By TONY TAGLAVORE, Journal Services
You won’t find her name on the 26-player World Series roster.
But as a member of the Texas Rangers Six Shooters Squad, Bossier City native Isabella Michels feels every bit a member of the ball club.
“I do. I do because I think the team really thrives off the energy of the stadium,” Michels told the Shreveport-Bossier Journal. “A big part of the energy of the stadium feeds off us because we are throwing t-shirts, and we’re getting the crowd excited to be there.
Michels is one of 20 young women who make up what she describes as “a promo squad that dances.”
Arriving at each home game two hours before first pitch, the Six Shooters interact with fans, dance on top of the dugouts, take pictures with children, and hand out goodie bags.
“It’s insane. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever been a part of. I was on (the TV show) Dance Moms when I was 14 years old. Being on stage and knowing that millions of people were watching a reality show was scary. But dancing on the field in front of 45,000 people, including FOX television recording our intro dance…There are millions of people who watch the World Series, so thinking about how many people are watching you at any given second is terrifying. But also, it’s so exhilarating, knowing that the training I’ve had since I was four or five years old has led to this moment.”
Training which began in Shreveport-Bossier.
“I started cheer really young. Really, really young. Probably when I was three or four. My mom said I would dance around the house a lot, and anytime she played a song, I would start dancing. So, she said, ‘Maybe we should put you in dance, and not cheer.’ She put me in Power and Grace (School of Performing Arts) and I did tap and ballet. Then, I started with the Shreveport Metropolitan Ballet. From there, I just became obsessed with ballet…I just fell in love with it.”
Michels attended Sun City Elementary School through second grade. Her family left the area when the General Motors plant where her father worked closed. But Michels continued to take dance lessons in Ohio, Mississippi, and Texas. Now 21 years old and preparing to earn her master’s degree in anesthesiology, she’s finishing her first year as a Six Shooter.
“I had gone to a Rangers game in 2021. I saw girls on the field doing the dot race…I was like, ‘That is so cool!’ I started watching the game more, and I saw them get up on the dugouts to dance. I said, ‘Are you kidding me? Baseball and dancing? I want to do that.’ I decided the next year I was going to audition.”
For the first round of tryouts, Michels sent in an application and a dance video. The second round included in-person dancing.
“I was super, super nervous. I had no idea what to expect. I had never been on the field at Globe Life (the Rangers’ stadium). That was another thing I had to be worried about. What is the ground made of? Is it going to be hard to dance on? I was very nervous.”
But Michels didn’t have to wait long before knowing if she had made the squad.
“That night, I got the email saying they wanted me to be a part of the Rangers Six Shooters. It was very, very exciting.”
You can call the Six Shooters cheerleaders, but there’s a big difference in their look, and that of the Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders.
No skin.
“The Texas Rangers is a very family friendly organization. Since we work so much with children, they want everything to be family friendly. Being modest, and wearing a uniform that is modest, is very important for the organization. We wear skirts with shorts underneath, and a jersey that we tie right above our skirt.”
For Michels, the recent American League Championship Series understandably had a bigger feel than a regular season game. And the World Series – of which the first two games were played in the Rangers’ ballpark – has an even bigger feel.
“There is so much going on at one time. The amount of people who are in the tunnels preparing for media, or pictures, or any different type of things…it can get chaotic, but it is so much fun and exciting. The feel of being a part of not just the post-season, but of the World Series, is so, so crazy to me, because most people didn’t expect this.”
If Texas wins the Series, Michels expects she and her Six Shooters teammates will receive a championship ring to add to their jewelry collection. If not, the 2023 season will still be one Michels will remember.
“It’s so cool to see that we’ve made it so, so far, and people are finally saying, ‘The Texas Rangers, they have a future.’ It’s so exciting. It’s history, and it’s really exciting to be a part of that history.”
Contact Tony at SBJTonyT@gmail.com