Nolan Lamere on Cosmic Baseball, Cosmic Hockey and 10 Pro Teams

Nolan Lamere told Clean Contact that joining Cosmic Baseball meant learning to put on a show rather than focusing only on getting hitters out. The pitcher also discussed his plans to work with Cosmic Hockey, the brands he hopes to bring onto the mound and a playing career that took him through 10 professional teams in three years.

How did Nolan Lamere adjust to pitching for Cosmic Baseball?

Nolan Lamere said the biggest adjustment at Cosmic Baseball was treating entertainment as part of his job. After three years in independent professional baseball, he arrived focused on pitching as well as he could. He soon learned that striking hitters out was not necessarily what the show needed from him.

From strikeouts to a quicker show

Lamere, who was named after Nolan Ryan, said baseball had been part of his life from the beginning. He played in the American Association, Frontier League and Atlantic League before a call about Cosmic Baseball gave him a different kind of opportunity.

Early on, he struck out three hitters in a row. The response, he recalled, was that it was not entertaining. He now sees his role as keeping a quick pace and giving hitters room to put on the show fans came to see. That could also mean doing something funny or something a fan has never seen on a baseball field.

Pitching under blacklights

The lighting required its own adjustment. Lamere said the ball is highly reflective under blacklights, but at first he struggled to see the plate. Pitching in that setting felt strange both mentally and physically. He said the chance to work in that environment every weekend made the adjustment worthwhile.

How has Nolan Lamere changed his social media and offseason routine?

Nolan Lamere said Cosmic Baseball pushed him to build a personal social media presence, rather than rely on the baseball-gear page he had run while playing in the minors. This offseason will also look different: he is back in Michigan instead of returning to Scottsdale for the training-and-work routine he followed in recent years.

Building a page about himself

Lamere estimated that his personal account had about 2,000 followers when he joined Cosmic Baseball. His gear-selling page, where he posted bats and gloves, had grown to around 6,000. The new question was what he could post when the subject was himself. One video in a recurring series drew almost 2 million views overnight, and he wants to try more trends and make content beyond baseball.

Training in Scottsdale and returning to Michigan

For the previous two or three offseasons, Lamere went to Scottsdale to train alongside other pitchers, including players from different levels of the minors and established stars. He described training from about 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., then working nights at a wine bar. Money was part of that schedule: he said minor league baseball paid poorly.

After roughly eight and a half months of traveling on weekends, he planned to take a week before resuming training at a facility in Detroit. It is his first extended time home in Michigan since junior college, which he placed in 2018. He still expects to train regularly to prepare for another long season.

What did Nolan Lamere say about working with Cosmic Hockey?

Nolan Lamere said he had been offered offseason work with Cosmic Hockey and planned to go to its training camp in Lake Placid. He expects to keep training for baseball while working hockey events. Having grown up attending Detroit Red Wings games, he is particularly interested in how the new project will involve fans.

Lake Placid and the planned hockey show

Lamere said he had attended meetings with the Cosmic Hockey staff and its general manager. He praised owner Chris Martin as a person and businessman, while making clear that he was eager to see how the project developed. He described plans for unusual rules and fan participation, but did not spell out the rules.

For Lamere, the appeal is adding entertainment to a sport he already enjoys watching. He was also looking forward to the celebrations. His intended offseason schedule was to train in the mornings and, if the work came together as planned, work hockey at night.

Which brands does Nolan Lamere work with, and which one does he want most?

Nolan Lamere said he works with Baseballism and has received products from a protein bar company and Kickstand. His most-wanted brand connection, though, is Little Caesars. As a Detroit native, he wants to carry a pizza onto the mound and make it part of a Cosmic Baseball moment.

Products that can enter the game

Lamere described a teammate bringing him a protein bar while he was pitching; he ate it during the game. He said that kind of interruption would not have been possible in a conventional professional game. Baseballism is another meaningful connection because he wore its clothing growing up and now makes videos for the company. He also said Kickstand had sent him cocktails, shirts and other products.

Why Little Caesars is his target

Lamere said he wants food brands to fit his on-field persona and keeps commenting on Little Caesars posts. The account responds, he said, but he did not say he has a deal with the company. His idea is straightforward: bring one of its pizzas onto the field. For now, it remains a brand he hopes to work with.

How does Nolan Lamere compare Cosmic Baseball with Banana Ball?

Nolan Lamere said Cosmic Baseball and Banana Ball both use baseball to entertain, but he sees a clear difference in how they run games. In his view, Banana Ball puts more emphasis on rehearsed dancing and trick plays. Cosmic Baseball adds bits and unusual rules while generally keeping play moving.

Dancing, rules and uninterrupted play

Lamere has friends in Banana Ball and respects what it has built over a longer period. He described its presentation as more like a Broadway musical, with planned dances that can stop the game. Cosmic Baseball players dance and entertain fans too, he said, but dancing is generally on the sideline or happens without stopping play. He cited the “three things of chaos” among its unusual rules.

A Reno bit and sold-out crowds

As an example of a planned bit, Lamere recalled a Reno appearance featuring a costumed cop and a “Reno 5-0” segment between innings. He said Cosmic Baseball sold out its tour, totaling 750,000 tickets. The sight of a sold-out crowd at the first game in Jacksonville stayed with him; in his minor league experience, crowds like that might appear only a few times a year.

How did Nolan Lamere reach Cosmic Baseball after being cut from college and pro teams?

Nolan Lamere said his route to Cosmic Baseball depended on repeatedly finding another place to play. He was cut as a college freshman, contacted hundreds of schools and later moved through 10 professional teams in three years. He presents persistence, rather than early success, as the central lesson of his career.

College cuts and hundreds of emails

Growing up in Michigan, Lamere said he weighed close to 300 pounds in high school and was never the best player on his team. After a junior college cut, he took a spring semester away from baseball, lost 70 pounds and pursued another chance. He emailed about 300 schools and drove 36 hours to California for summer ball because it was the offer he had.

Lamere later played at Clarke University in Dubuque, Iowa. After contacting what he estimated were 313 Division I schools, he chose George Mason and called that year the best of his life. He had considered becoming a Division I head coach and was offered an assistant role, but decided he wanted to keep playing. He emailed professional teams and signed with the Chicago Dogs.

Ten teams in three years

Lamere summed up what happened next in one line:

I ended up playing for 10 pro teams in three years because I kept getting cut

After the Dogs, his stops included Winnipeg, Montana, Colorado and New York. He said a promotion then took him to Charleston, West Virginia, in the Atlantic League; he confirmed he played for the Dirty Birds. When Cosmic Baseball called, he felt it was where he needed to be. His advice to aspiring players comes from that path: he kept looking for a way to play because he loved arriving at the field and practicing, even when a team had told him no.