case you haven't heard, Pablo Sanchez and his pals are making a long-awaited return to the Backyard League.
Playground Productions officially announced Tuesday that they plan to reboot the iconic Backyard Sports franchise "in the coming months," bringing back the video games series with a similar feel to the versions that millions of kids enjoyed in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
The Backyard Sports series, which debuted in 1997 with the original Backyard Baseball game, featured a fictional cast of 30 kids that has been lauded over the years for its inclusivity and diversity. All 30 members of the "Backyard Kids" had a variety of skill sets in different sports, fun backstories and unique personality quirks that felt like a genuine neighborhood friend group.
The original Backyard Sports cast will be brought back for these new games, as Stephanie Morgan, Achmed Khan, Pete Wheeler, Pablo Sanchez and many others made appearances in Playground Production's official trailer that dropped Tuesday.
BACKYARD RETURNS: Beloved 'Backyard Sports' Video Game Franchise Is Officially Returning
Without further ado, let's head to the Tin Can Alley and name our favorite 10 members of the beloved "Backyard Kids" gang:
10. Dmitri Petrovich
Petrovich always looked like he belonged working in a cube in a team's front office crunching analytics rather than playing on the field, but if my memory serves right I believe he was an absolute wrecking ball on the gridiron.
9. Angela Delvecchio
Delvecchio was Shohei Ohtani before Shohei Ohtani was Shohei Ohtani. A two-way phenom. Seriously, the 2024 Los Angeles Angels could use a player like her.
8. Ricky Johnson
Johnson couldn't hit water if he fell out of a boat, but he makes the top 10 just for being a culture setter. A coach's dream. Every team needs a good locker room guy—even in the Backyard League.
7. Jocinda Smith
You can't put together a top 10 "Backyard Kid" list without including the one nicknamed "MVP," right? Put Smith in the hot corner, bat her cleanup and watch the championship rings stack up.
6. Achmed Khan
Will Khan be wearing Airpods in the new games or will he stick with the Beats by Dre? Either way, "Axeman" is an incredible nickname.
5. Dante Robinson
If there was a Backyard Competitive Eating game, Robinson would be the GOAT. The kid would inhale hot dogs like he was Joey Chestnut on the Fourth of July. Not a bad athlete, either.
4. Stephanie Morgan
Morgan was always someone you could build a franchise around. Clutch hit in the bottom of the ninth? She's got it handled. Addressing the media after a tough loss? She's taking accountability. Charity event? She's there giving free autographs.
3. Pete Wheeler
The #NeverBunt baseball philosophy of years past has never met Mr. Wheeler, who was born to fly around the bases. Just don't have him take the Wonderlic test.
2. Kiesha Phillips
Basically the Elly De La Cruz of the Backyard League, Phillips could run and hit better than anybody not named Pablo Sanchez. Speaking of which ...
1. Pablo Sanchez
Even though the Backyard Sports franchise went missing for nearly two decades, Sanchez still held court in the cultural mainstream, as Kansas City Royals rookie Bobby Witt Jr. just hit a homer with a Pablo Sanchez-themed bat over the weekend. The "Secret Weapon" is no secret weapon after all.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Ranking Pablo Sanchez, Top 10 'Backyard Sports' Characters As Iconic Series Returns.
