The National Baseball Poetry Festival

Baseball and poetry make for a winning combination in Worcester each year

National Baseball Poetry Festival

Steven Biondolillo first came up with the idea for the National Baseball Poetry Festival while reading about the FisherPoets Gathering in Astoria, Oregon. His first thought - “How many poems about fish are there?” His second - “How come there’s no baseball poetry festival?”

For those who feel like that might be a little bit of a leap, it’s not for Biondolillo, who has had close ties to baseball all his life. His father, who later passed away when Biondolillo was six, had him playing baseball at the tender age of three. When he eventually ended up in an orphanage for seven years, baseball became a lifeline. “Baseball was the sport that saved my life, gave me a place to be.”

Once Biondolillo had the idea for a festival centered around baseball poetry, the project was off to the races. Biondolillo’s professional background in large-scale special event production helped him get the right people in place, as well as the right place in place. “It occurred to me it had to be in Worcester,” he shares. “For a variety of reasons, but not the least of which it’s the birthplace of Ernest Thayer who wrote a little poem called ‘Casey at the Bat’.” Worcester also happens to be home to the brand-new Polar Park, where AAA Red Sox affiliate the Worcester Red Sox play. That connection also feeds into the festival program.

The National Baseball Poetry Festival takes place over three days featuring poetry readings, an open-mic night, a tour of Polar Park, and two WooSox games. Baseball fans and poets from all over the US (and other countries too) have participated in previous festivals, alongside hundreds of local students who have submitted their own poems for award consideration. Biondolillo wants even more people to get involved. “Win, lose, or draw – come on, stay involved,” he says, “Consider coming and hanging out with us. It’s just a lot of fun.”

That tone of inclusion feeds into the festival’s prize structure. At the National Baseball Poetry Festival, there’s no first, second, and third place awards. “You see first place, second place, third place… 99 percent of people immediately say, unless you’re a real poet with some ambition, I’m out. I got no chance. Whereas if we say 20 adults, 20 high school, 20 middle school, 20 elementary school. You say, Whatever. Throw my hat into the ring. Why not?” Biondolillo explains. This structure also allows the festival to expand, when it’s ready to do so.

In his dream world, Biondolillo would like to see students from every school in every state participate in the festival as well as baseball and poetry fans of all sorts from all places gather each year to celebrate the intersections of America’s pastime and literature. “There’s no poetry festival that has two full professional baseball games,” Biondolillo boasts, “That’s us.”

The 2026 National Baseball Poetry Festival is currently accepting poetry submissions. The Festival will take place in Worcester, MA from April 30 - May 3, 2026.