MILWAUKEE -- Melisa Palacios of Racine, Wis. is the Brewers' Honorary Bat Girl for Major League Baseball's Mother's Day initiative, and she will take part in festivities at Miller Park at a later date because the team is in Cincinnati on Sunday.
The Honorary Bat Girl program was introduced in 2009 to raise additional awareness and support for the annual "Going to Bat Against Breast Cancer" initiative celebrated around Major League Baseball on Mother's Day. In eight years, thousands of unique testimonials have been submitted, and more than 3 million fan votes have been cast to select "winners" representing each of the 30 clubs.
Palacios first became involved in the fight when one of her husband's relatives was diagnosed, by creating breast cancer awareness clothing to sell and donating the profits to the All Saints Cancer Center in Racine. In 2013, her mother was diagnosed with breast cancer, and in 2014, the disease struck Palacios herself. She recently started a support group, Pink Ladies Palace, where breast cancer fighters and survivors communicate and share their stories and experiences.
Palacios and other Honorary Bat Girl winners will take part in pregame activities, be honored during an on-field ceremony and receive pink MLB merchandise with two tickets to a game. Brewers closer Jeremy Jeffress was on the panel of judges that selected the winners from each club.
Continuing a tradition, players and on-field personnel will wear pink ribbons, wristbands and cleats, and will swing pink bats on Mother's Day. This year, players and coaches will also wear specially designed uniforms that incorporate pink into the clubs' regular logos. Many of those items will be auctioned exclusively on MLB.com/auction to benefit the fight against breast cancer.