As a baseball mom myself, I know the sidelines can bring out a different version of us. We become unofficial coaches, amateur umpires, and postgame analysts. Admit it... at one time or another, we are all guilty of sideline parenting and replaying every pitch.
The difference? Most of us do it without cameras rolling.
For the moms of Paramount+’s Team Moms: Baseball, their parenting decisions, friendships, frustrations and most vulnerable moments were captured, edited and streamed for the world to judge.
The series follows families whose sons train at Scottsdale’s Legendary Prep Academy, better known as LPA. But when I sat down with cast members Rylee Baldree and Melanie Dunmar, they told me the project they originally agreed to looked very different from the show viewers ultimately saw.
We talked about what was real, what was orchestrated, what editing left out and whether they would ever do it again.
This interview has been edited for length. Their wording has not been changed.
Nadine: Neither of you watched much reality television before starring in a reality show. Why did you say yes?
Rylee: When we were originally approached, it was supposed to be a docu-series about young kids playing baseball at a higher level. My son was all about it. What kid would not want to be filmed playing his favorite sport?
The entire time, we thought it was a docu-series. We were approached in October and started filming in March. About three months before filming began, they told us it was going to be a reality series.
I mainly did it for my family because Salvatore really wanted to do it. Even after it changed, I did not sign my contract until the day before the camera crew was supposed to arrive at my house. I was worried about how it could make Salvatore look because they examine the entire family, where you come from and your background. I was concerned.
Mel: It was the same for our family. We were told it would be more of a docu-series about what parents will do to give their children an opportunity and support them in their sport.
We are two parents working full time, starting a business on the side and shuttling our children around. We thought that would be interesting to highlight because people could relate to it. I kept thinking, “Docu-series, docu-series.” I thought it would be an interesting look into the lives of families connected by boys who all played baseball at the same academy.
Nadine: Were you ever told the show would be called Team Moms?
Rylee: No. Production told us they did not have a title and would see where filming went before deciding.
Mel: I had an idea because someone accidentally put Team Moms in my cast member contract. I asked why it said that because the project we had been presented was not supposed to be only about the moms. They backpedaled and said it was an “Untitled Baseball Project.”
The entire time, I thought it might ultimately be called Team Moms. Later, they announced the title to all of us as part of the marketing strategy. It worked and drew people in, but the moms became the focal point, especially on the poster. The dads and children were there throughout filming. The children were even filmed at school without us present.
Nadine: When did you learn Kim Kardashian was involved?
Rylee: Not at first. They said there would be a celebrity executive producer, but they would not tell us who. Kim works very privately, so she was not going to announce it. They finally told us when filming was about to begin.
I was excited. She is an icon, especially in reality television. Anything stamped with her name is going to get attention. We researched everyone involved because we wanted to know who we were working with. We looked up Jeremiah Smith and knew he understood reality television, but that did not mean I understood what I was getting myself into.
Mel: Production also kept its team private. We learned who the producers were about a week before they came to Arizona. They landed at the airport, drove to our homes and introduced themselves.
One of the biggest names was Jeremiah Smith, who has produced shows including Vanderpump Rules, The Valley and several of the Real Housewives franchises. Friends later asked, “Didn’t you look him up? Didn’t you know he was a big deal?” I had no idea because I did not watch reality television.
Nadine: How do you feel your sons were portrayed?
Rylee: I think editing did a good job of not making the children look bad. Did they focus too much on Salvatore’s losses instead of his wins? Maybe. He had some great plays, swings and hits that I wish had been included.
He was a little upset that they highlighted his strikeout, but they also showed him coming in to close the game, which was a big moment. Striking out is part of baseball. It is a mental game.
These boys were brave to wear microphones, play in front of cameras and continue to show up. I told Salvatore, “There are other children you will inspire because they are going through the same thing. Keep being yourself.”
He is amazing and sometimes stronger than I am. He handles this better than I do. He tells me, “Mom, it is okay. We do not care what anybody says. We keep doing us.” He is very wise for his age.
Mel: Our story was different because KJ broke his wrist in an outfield collision with a teammate two weeks before filming began. He had surgery one week before filming and went through a sling, splint and cast. He was not cleared for physical therapy until halfway through production and was not cleared to play until the very end.
He did not have much opportunity to show what he could do, but he eventually came in to pitch and did a great job. It was such a satisfying moment and a sigh of relief for all of us.
