Before suicide, his dream was to play for Cardinals. Sunday he got 'ovation he deserved'

This story explores suicide, including a mother and father's struggle after their 13-year-old son took his life. If you are at risk, please stop here and contact 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline for support.

As Terry Badger II walked to the mound at Busch Stadium on Sunday to throw out a ceremonial pitch in honor of his 13-year-old son who lived and breathed the St. Louis Cardinals, tears welled up in his eyes. As he looked up into the stands, the crowd of 40,000 people rose to their feet in applause.

There was no need for a moment of silence for his son, Terry Badger III, who died by suicide March 6 after his family says he endured intense bullying at Covington Middle School. Badger has had far too many of those silent moments, far too many moments filled with sad tears.

On Sunday, Badger was at the stadium to celebrate the legacy of his son, a baseball phenom known as TB3, whose dream was to play for the St. Louis Cardinals.

As the crowd gave TB3 a standing ovation, and the Cardinals made a call to action to stop bullying, Badger felt a piece of his heart that broke when his only son died inside their home, slowly begin to heal.

At Sunday's game against the New York Yankees, the Cardinals honored Terry in a pregame ceremony. The team presented his family with a custom-made jersey with Terry's name and number on the back.

As Badger walked to the mound to throw the first pitch, the Cardinals asked fans "to fight back against bullying – not with a moment of silence – but by standing up and giving TB3 the ovation that he needed and deserved."

"It was an incredibly emotional day," said Lindsey Weber, Cardinals' manager of community relations, "but a really beautiful moment as well."

'He was more than a Cardinals fan'

When the Cardinals learned of Terry's death and read his story in the IndyStar, Weber said they wanted to do something to provide peace and comfort for the family − for Badger and Terry's mom, Robyn, his sister, Zoe, and his uncle Tony. For his grandparents and his aunt and cousins.

The team gave the family 11 tickets to Sunday's game. The Cardinals chose that game to bring together Terry's love of the Cardinals with his favorite MLB player Aaron Judge.

During the ceremony, players from the Cardinals and the Yankees came onto the field and surrounded the family. Cardinals' manager, Oli Marmol, presented the family with Terry's jersey.

"We wanted to remind everyone this was someone who was more than a Cardinals fan," said Weber. "He wanted to play for our team."

That dream wasn't so far-fetched. Terry was a baseball phenom. There had been talk in Covington about moving Terry up to the varsity team this spring as a seventh grader, said his grandpa, the eldest Terry Badger. He was a third baseman and pitcher who could throw 71 miles an hour and who batted .400 last season, including a home run that sailed more than 300 feet.

Terry had 27 home runs in his career. He signed and saved every one of those balls. He had too many championship trophies to count, too many to fit on the shelves in his bedroom. Terry was looking forward to the upcoming season playing for Indiana Nitro Gold, the top travel team in the Westfield organization's 13U age division.

But on March 6, in the final moments before he died, Terry believed his life wasn't worth living. He was tired of the bullying. There were kids at Covington Middle School, the family alleges, who bullied Terry every day, asking if he shopped at Goodwill, calling him a "fatass," making fun of his shoes, laughing at his haircut, telling him he was worthless.

"I get picked on every (single) day and I hate my life," Terry said in the video he recorded after school on March 6, before he took his life. "You can thank (Terry listed his bullies' names) for this." Then Terry turned off the video and put his phone down.

Minutes later, Robyn got home from the gas station and walked into Terry's room. "I pray that no parent ever has to see ...," Robyn said, unable to say the words, "what I saw."

'Never alone'

"Today the Cardinals welcome to the field members of the Badger family from Covington, Indiana, including Robyn and Terry Badger II who we gather with today to celebrate the life and legacy of their son, Terry Badger, III," the team announced. "Terry was more than a Cardinals fan. He was a tremendously talented baseball player – a third baseman and a pitcher whose lifelong dream was to play for the St. Louis Cardinals."

After the ceremony, the Cardinals won Sunday's game 5-1 and, somewhere, the Badger family is sure that Terry is pumping his fist and smiling. Not only was Terry recognized on one of baseball's biggest fields, his Cardinals' field, but he is still helping others, even after his death.

"We want to remind people that they are never alone," Weber said. "We thank the family for sharing Terry's story in hopes of saving lives."

The MLB recently partnered with Crisis Text Line to increase mental health awareness and access to support. Fans can text MLB to 741741 for free, 24/7, confidential support, from a volunteer crisis counselor.

Visit cardinals.com/mentalhealthawareness for local support services and ways to support the Badger family.

Follow IndyStar sports reporter Dana Benbow on Twitter: @DanaBenbow. Reach her via email: dbenbow@indystar.com.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Before suicide at 13, his dream was to play for St. Louis Cardinals