Posted: 6/7/2009 4:49:32 AM EDT
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So we were at the boy's 2nd grade baseball game the other day and throughout most of the game, two moms were sitting to my right on the bleachers. It was a fairly well-matched game with lots of scores and outs by both teams, and so they were very vocal. My kid's third base coach was aggressive having our kids run into home whenever it was legal. One of the mom's comments was,"They shouldn't do that; it won't be legal next year and they're teaching them wrong." (Well, apparently it's perfectly legal at this stage because none of the coaches had a problem with it.)
Later, their third baseman tried to tag out one of our kids. According to the third base coach, he did not tag the runner with the ball, but with his gloved hand while the ball was in his other hand, as if the magic transfers down the arm. I didn't see it, but he is a pretty easygoing guy and I wouldn't expect him to make stuff up. Besides, he was standing right there and we were seated about twenty yards away. This was a declaration of war to the two harpies I was seated next to, and they loudly protested. "Oh come on," they cried,"Take off your sunglasses and open your eyes, he was out, blah blah blah." The coaches reached an agreement that the runner was safe, but the two moms knew better. Our team lost by one run, by the way, but those two were still kvetching about it all the way out of the park. I've read about parents getting into it with game officials and other parents, and always just figured both parties were stupid. Now I realize the fights I read about were probably not over the game after all; They were to get the annoying parents to just STFU. 
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OK. Let me tell you about little league baseball as I am very involved in my sons little league.
I am a manger of the team, I umpire many games and I am on the board. My son and I spend many nights at the field watching other games as we both enjoy it. We have a 20 game regular season that is very enjoyable. It has its minor arguments but what youth sport doesnt. After the regular season we have an 8 team single elimination tournament, and let me tell you all HELL breaks loose. The arguing and fighting starts and we even had 2 coaches ejected from the Minor A games. Minor A is 8-11 year olds that are one step from the majors. We went 15-4-1 in the regular season to earn first place but Little league does not want records kept in the minors as it is a "Teaching" division, and I whole heartedly agree. I was ok with this and was eliminated in the semi finals of the tournament. We were the best team out there this year, but just went flat in the playoffs. Kind of like the Cleveland Cavs who had the best record and lost in the semis. Sorry got a little off track here but when those 6 inch trophies are on the line, watch out. It is sad when the coaches teach their kids how to be rude, respectless and argue with the umps. When the 2 coaches were ejected I had to run their team in the championship as a board member. We won, or I should say the kids won, and at the trophy ceremony one of the kids ran by me flaunting his trophy in my face saying "We got first place and you didnt"...We beat that team everytime, and I Coached his little ass, but his coaches taught him that way.. Sorry for my Little league history, Natron |
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Quoted:
...he did not tag the runner with the ball, but with his gloved hand while the ball was in his other hand, as if the magic transfers down the arm. I must be watching too much cricket over here, and my baseball-fu is getting weak...but isn't that still an out? |
| What I've learned so far, at least with my son's league, is this: if the runner is forced to run because there's another runner coming up behind him, then you can just touch the base and he's out. If the runner didn't HAVE to run but chose to, you have to physically tag the runner. I didn't know this before. As for tagging the runner I think you do have to touch the runner with the ball. |
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My son is 9 and has been playing for 4 years now. He loves baseball. He plays regular season ball and has also been fortunate enough to play on the traveling allstar team every year since he has been eligable. The league play is pretty laid back but the allstar games get very intense with the parents and some of the coaches. I played sports all through highschool and I am aware of how important winning is to everyone. What I find hard to believe though is the parents. These kids are only 9 and 10 years old get off there ass and teach them the game and fundementals. I am starting to see kids that have great potential losing interest because of the pressure and commitment put on them at such a young age. I was talking to a couple of other parents and there not sure that there kids will play next year because of all the time involved. We start in January with indoor practice every week and start playing games in march or april and play all the way through to the begining of football. They play an average of 4 games a week compiled usually in 2 or 3 days. They are only young once let them enjoy what they are doing because none of it will matter in 20 years.
Just my .02 |
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I was a Little League umpire for a short time.