Nadine: Rylee, one scene appeared to show your husband telling Salvatore to keep playing without telling the coach he was hurt. What happened?
Rylee: It was a misunderstanding created through editing. Salvatore was hit by a ball in his left shoulder. He was stretching it, and my husband told him, “Get in there and play the game. You are going to be okay.” Sometimes children have to tough something out. When they get hit by a pitch, we say, “Run and take your base.” It was his left shoulder, not his right throwing arm.
We thought the scene was funny when we watched it because we had forgotten about it. Then we realized people would criticize us for the way it sounded. We actually had video of him being hit that production requested, but it was not included.
Nadine: How much of what viewers saw was orchestrated?
Mel: There were very fun moments, but the cameras were there nearly constantly, from the time we woke up until about an hour before bed. We were mic’d the entire time.
Every Monday, we received a call sheet listing everything scheduled for that week. It might say we were filming Wednesday night, Thursday and Friday, followed by a tournament Saturday and Sunday. Every family had a staggered arrival time to be mic’d. There was a plan and a formula.
Production filmed an enormous amount of content, identified developments along the way and maneuvered them into curated storylines. If all seven women had been placed in one room and allowed to resolve everything at once, there would have been no reality show. That is not how it works.
I had my moment with my husband, Nina and AJ in Jerome because that was when it was scheduled. Rylee had her moment at the rodeo-themed birthday party. Everyone had a designated time to address an issue.
Rylee: There was a lot of scheduling. Production asked us to host the wine party at our home because our family has a wine label. I said no. I suggested a nearby venue that offers a wine-tasting experience, but they continued asking me to do it at home.
Viewers saw someone say, “I did not come here to do chores,” followed by footage of me telling people what to do. What they did not see was that the guests had first offered to help because they knew everyone had been at my home all day. Editing removed the offer and cut directly to my instructions.
Someone also suggested the guests felt trapped in one area. If viewers could see the camera crew behind us, they would understand. We were surrounded by 20 or 30 people at the counter, along with cameras and lights. Production had positioned us precisely where they wanted us.
Nadine: The show created a dramatic dynamic among the parents. Was it really that dramatic?
Rylee: It is now, but it was not before. The drama did not truly emerge until the show began airing. One reason I chose the school was that there was no drama. I also tended to separate myself from the group because I was there to focus on my child.
I liked the parents because we were all investing in our children and working toward the same goal. The show made me see some people differently. They were not my friends before, and they are not my friends now, so I am okay with that.
I never imagined it would become this intense because we all attend the same school and still have to see one another.
Mel: I think there is a formula for reality television, and I was naive to it. We all attended the same school and were like-minded, but we sat together for a few hours and then returned to the rest of our lives. We were not discussing our skeletons or deepest secrets. We were talking about baseball and our boys. The show went far beyond that.
Nadine: What was the most difficult part to watch?
Rylee: It hurt to watch the scenes with Trish. The entire time, I thought she was my friend, and then she began talking about me. That was painful.
I went back to square one and thought, “Trust no one.” People sometimes look at mothers and assume we do not have emotions or cannot be hurt. We reach this age, around 40, and people think we no longer care or that we become mean girls. But we still feel pain. We still cry.
I do feel somewhat alone among the mothers at the school now, but walking into LPA is not difficult. I say hello. Whether someone responds is up to them.
Mel: The hardest part was watching the finished show and trying to determine what was real, what felt staged and what may have been pushed by production. I only knew the scenes in which I participated. I did not know what happened during everyone else’s filming.
I developed trust issues with cast members and production. I often saw production whispering into cast members’ ears, and I have some of that on my own phone. They never whispered in my ear, so I wondered what they were saying and what direction they were giving other people.
Nadine: Mel, why did you appear less frequently than some of the other women?
Mel: My friends tell me it means I was the most normal and had the least drama. In fairness, I could not participate in much of the filming. I was a busy, full-time working mother launching Champagne House. I had spent roughly two decades in the corporate world, and much of the show was filmed during the day.
Production would curate scenes with three people meeting for lunch or coffee, and I was not always available. That limited my screen time.
I do not think viewers got to see who I really am. I am a full-time working executive, an entrepreneur, a hustler and a grinder. I work hard every day and am building a business.
The show portrayed me as chill and perhaps as the concerned parent. Entrepreneurs are not chill. There was not much character development for me.
