Little League and Youth Baseball

[Skip]

Posting this here rather than history because I am more concerned with today ...

What do you think about the importance of baseball to today's kids? Is formal little league still strong? Is informal neighborhood baseball/stickball/wiffleball/... still strong? What things, if any, are stealing away from baseball for kids - is it weather? video games? other sports? lack of parental involvement? Are multiple working parents interfering with baseball moreso than other activities? With today's kids as an example, what will be the U.S. presence in the international game of baseball in 10/20/40 years?

I know these topics have been brushed by before, but in the context of kids specifically - what is the future of baseball in the U.S.

From where I sit, my oldest son loves baseball and soccer but is slowly turning toward baseball as his top choice. But ... I know many many more kids playing soccer than baseball in the spring/summer, and many more than that who simply hang around the house and pool and do nothing in organized sports.

[poorme]

Just to start off. I live in an urban environment. In the two years I've lived in my current house, I have never seen a kid with a baseball, glove, bat, wiffleball, or anything. Baseball is nonexistant in inner-city DC. Kids around here aren't rich, so I doubt they have all the latest video games, etc. Mostly they just hang around outside playing grab-***. There are no organized sports of any kind, as far as I can tell.

Baseball takes a lot of parental involvement. Moreso than soccer or basketball. You can't just give a 6 year old a glove and a hat and sign him up for little league. Baseball takes a lot of practice before you can even hope to play an organized game. Putting kids into a baseball game without having developed the necessary skills first is just going to embarass them. Why would little Johnny want any part of that? Parents today are too busy to be bothered with playing catch with their kids.

That's just for starters.

[Skip]

Originally posted by poorme
That's just for starters.

So ... keep going.

[SmedIndy]

Kids in my neighborhood play soccer, football, and basketball. They have a baseball league, but I don't see the 8-12 year olds that live around me playing it. Zionsville is a football town, and they start tackle in fourth grade, flag in second.

[Pilgrim]

Great question, Skip...incidentally, what server do you play on?

I've been a volunteer umpire for the past three years at Sunrise Little League in Woodland Hills, CA -- it's just two blocks from my house. Tomorrow, I will umpire the championship game and it will be my last there, as I am moving to Santa Barbara in a couple of weeks.

Sunrise, incidentally, is the league that produced Robin Yount once upon a time. Compared to some of the other leagues in District 40 (specifically Northridge, who won the LLWS a few years back), Sunrise is a small league -- just three fields, no softball, a tiny parking lot and a big dirt field for the rest of the cars. I have no children and my involvement was strictly as a volunteer.

My experience has been nothing short of wonderful. I know that some of the kids also play soccer or basketball, but Sunrise does run fall leagues from August-October and manage to field 4-6 teams in three divisions (they get 6-8 in five divisions, including T-Ball, during the regular season). The competition is always spirited, but quite good-natured. There are some parents who just seem like unpleasant people, but I have never seen a parent removed from the stands, nor have a I seen a coach tossed out of a game -- I've only had the occasion to warn one coach about criticizing a call I made a bit too loudly.

The kids are absolutely passionate about baseball. I credit this to the support they get at every level. Even though this is the San Fernando Valley and (for the moment) part of Los Angeles, even coaches at the upper levels seem to know who the kids are who are just getting into the minors or coach-pitch level. Sunrise has a very "small town" feel. One coach, who I don't believe has ever had children, just "retired" from coaching major teams at Sunrise after 23 years of volunteering.

Last year, I also umpired in the District 40 and Region 13 Tournament of Champions and All-Star Tournaments (the "All-Stars" eventually lead to the LLWS) at six or seven different fields all around the valley. Though the conditions of the fields may have varied, I saw the same enthusiasm, good sportsmanship and parental support that I have come to expect at Sunrise. All of these leagues are multi-cultural, most of them bi-lingual. Many leagues have girls playing at very high levels (one eight year old girl out here has, according to her father, struck out over 300 batters in less than 150 innings pitched -- I've seen her and she is about as phenomenal as a four-foot-girl could possibly be with a baseball in her hands).

I would say that the reason the kids are so into it is because the adults, in general, are into it and have a good perspective on what is important: fundamentals, teamwork and good sportsmanship. Baseball (I've never been much involved with other sports) teaches us these things, and I think they are things that children and young adults need to learn -- WANT to learn -- as they grow older. Clearly, there are other options for these kids, and maybe they get the same kind of enthusiasm and support in basketball and soccer -- with the quality of parents and coaching that wouldn't surprise me -- but, twenty years after I stopped playing the game, I can tell you that MY life has been greatly enriched by my involvement in Little League.

In a game the other day, a nearly six-foot monster hit two home runs, one a grand slam, to advance his team to the finals. The same game, on the same team, a tiny kid who is a great fielder but still intimidated at the bat, poked a hit worthy of Tony Gwynn through the "5 hole" to keep a two-out rally going and set up that slam-- his first hit of the year. There was a bigger cheer for that kid -- who probably is still grinning -- than for anything else in that game. And the coach (the father of the kid who hit the two home runs) gave him the game ball. It's not the first time I've seen something like that happen, and I hope it won't be the last.

[Skip]

Originally posted by Pilgrim
In a game the other day, a nearly six-foot monster hit two home runs, one a grand slam, to advance his team to the finals. The same game, on the same team, a tiny kid who is a great fielder but still intimidated at the bat, poked a hit worthy of Tony Gwynn through the "5 hole" to keep a two-out rally going and set up that slam-- his first hit of the year. There was a bigger cheer for that kid -- who probably is still grinning -- than for anything else in that game. And the coach (the father of the kid who hit the two home runs) gave him the game ball. It's not the first time I've seen something like that happen, and I hope it won't be the last.

