Columns
Editor's Notes: The sweet side of Little League
By James Bennett
I jumped up on a soapbox last spring and complained about the prevalence of youth league baseball coaches who refuse to put players first.
My 10-year-old son was one of 13 kids who tried out for a 13-member all-star Little League team in June. The callous and out-of-touch coach should have kept all the boys on the roster to inspire and help them improve.
Instead, the coach cut my son and another little boy, blindly thinking the experience was about his genius, rules and whims. This guy never should have been coaching the team in the first place, but he was the decision maker, and his decision was final.
Shortly after I wrote “The sour side of Little League baseball,” my e-mail box filled with messages that ran the gamut. Most were supportive. Some were hostile.
I violated sports taboos by complaining about my own kid, one message read. I was blinded by my son’s lack of talent, a couple of others said. My whining hurt the league’s chances of getting bond money from Pima County in 2008 to improve its facilities, another coach wrote.
Fortunately, supporters understood my bottom line. Youth sports are about the kids. Not about winning. They're not about a Little League coach calling pitches from the dugout and teaching an 11-year-old boy how to throw a curve ball. Period.
Youth baseball leagues, by the way, should adopt a rule that prohibits kids from throwing off-speed pitches until they start to shave. I’ve seen too many fouled-up elbows because youth coaches want to win now and forget about the perilous strain curves have on young arms. But that’s another column for another day.
Youth sports league cannot be predicated on the pushiness of an adult board of directors. Boards need to change regularly, with refreshed mission statements, bylaws and ideas. Entrenched parents forget about less-talented kids and about having fun. They pursue personal agendas, including the use of public facilities to train their own kids at the expense of others. Their misguided attempts ultimately backfire.
As practice starts for another season, I am proud to report the league in my neighborhood has changed. The board has rededicated itself to the kids and their experience. I almost wish I had kept my son in the league. Instead, he transferred to one nearby so he could play with his best friend. I promised his best friend’s mother I would coach the team. She and her husband are sponsoring it.
My decision to coach led me Saturday to a coaching clinic sponsored by the Arizona Diamondbacks. After a three-hour session with Diamondbacks Director of Baseball Outreach & Development Jeff Rodin, I am convinced of one thing. The D-Backs’ most valuable commodity is not necessarily pitcher Brandon Webb, outfielder Eric Byrnes or Manager Bob Melvin. It might be Rodin, who conducts clinics and coaches across the state on playing baseball the right way.
I was critical two weeks ago about the D’Backs’ lack of emphasis on Southern Arizona in their marketing. I speculated the D-Backs would leave Tucson as its spring training home in the near future. With metro Phoenix’s population doubling since the team came into existence 11 years ago, the D-Backs no longer need the casual fan from Tucson to buy season tickets. From a business perspective, Tucson fans are gravy, not the main course.
I was wrong, however, to imply the D-Backs have deserted Southern Arizona in their outreach efforts. Rodin and his staff are invaluable and talented. To offer a free coaching clinic to Little League coaches from towns and neighborhoods across the region was helpful and insightful.
Rodin mentioned a spring camp at Mehl Park in Tucson on March 17 for $150. If had $150 bucks in my budget for baseball lessons, I would send my son over there in a heartbeat. If you have a son or grandson, or a daughter or granddaughter, who wants to learn baseball fundamentals, e-mail Rodin at jrodin@dbacks.com and find out about future training centers.
Rodin didn’t ask me to plug the camp. I am doing it because the clinics represent what’s right with baseball, including the ability to dream, grow and escape video games.
The D-Backs and Rodin have embraced playing baseball for fun at young ages. Their mission statement is brilliant — “to instill in our young people an enhanced self-image, increased skills, improved knowledge of the game and greater community pride.” I love that they shout it from the highest mountaintop, a platform much bigger than my tiny soapbox.
The team’s scouts could care less if a 12- or 14-year-old kid can throw a curve. They want kids to see baseball’s exhilarating, especially compared to soccer.
“If you accomplish one thing this season,” Rodin told us, “make sure every player on your roster signs up for baseball again next year.”
My little boy was unsure about baseball after the all-star coach cut him last spring. He thought about soccer or basketball. I am thrilled he stuck with baseball and proved he wasn’t going to be pushed away for the wrong reasons.
When I bring my team together for the first time this week, I am going to tell my players and their parents about my expectations. I promise their kids will have fun. They will learn to play every position. I will let every kid pitch. I will look for coachable moments and help them improve. I will not exclude anyone, even if it means winning a game.
Late last season, our team was in the league playoffs. A little boy on the team had not seen his father in three months. His father came to town and attended the game. The kid begged me to let him pitch. We were ahead 10-6 going into the last inning. I looked over at the little boy and saw how important pitching was to him.
“What are you doing, coach!?” one of the parents shouted at me as I replaced our starter with the little boy, who was an average pitcher placed in an extraordinary situation.
The little boy had trouble getting the ball over the plate. With the bases loaded, he threw a wild pitch. I was guessing we would lose. Instead, the little boy sprinted to the plate — just as we practiced — took the throw from the catcher and tagged out the runner from third for the final out.
I thought his teammates never would stop patting him on the back.
Those moments keep me interested in coaching. I like to think most of us do it for the kids. I am glad to see the D-Backs are on board.
I just wish some other hard-headed coaches out there would get the message.
Contact Editor James Bennett at jbennett@gvnews.com. Respond by e-mailing jbennett@gvnews.com. Comment online at www.gvnews.com.
