Royal(s) weddings: Three Kansas City players are getting married after the postseason
Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue?
For three MLB brides, the “something blue” is Kansas City Royals blue.
Royals teammates Michael Massey, Alec Marsh and Bobby Witt Jr. are all getting married at the end of the year. Now, their wedding days will follow an unexpectedly exciting postseason.
Wouldn’t a World Series championship make a great “something new”?
Their fiances — Jane DeJarld, Maggie Black and Makenna Harper — were honored at a joint bridal shower at Kauffman Stadium in August. Black, who is engaged to shortstop Witt, posted photos of the party on her Instagram.
The color scheme, of course, was blue and white. The honorees wore bridal white. Other Royals girlfriends and wives wore blue.
Cookies were iced with their first-name initials.
And the welcome sign read: “Something blue before ‘I do.’”
“These ladies made us brides feel SO incredibly special as we celebrated our bridal shower at the K!! Thank you to everyone who played a part in making this the most beautiful night!” Black wrote.
Here are the nuptials details.
Michael Massey and Jane DeJarld
Second baseman Massey, who grew up in Chicago, hit a home run while the Royals were playing the White Sox the day after he proposed to DeJarld on May 20, 2023.
Their big moment was sort of spur-of-the-moment.
“We’ve been dating since high school,” Massey told The Star shortly after he proposed. “I had a couple of different options. It was kind of weighing this one, weighing a couple after the season.”
But a couple of weeks after he bought the ring, “it just felt right,” he said. “It was cool to do it with family.”
DeJarld works in marketing in the Chicago area, according to her LinkedIn profile.
She played volleyball for the team her mom coached at Mother McAuley, a girls high school, and Massey played baseball at Brother Rice, an all-boys school, both in Chicago.
DeJarld later played volleyball for Boston College, where she graduated in 2020. Her father, John DeJarld, played baseball at the University of Iowa.
The couple still support Mother McAuley, known as the “Mighty Macs.” At a game In August, Massey used a bat with the initials “MM” as a tribute to the school.
Massey told The Star they purposefully chose a wedding date that wouldn’t interfere with the World Series, just in case.
According to their wedding website, they’re planning a destination wedding Nov. 23 in San José del Cabo, Mexico.
Bobby Witt Jr. and Maggie Black
When Witt proposed to personal trainer Black last December, the team congratulated them on social media with a photo of the shortstop down on one knee in front of a Christmas tree, offering his shocked girlfriend a ring box.
More than 15,000 fans “liked” the Instagram post, including Tavia Hunt, wife of Chiefs CEO and co-owner Clark Hunt.
Witt, the best hitter in the American League this season, and Black are one of the most high-profile Royals couples, not surprising for the player who signed a monumental contract extension in February, 11 years guaranteed at $288.7 million.
Black is active on Instagram, where she shares photos of the couple — check out the ones from their high school days — with her 7,200 followers.
They are also high school sweethearts who began dating at Colleyville Heritage High School in Texas. She played softball, as did all three of Witt’s older sisters.
Black went on to play third base and shortstop for the Lady Demons of Northwestern State University of Louisiana, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in health and exercise science.
Royals fans are accustomed to seeing the two together at The K, doing work in the community or on red carpets.
Witt credited her with helping him choose the green suit he wore for the All-Star Game red carpet in July. “Going with a little bit of green, helped (by) my fiancée and a stylist, so yeah, feeling good,” he said.
They are getting married Dec. 14 in Dallas, according to their wedding registry.
Alec Marsh and Makenna Harper
Pitcher Marsh also got down on one knee, last November at Wrigley Mansion in Phoenix, to propose to Harper who hails from Stevenson Ranch, California.
And we can just imagine his pitch: Let’s stack the wedding party with MLB players.
Harper attended Arizona State University where she played outfield on the Sun Devils softball team. Her biography on the team’s website said she planned to pursue a career in pharmaceutical sales.
“My junior year I spent my summer working at Stryker Orthopaedics as a sales intern,” she writes on her LinkedIn. “From there I got offered a full time position in the company. After I graduated I started my role with Stryker.
“Unfortunately, my time got cut short due to lifestyle changes. I am open and excited about finding remote positions within HR, recruiting, marketing, sales, and advertising.”
(And by “lifestyle changes,” does she mean she got engaged to a major league pitcher?)
They are getting married Dec. 7 in a black-tie affair at Monserate Winery in Fallbrook, California, according to their wedding website.
All of Marsh’s six groomsmen have played baseball at some level. Four are current MLB players, including Spencer Torkelson (Detroit Tigers first baseman), Anthony Veneziano (Miami Marlins pitcher, former Royal), Griffin Jax (Minnesota Twins pitcher) and fellow Royals pitcher Jonathan Bowlan.
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