Texas Rangers star Jake Burger and his wife, Ashlyn Burger, recall every detail concerning the moment their lives modified perpetually.
Ashlyn was pregnant with the couple’s second child — they welcomed their first, son Brooks, in November 2022 — when early sex and genetic testing results for the unborn baby got here in an email on a Saturday morning.
“I remember it prefer it was yesterday,” Ashlyn exclusively told Us Weekly while promoting the couple’s inaugural Lucky Classic celebrity softball game. “I FaceTime’d Jake. I pressed the button and said, ‘Jake, we’re gonna have somewhat girl!’ After which I looked right underneath it and in an enormous, red box it said Trisomy 21, which is the clinical name for Down syndrome. 99 percent.”
Ashlyn continued, “I quickly Googled ‘Trisomy 21’ and the very first thing that pops up is Down syndrome. I used to be like, ‘Jake, we’re going to have somewhat girl and he or she’s going to have Down syndrome.’”
The baseball star was unfazed by the news, which led Ashlyn to ask, “Did you hear me appropriately?”
“He goes, ‘OK, and?’” Ashlyn remembered. “‘If that’s what God gave us, then we’re gonna love her and treat her the identical and he or she’s gonna be no different. That’s our daughter and he or she’s going to have Down syndrome. I used to be like, ‘OK, that’s it.’”
Jake and Ashlyn welcomed their daughter, Penelope, in October 2024, and it didn’t take long for Brooks to grow to be a protective older brother.
“He doesn’t like when someone he doesn’t know holds Penelope,” Jake told Us. “He’s really sweet together with her. He shares together with her, makes sure she’s okay. It’s been cool.”
Jake Burger, Ashlyn Burger, Brooks and Penelope Courtesy of the Burger family
While having a young child with Down syndrome presents its specific challenges — “It’s just more hospital visits,” Jake said — the toughest part for the couple to this point has been navigating relationships outside of the household.
“I feel a number of parents know that our child has Down syndrome they usually don’t really know the best way to approach us, or discuss it, or refer to us about it,” Jake explained. “I feel that’s probably the most important understanding.”
Ashlyn added that a preferred “stigma” is that having a baby with Down syndrome “is just not an excellent thing.”
“Adults with Down syndrome can survive their very own, they’ll get married,” Ashlyn continued. “They’re not living with you perpetually. People don’t really know the best way to converse about it or ask questions, because they think it’s a foul thing. When it’s not, it’s an exquisite thing. It’s something to be celebrated.”
Jake and Ashlyn will raise much more awareness for families navigating Down syndrome and other disabilities on the inaugural Lucky Classic celebrity softball game in Nashville next month.
The sport will feature appearances from a few of the biggest names in baseball — including Corey Seager, Brent Rooker, Bryan Reynolds and Jacob DeGrom — taking the sphere with music heavy hitters including Colbie Caillat, Tucker Wetmore, Jordan Davis and Russell Dickerson.
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“Jake got here up with the thought a 12 months ago,” Ashlyn said. “We were like, ‘We should always do a extremely cool event that’s different, and what higher strategy to do this than to really have a few of Major League Baseball’s best players play with the country guys that live down the road?’ We chatted with some players about it they usually were like, ‘I’ll fly home to be there.’”
Jake added, “I feel a number of guys who like country music and baseball wish they were country stars. And I feel a number of country stars wish they were athletes. So it’s an excellent crossover.”
All proceeds from the event will support the Burger Foundation’s mission to uplift families navigating Down syndrome and congenital heart defects through direct support, community events, and future retreat programming.
The Lucky Classic takes place on Sunday November 16, at First Horizon Park in Nashville. For tickets, click here.