My 10-year-old son was one of 13 kids who tried out for a 13-member all-star Little League team in June. The callous and out-of-touch coach should have kept all the boys on the roster to inspire and help them improve.
Instead, the coach cut my son and another little boy, blindly thinking the experience was about his genius, rules and whims. This guy never should have been coaching the team in the first place, but he was the decision maker, and his decision was final.
Shortly after I wrote “The sour side of Little League baseball,” my e-mail box filled with messages that ran the gamut. Most were supportive. Some were hostile.
I violated sports taboos by complaining about my own kid, one message read. I was blinded by my son’s lack of talent, a couple of others said. My whining hurt the league’s chances of getting bond money from Pima County in 2008 to improve its facilities, another coach wrote.
Fortunately, supporters understood my bottom line. Youth sports are about the kids. Not about winning. They're not about a Little League coach calling pitches from the dugout and teaching an 11-year-old boy how to throw a curve ball. Period.
Youth baseball leagues, by the way, should adopt a rule that prohibits kids from throwing off-speed pitches until they start to shave. I’ve seen too many fouled-up elbows because youth coaches want to win now and forget about the perilous strain curves have on young arms. But that’s another column for another day.
Youth sports league cannot be predicated on the pushiness of an adult board of directors. Boards need to change regularly, with refreshed mission statements, bylaws and ideas. Entrenched parents forget about less-talented kids and about having fun. They pursue personal agendas, including the use of public facilities to train their own kids at the expense of others. Their misguided attempts ultimately backfire.
As practice starts for another season, I am proud to report the league in my neighborhood has changed. The board has rededicated itself to the kids and their experience. I almost wish I had kept my son in the league. Instead, he transferred to one nearby so he could play with his best friend. I promised his best friend’s mother I would coach the team. She and her husband are sponsoring it.
My decision to coach led me Saturday to a coaching clinic sponsored by the Arizona Diamondbacks. After a three-hour session with Diamondbacks Director of Baseball Outreach & Development Jeff Rodin, I am convinced of one thing. The D-Backs’ most valuable commodity is not necessarily pitcher Brandon Webb, outfielder Eric Byrnes or Manager Bob Melvin. It might be Rodin, who conducts clinics and coaches across the state on playing baseball the right way.
I was critical two weeks ago about the D’Backs’ lack of emphasis on Southern Arizona in their marketing. I speculated the D-Backs would leave Tucson as its spring training home in the near future. With metro Phoenix’s population doubling since the team came into existence 11 years ago, the D-Backs no longer need the casual fan from Tucson to buy season tickets. From a business perspective, Tucson fans are gravy, not the main course.
I was wrong, however, to imply the D-Backs have deserted Southern Arizona in their outreach efforts. Rodin and his staff are invaluable and talented. To offer a free coaching clinic to Little League coaches from towns and neighborhoods across the region was helpful and insightful.
Rodin mentioned a spring camp at Mehl Park in Tucson on March 17 for $150. If had $150 bucks in my budget for baseball lessons, I would send my son over there in a heartbeat. If you have a son or grandson, or a daughter or granddaughter, who wants to learn baseball fundamentals, e-mail Rodin at jrodin@dbacks.com and find out about future training centers.
Rodin didn’t ask me to plug the camp. I am doing it because the clinics represent what’s right with baseball, including the ability to dream, grow and escape video games.
The D-Backs and Rodin have embraced playing baseball for fun at young ages. Their mission statement is brilliant — “to instill in our young people an enhanced self-image, increased skills, improved knowledge of the game and greater community pride.” I love that they shout it from the highest mountaintop, a platform much bigger than my tiny soapbox.
The team’s scouts could care less if a 12- or 14-year-old kid can throw a curve. They want kids to see baseball’s exhilarating, especially compared to soccer.
“If you accomplish one thing this season,” Rodin told us, “make sure every player on your roster signs up for baseball again next year.”
My little boy was unsure about baseball after the all-star coach cut him last spring. He thought about soccer or basketball. I am thrilled he stuck with baseball and proved he wasn’t going to be pushed away for the wrong reasons.
When I bring my team together for the first time this week, I am going to tell my players and their parents about my expectations. I promise their kids will have fun. They will learn to play every position. I will let every kid pitch. I will look for coachable moments and help them improve. I will not exclude anyone, even if it means winning a game.
Late last season, our team was in the league playoffs. A little boy on the team had not seen his father in three months. His father came to town and attended the game. The kid begged me to let him pitch. We were ahead 10-6 going into the last inning. I looked over at the little boy and saw how important pitching was to him.
“What are you doing, coach!?” one of the parents shouted at me as I replaced our starter with the little boy, who was an average pitcher placed in an extraordinary situation.
The little boy had trouble getting the ball over the plate. With the bases loaded, he threw a wild pitch. I was guessing we would lose. Instead, the little boy sprinted to the plate — just as we practiced — took the throw from the catcher and tagged out the runner from third for the final out.
I thought his teammates never would stop patting him on the back.
Those moments keep me interested in coaching. I like to think most of us do it for the kids. I am glad to see the D-Backs are on board.
I just wish some other hard-headed coaches out there would get the message.
Contact Editor James Bennett at jbennett@gvnews.com. Respond by e-mailing jbennett@gvnews.com. Comment online at www.gvnews.com.
Copyright © 2009 - Green Valley News and Sun