taterhill Posted June 28, 2005 Share Posted June 28, 2005 I am suprised they still give kids grades in school Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pkwwjd Posted June 28, 2005 Share Posted June 28, 2005 In our area (NW PA), the teams are assembled somewhat randomly, but they stay together as much as they can through the different levels. I watched one game this year (9-12 year olds) and the final score was something like 23-1. I asked about this because the winning team had a lot of big kids and the losing team had mostly 9 year olds. I was told this was done intentionally -- that in two years, the team that lost 23-1 would probably win the championship after staying together and growing together. Essentially, every kid starts off on a young team that is prone to lose, but ends up on a team that has a very good chance of winning -- if they don't quit. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CBusBillsFan Posted June 28, 2005 Share Posted June 28, 2005 In Dublin, a subarb of Columbus where I live, the rec league has a draft every year where coaches select players based on the rating they were given by their coach the year before. Of course there are teams that suck and ones that are good, but it all works out. I also umpire baseball and referee basketball and parents these days are CRAZY!!!! I've been told not to walk a kid becuase the pitcher would get "really stressed and hurt." Also, that I "should be nicer when I call strike three, some kids don't like it when umpires call strike three." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alaska Darin Posted June 28, 2005 Share Posted June 28, 2005 One of my favorite personal sports memories happened when I was really young. I was playing in a coach pitch co-ed league (very small town). The rules were pretty simple: 3 innings, every player batted every inning, and the last batter on the team had to hit a homerun or he was out. 10 players per side. I remember lamenting on the way to the game about our chances and my mom getting on me about not being a leader and being beaten before ever taking the field. Our team wasn't very good and I don't think we had won a game yet (forgive me, it was like 28-30 years ago). We were playing the Fire Department team, who was easily the league's best. Going into our last at bat, we were down by 9 runs. That meant every player on the team had to get on base and score, or we'd lose yet again. The fact that we were even this close was a miracle. We had girls on our team who'd never even made contact, so the likelihood of that wasn't very good. To make a long story short, we did it. The 2 girls who hadn't ever made contact in a game got on base, one with a swinging bunt and the other on an error by the shortstop. Our last batter, first baseman Gary Brown, hit a monsterous shot. It wasn't quite the equivalent of the 1980 Olympic hockey team, but I remember the feeling I had to this day when Gary crossed homeplate with the winning run, and the absolutely shocked feeling on the face of the coach and parents of the other team. I don't remember if we won another game that season (I don't think we did). For those of you wondering, I led off the inning with a double to the opposite field. Screw all you hippie idiots who want to completely insulate your offspring from the rigors of the real world. You ain't doing them any favors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CarolinaBill99 Posted June 28, 2005 Share Posted June 28, 2005 The Rec league in our town has a draft too which helps to even things out. I felt that they should have let the team finish the year in the league and if the team was intact next year, move them up to a travel league. Those kids will be better players if they compee in better games. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ramius Posted June 28, 2005 Share Posted June 28, 2005 In Dublin, a subarb of Columbus where I live, the rec league has a draft every year where coaches select players based on the rating they were given by their coach the year before. Of course there are teams that suck and ones that are good, but it all works out. I also umpire baseball and referee basketball and parents these days are CRAZY!!!! I've been told not to walk a kid becuase the pitcher would get "really stressed and hurt." Also, that I "should be nicer when I call strike three, some kids don't like it when umpires call strike three." 369856[/snapback] our town league was the same way, teams were usually drafted with an attempt to have an equal number of good/bad players on each team, but they tried to keep teams together as much as possible... and when i used to ump little league, i wouldnt be afraid to punch them out on strike 3...if you cant handle a tough 3rd strike call, learn to hit the ball... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nick in* england Posted June 28, 2005 Share Posted June 28, 2005 It's slightly different, but my football team played a team on Saturday that could only field 14 players. We whipped them 41-0, but their players stuck at it, going both ways and fighting through injuries (i don't feel bad about that cut block at all) to keep playing the game, despite clearly being the underdogs before they even turned up with such few numbers. And their Coach STILL believe they can make the playoffs. It's ridiculous to penalise kids for being too good. The crappy kids should face up to the fact that they suck and the defeat will teach them that they have to work hard to improve. Asking the good team to quit just makes them think it a typically American way that if they can't win, they either won't play at all, or they will destroy their opponent by other means. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BRH Posted June 28, 2005 Share Posted June 28, 2005 I grew up in Penfield and when I was 10 years old, not being good enough to make Majors in Little League, I was playing in what was called the "International League." In this league there was less emphasis on winning (although we took it seriously) and more emphasis on everybody getting to play, and to play various positions as well. I got a chance to pitch in one game and there's only one at-bat I remember. The other team had this 12-year-old who had no business being in our league. I can't remember why the hell he was in our league other than that maybe he missed tryouts or something. He was basically the Kelly Leak of our league, and had already broken two windshields that summer with long home runs into the Town Hall parking lot. I remember when he came up against me, our leftfielder basically went to the fence and stood there. First pitch, he swung from his heels and missed. Strike one. Second pitch, another big swing. Fouled back over the backstop. Strike two. Third pitch, same thing. Whoosh. Strike three. I have no idea what happened. The kid probably hit .800 that summer and I'm not sure anyone struck him out, let alone on three pitches. I got mobbed at the mound. Point of the story, besides to brag is that in today's world I'd never have gotten the chance to face him. Parents probably would have bitched loud and long about how he didn't belong in the league, threatened to sue, etc. etc., and gotten him moved up or out, thereby denying me a moment that has stayed with me for 26 years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghost of BiB Posted June 28, 2005 Share Posted June 28, 2005 For those of you wondering, I led off the inning with a double to the opposite field Your just so dreamy, Darin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alaska Darin Posted June 28, 2005 Share Posted June 28, 2005 Your just so dreamy, Darin. 370172[/snapback] Of this, there is little doubt. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KD in CA Posted June 28, 2005 Share Posted June 28, 2005 Your just so dreamy, Darin. 370172[/snapback] Bah! He just couldn't pull the ball. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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