Clearwater Threshers Bat Dog Layla Retrieves Last Bat in Sweetest Goodbye Video

Bat dogs are one of life's simplest pleasures - and no, it's not a literal bat dog hybrid. On the contrary; a bat dog is a pup who gets to live their dream, retrieving the baseball bats of players everywhere. Everyone, sports-fan or not, can get behind a bat dog!

On Saturday, July 20th, Philadelphia Phillies' minor league affiliate, the Clearwater Threshers announced that their sweet bat dog was retiring after 6 years. To announce it, of course, they let her have the sweetest final retrieval:

ESPN is so sweet for highlighting Layla's retirement for everyone to see. After six years retrieving bats, she definitely deserves the biggest goodbye!

Related: Greensboro Baseball Team's 'Bat Dog' Gets a Pep Talk During the Game and It's Too Cute

Bat dogs are nothing new, though it's surprising how many people have no idea they even exist. Not every team has one! The premise is simple: a baseball team "hires" a dog to retrieve the bats when players throw them after they hit the ball. Typically, these are either Labradors or Golden Retrievers ; a bat dog should be an easily trainable dog that is bred to retrieve and will actually let go. Some dogs would turn bat-retrieving into tug of war in seconds!

Layla has been at this bat dog thing for 6 years, but it was time for her to step down; she's 13 now, and for a Labrador Retriever, that's really old. It's time for her to enjoy her golden years in peace!

How Common Are Bat Dogs in Baseball?

For as adorable as bat dogs are, it's not something a lot of people know about. It's not something that a lot of teams have adopted; as of last year, the AKC had highlighted just eight bat dogs , though that's not the complete list. It seems like most bat dogs can be found in the minor leagues, which is where Layla was. She was the bat dog for the Clearwater Threshers, which is a minor league affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies.

There's no particular reason why more teams don't have bat dogs; it's just how it is. It could be because major league games typically draw bigger crowds, which is louder and more overstimulating for dogs. However, baseball has always proven to be a pretty dog-friendly sport, so more bat dogs may be on the horizon!

The Threshers have not yet announced if anyone will be taking Layla's place as their bat dog yet, and unfortunately, there is no place in the Hall of Fame for bat dogs. Maybe now that they have Layla, they'll change that - she definitely deserves it!