My husband and I filmed a date night. That was cut. I cooked lunch for him in our kitchen. That was cut. Viewers did not see my relationship with my husband, how hard I work or the business I was building.
Nadine: Do you believe the series accurately represented Scottsdale’s baseball community?
Mel: I wish it had shown more baseball. Baseball is enormous in Arizona and especially in Scottsdale. My son played for the Scottsdale Dirtbags for years. At one point, our highly competitive team was ranked among the top five nationally, and we traveled all over.
Scottsdale absolutely is a major baseball community. The series simply did not show enough of that side.
Rylee: The transition from docu-series to reality television changed the focus. We originally thought the project would show the world what Arizona and the academy had to offer. We believed it would build the school and give it national recognition.
Nadine: Does it accurately represent Scottsdale baseball moms?
Rylee: In my life before the show, no. I did not have close enough relationships within baseball teams to become involved in drama.
At the same time, people probably relate to the dynamics because drama can become inevitable when people grow close. You do not truly know everyone. I believe the series revealed some people’s real intentions, even if editing sometimes made situations look worse. I know it did that to me.
Mel: I attended a work conference in Las Vegas, and a colleague told me he and his wife loved the show. Their son played baseball and is now receiving a Division I scholarship. They watched the series and said, “We have an Erin on our team. We have a Nina. We have a Rylee.”
That was the first time I realized people were relating to us as parents, mothers and families. Every team includes different mom personalities. If viewers recognize a Trina, Trish, Erin, Nina, Rylee or Melanie from their own team, maybe there is a little bit of us on every team.
Nadine: Do you read the social media comments?
Mel: I read all of them, but I do not respond, block anyone or engage. Sometimes I become curious, click on the profile of the person who wrote something, look a little further, laugh to myself and back out.
There are also many positive messages from women who love the show and reach out to support us.
Rylee: I initially went down a rabbit hole trying to determine who was saying what. I do not delete negative comments, but I struggled not to respond.
My older son finally told me, “Mom, you cannot respond to every single comment. Do you understand your position? People see you as someone they watched on television.” I still felt like myself and was not thinking about it that way.
I eventually realized that only about 1% of my followers were negative, so I think I am doing pretty well.
Nadine: After everything that happened, would you do it again?
Rylee: I have come this far, and I am not backing out now. The part of the show that calls me a “150 percenter” is true. If I am going to do something, I go big.
At this moment, I would continue, but every day is different. If they decide to make a second season, I will approach it when it happens. The decision would be based on how my children feel. Because the series features our whole family, we would have to discuss it as a family and everyone would need to be on board. Today it may be yes. Tomorrow it may be no.
I hope people take the time to know me instead of continuing to judge only what they saw. Reality television follows a pattern. There is always a bad guy and always drama, but there is a human being underneath every character.
Mel: I do not regret accepting the opportunity. I was excited, and we all gave a great deal of ourselves to the process.
My disappointment is that I gave so much time during a period when I could have been building my business. Everything happened at once. It was an extremely challenging time, and I experienced a lot of anxiety. Knowing how that felt, I would not choose to do it again.
Some cast members may have been excited every day to appear on camera and become reality stars. That was never my goal. I want to invest my energy in my business, family and friendships. Filming took time away from those things.
Nothing has been presented to us about another season. If you ask my husband, John is completely in. KJ is indifferent.
Nadine: What do you want viewers to understand after watching the series?
Mel: It is entertainment television. That is the purpose of reality television. If people connect with it, whether they love someone or dislike someone, the show moved them enough to engage.
We are real people with real lives, but not everything viewers see is real. There were genuine moments and real feelings, but much of it was curated to make the series entertaining.
Remember that before passing judgment or becoming a keyboard warrior. Take the time to know people.
Rylee: I agree. I hope viewers remember there is a real person and a real family behind every edited storyline.
Nadine: Where can people follow you?
Rylee: On Instagram, I am @thehdwife. Our family also has hdfamily.tv, and our wine is Collezione Davini.
Mel: I am @melaniedunmar on Instagram.
The complete season of Team Moms: Baseball is streaming on Paramount+.
There is much more to the story. Watch the complete episode of Now with Nadine to hear Rylee and Mel open up about the cast trip to Jerome, meeting Kim Kardashian, the husbands’ experience, the scenes viewers never saw and where the relationships stand now.
Now with Nadine streams everywhere, including Spotify.