Arizona Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo couldn’t help but crack a joke when he learned that legendary actor Kevin Costner wanted to meet him at Salt River Fields, per MLB. His first thought? There must have been some confusion.
“I’m like, ‘Does he know that I’m Torey Lovullo and not Tony La Russa?’” Lovullo joked. “You know, that other Italian guy.”
Lovullo was one of a few members of the Diamondbacks organization who got the chance to meet Costner, who was at the team’s spring training complex for a commercial photo shoot. Meeting an actor with such a deep connection to baseball films made the experience even more surreal.
“He’s ‘The Voice,’ and then he’s right there in front of you talking to you,” Lovullo said. “I was basically watching guys hitting and shagging on Field 2, and five minutes later, I’m hanging with Kevin Costner. You can’t make it up. I’ve got one of the coolest jobs in baseball.”
Lovullo made sure to express his gratitude, particularly for Costner’s dedication to portraying baseball authentically on screen.
“I spent some good time with him, and really what I did was I thanked him for all the films and the great acting that he’s done, in particular the baseball movies,” Lovullo said. “And that [when I watch him], I feel like I’m watching a baseball player. I’m not watching an actor trying to play baseball. And I thanked him for that effort, for taking it seriously, because it means a lot to us inside of this industry. And he thanked me for that. It was very genuine.”
Lineup Changes and a ‘Bull Durham’ Moment
While Lovullo enjoyed his brush with Hollywood, he also has a lot on his plate when it comes to setting up his batting order for the upcoming season. With Christian Walker now in Houston, Lovullo acknowledged he may take a more flexible approach to lineup construction.
“I might be a little more fluid with matching up,” Lovullo said. “There were times I was reluctant when Christian got into a little bit of a funk—I was reluctant to move him out of the four hole. I might be a little more fluid and make some more lineup adjustments in that space with that mindset. I don’t know yet. It’s a good question.”
While Lovullo figured out his roster, right-hander Zac Gallen was busy having his own unforgettable moment with Costner. As a die-hard fan of Bull Durham, Gallen took full advantage of the opportunity to ask the actor about filming the iconic baseball movie.
“I got to spend about 10-15 minutes with him, which was a lot of fun,” Gallen said. “I asked him a bunch of questions about Bull Durham, and he told some stories of playing at the old Bull Durham Stadium.”
The highlight of their conversation came when Kevin Costner playfully challenged himself to hit a ball over the fence.
“We were standing in center field, so he’s like, ‘Throw me that ball,’” Gallen recalled. “I’m not sure if he knew it was the ball he had signed or if he thought it was another one. So I threw it to him, and he hit it, and now there’s a grass stain on the ball. So, I think the story is even cooler than just having a fresh, white baseball with a signature. I’ve got a story to tell about it.”
For Lovullo, Gallen, and the rest of the Diamondbacks, it was an unexpected but unforgettable moment—one where baseball and Hollywood collided in the best way possible.