My most controversial call? Runner slides into 2nd Base. 2nd baseman (with ball in glove) swings his arm down, misses the runners feet and lower legs, hits him around the waist. By that time however, the runner's feet had hit the bag. Safe. Well, the 2nd baseman's coach went absolutely berserk. Screaming, yelling, jumping up and down (I'm not making this up) and throwing things. I'm patiently, calmly trying to explain what happened... and why I made the call I did. After conferring with the other umpires, and explaining what I obviously saw from 4 feet away... the call stood. The 2nd baseman's coach then went apeshit, and let loose a string of profanities at me that would make a sailor blush. Now... keep in mind... the 2nd baseman's coach was in his 40's... and I was 14. It was fucking surreal. (And quite funny, I thought.) One week later, I watched the same crazy coach get into a fistfight with another crazy coach... and these two grown men beat the snot out of each other... while their terrified little boys stood there watching and crying. And that was when I quit. To this day... I have no interest in sports, whatsoever. It just brings out the stupid in people. |
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Quoted:
I was a Little League umpire for a short time. My most controversial call? Runner slides into 2nd Base. 2nd baseman (with ball in glove) swings his arm down, misses the runners feet and lower legs, hits him around the waist. By that time however, the runner's feet had hit the bag. Safe. Well, the 2nd baseman's coach went absolutely berserk. Screaming, yelling, jumping up and down (I'm not making this up) and throwing things. I'm patiently, calmly trying to explain what happened... and why I made the call I did. After conferring with the other umpires, and explaining what I obviously saw from 4 feet away... the call stood. The 2nd baseman's coach then went apeshit, and let loose a string of profanities at me that would make a sailor blush. Now... keep in mind... the 2nd baseman's coach was in his 40's... and I was 14. It was fucking surreal. (And quite funny, I thought.) One week later, I watched the same crazy coach get into a fistfight with another crazy coach... and these two grown men beat the snot out of each other... while their terrified little boys stood there watching and crying. And that was when I quit. To this day... I have no interest in sports, whatsoever. It just brings out the stupid in people. Good Lord. No wonder you quit. I honestly have no idea how these people manage to suck the fun out of it, but they do. |
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Quoted:
I was a Little League umpire for a short time. My most controversial call? Runner slides into 2nd Base. 2nd baseman (with ball in glove) swings his arm down, misses the runners feet and lower legs, hits him around the waist. By that time however, the runner's feet had hit the bag. Safe. Well, the 2nd baseman's coach went absolutely berserk. Screaming, yelling, jumping up and down (I'm not making this up) and throwing things. I'm patiently, calmly trying to explain what happened... and why I made the call I did. After conferring with the other umpires, and explaining what I obviously saw from 4 feet away... the call stood. The 2nd baseman's coach then went apeshit, and let loose a string of profanities at me that would make a sailor blush. Now... keep in mind... the 2nd baseman's coach was in his 40's... and I was 14. It was fucking surreal. (And quite funny, I thought.) He didn't happen to attack a Gatorade machine with a bat, did he? |
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<runcible's crazy Little League stories> Good Lord. No wonder you quit. I honestly have no idea how these people manage to suck the fun out of it, but they do. Hand to God, everything I wrote was true. After the fight, one of the coaches had to go to the hospital with a fucking concussion. A friend of mine was umpiring that game with me... and we thought it was the funniest thing we'd ever seen... two "grown ups" beating each other up over nonsense. However, for their kids, it was anything but funny. They were both scared to death, crying, and screaming, "Daddy, stop!" And, that was 25 years or so ago. From what I hear, parents today are even worse. And, as another poster said, all the poor kids want to do is play. |
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I'd rather watch a Pony League game than the pros because the kids are playing the game out of love as opposed to money.
Reason I don't watch more than 1-2 games/ year is because of the parents. It gets old fast watching the kids try and play without parental interference. Come to think of it, I've missed the past couple of seasons. |
This garbage starts early on too. I was watching a T-ball game a year or so ago. Get a big kick out of the little people playing their hearts out. Anyway a little guy comes up to bat. Obviously drunken dad in the stands starts yelling at the kid. Kid swings,misses. Dad raises the volume and length of his diatribe. Again the kid swings and misses. Dad is getting red fom yelling and the other parents are looking embarrased sitting next to him. The little guy is almost crying now and the coach coaxes him to give it another try. Again he misses and tosses the bat and starts walking away from home plate. Dad has gone beserk now and is heaping abuse that would have made a Marine D.I. blush on this kid. Then the funniest thing I've ever seen happened. The little kid stopped and looked up at dad and yelled" Shut up Dad!" I thought everyone in the stands was gonna choke as we busted out in laughter. Drunken dad starts down from the bleachers after the kid and a couple of other dads intercepted him and told him in no uncertain terms he was not to lay a hand on the boy. The parents are far more entertaining than the games anymore. Sad but true.
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Quoted:
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...he did not tag the runner with the ball, but with his gloved hand while the ball was in his other hand, as if the magic transfers down the arm. I must be watching too much cricket over here, and my baseball-fu is getting weak...but isn't that still an out? No, the runner must be tagged with the ball or the glove containing the ball to be out when it is not a force out. |