(John Wayne voice) Shucks Pilgrim, this makes me want to cry.... These are the reasons I coach.

[poorme]

Originally posted by Pilgrim

I would say that the reason the kids are so into it is because the adults, in general, are into it and have a good perspective on what is important: fundamentals, teamwork and good sportsmanship. Baseball (I've never been much involved with other sports) teaches us these things, and I think they are things that children and young adults need to learn -- WANT to learn -- as they grow older.

Hey Pilgrim, that's great to hear. Maybe it's not all gloom and doom. SoCal rules!!! Yeah!! WooHoo!!!!

When I have kids of my own I'm definitely going to coach, and I have some definite opinions on how it should be done.

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Back to why kids aren't playing ball as much as they used to:the video game/computer boom. Combine that with the spread of cable/satellite tv. Why ever go outside at all?

I think the level of interest and involvement in baseball varies widely from region to region of the country.

Here in the suburban northeast, baseball is very big. I have two sons who are active Little Leaguers. I manage one team and help coach the other. It's a mixed bag of kids, as far as skill and interest in the game goes. Some of the boys and girls are very dedicated to baseball and really work on the fundamentals and the nuances that make the game so great. Others get dropped off at the games and spend time playing in the dirt or contemplating their navels.

I suspect it's probably always been that way. Baseball is tougher to play in the inner city, due to the lack of fields and, depending on the neighborhood, lack of funds for the necessary equipment. In the suburbs and rural areas, I think baseball is still very popular.

Clearly TV, videogames, computers, pools, soccer, Pop Warner and all the other distractions that keep kids from doing their homework also distract them from baseball.

My boys spend a great deal of time playing catch and working on their pitching and hitting skills. Same for some others on the teams I'm involved with. But about half the kids I see regularly never touch a bat or ball other than at practice or games. They have no basic skills and many of them don't even know why they're playing. I suspect the parents feel it will be good for them and get them out of the house. But in too many cases, that's the extent of the parents' involvement.

Overall, I think it's a situation where those with real skill and determination to succeed keep playing through LL, Babe Ruth, high school and beyond. Those are the kids who attend the off-season camps that the varsity coach runs in my town for kids six years old and up. Most of those kids are extremely interested in baseball and work at the game. That's why their folks pay the money and schlep them to these instructional sessions.

So I don't really think that things have changed that much over the years. There's definitely less sandlot pick-up ball being played everywhere, but for those who really love baseball, there are lots of games to watch on TV (as I write this, the D-Backs are leading my Sox 7-4) and ample LL practice time and games so kids who put in the effort can develop their skills.

I hope to remain involved in youth baseball and help as many kids as possible reach their potential.

[droog28]

TV, video games, and computers keep kids indoors. Working parents also keep kids indoors. Kids aren't allowed to go outside until the parents get home. Working parents aren't available to play a lot of ANYTHING with the kids. Baseball is a game that requires practice and knowledge. I've coached little league, and baseball's rules are difficult to explain to 5,6,7 and 8 year olds. Baseball fundamentals must be practiced over and over for kids to get good. The game becomes fun when there is a certain amount of success, and that success won't come if the kids don't play a lot.

Now, here's the old "when I was a kid" line. When I was a kid, there were 4 channels on the TV, no computers, and no video games (unless you count Pong). Every kid on the street was outside every day because there was nothing else to do. Whatever season it was, that's the sport we were playing -- ALL DAY. It's almost all we had to do. Today, kids have more homework, more fear of being outside in a dangerous society, and more activities to choose from.

I seem to be rambling. Am I still on topic?

[poorme]

droog

I agree with everything you said. During the summers or on weekends when I was a kid, I would walk out the door at 9:00 and come back at 5:00. Maybe I would come back for lunch. We'd spend all day playing sports of one kind or another (although, strangely not soccer). Today's kids are locked inside or stuck in day-care.

[ChrisCary]

Here in Brooklyn it seems like every single kid plays baseball

Originally posted by droog28

Now, here's the old "when I was a kid" line. When I was a kid, there were 4 channels on the TV, no computers, and no video games (unless you count Pong). Every kid on the street was outside every day because there was nothing else to do. Whatever season it was, that's the sport we were playing -- ALL DAY. It's almost all we had to do. Today, kids have more homework, more fear of being outside in a dangerous society, and more activities to choose from.

Yeppers. That was my childhood.

I have noticed that there are not many places for kids to get together and play a game of pickup anymore (at least in the places I have lived). When I was a kid, everyone could ride bikes or walk to the elementary school, where there was an old field we could play on (usually had about 15-20 kids play), or big open fields we could set upa game on, if the big kids were on the "real" field. Now, there are no fields like that anywhere near enough for a bike ride. So even if kids would put down the playstation...

I'm 24, and have no kids, but have spent the last three years coaching 4-6 year old softball teams, one girls, one boys. With both, I have a ton of kids who play, and prefer to play soccer. The reason I can see is, for kids growing up, baseball can be boring. I pitch to these kids, soft tosses, and they hit only a small, small fraction of the pitches, and 80% of them are fielded by the pitcher and first basemen. At 4, they can't pull the ball, and I've only had 2 lefties on 6 teams. So for 8-10 kids on the field, all you can do is keep them entertained.

Our job in the kids leagues is to teach them how to have fun playing the sport. We work hard at it. But in the end, if the parents haven't taught patience to the kids at all, it can be a nightmare.

In soccer, you just chase the ball around when kids are 4-5-6. Baseball is much more tricky to grasp.

[Skip]

Being a frequent coach of both sports at that age level, I can only say you've hit it right on the head.

[poorme]

Originally posted by CpUltravox

In soccer, you just chase the ball around when kids are 4-5-6. Baseball is much more tricky to grasp.

I'm glad YOU said it. I've had my head bitten off a few times for making that statement.