More Insights On Youth Sports

This past weekend, while surfing the Internet, I came across the following statement posted by Walter Beede, the founder and Executive Director of Baseball Process. The statement was as follows:

· I continue to be amazed at the direction of youth baseball as I watch an utter amazement the amount of under eight travel teams playing 3 to 6 games a weekend, umpires being chased into parking lot with threats of physical violence, WE as a society need to get a REALITY CHECK!

I’ve been writing about this for months and, in my opinion, this craziness has to stop. I recently read an article in NJ.com about a youth baseball coach attacking a 72-year-old umpire, leaving the umpire with a broken jaw that required extensive dental surgery and the worst part of the story is that while the EMT’s were providing medical attention to the fallen umpire the parents of the team whose coach attacked the umpire were cursing at the umpire and saying that “he deserved it”. What appalling behavior from supposed adults who are supposed to be setting the example for their children.

The article goes on to say that the coach and his team have been banned from the US Amateur Baseball League (USABL) and the president of the New York Prospects (the team involved in this incident) stated that the coach has been suspended pending investigation. My question is what investigation? A 72-year-old man has a broken jaw and the incident was witnessed by many people so in my opinion, the investigation should be pretty quick and should lead to a lifetime ban for this supposed coach. As a parent, would you want this individual coaching your child(ren)? I don’t care how angry the coach may have gotten during this game, his actions were TOTALLY inappropriate and should lead not only be suspended being continued, but he should be banned from EVER coaching again and he should be doing some serious jail time.

I’ll admit that many a time during my youth sports coaching career I thought that an umpire or referee made a bad call (or what I perceived was a bad call) and yes, I argued the call; however, I NEVER EVER thought of getting physical with the game official. I may have spoken to the official during or after the game to ask him what he was thinking at the time but that was the extent of our interaction. Personally, for me, no call at a youth sporting event was ever worth risking everything that I had personally worked for, my family, my career and most of all, my own self-respect; however, now a days it seems to be open season on game officials. This incident, is one of the reasons that I have been writing about the need to change the way that youth sports is run in his country.

Tom house, a former major-league pitcher has stated that:

· Youth sports industry is growing but the population of youth athletes is shrinking. We should be focused on helping more athletes learning to develop in sports instead of pricing out the next generation of great athletes.

I agree with what Mr. House is saying. It’s time to stop focusing on travel/select/elite teams (which in many cases are disguised as “daddy ball”) and get back to making youth sports inclusive of all children (I am not saying “free”, but they should be affordable for all). Now, please note that I am not saying that travel/select/elite teams are bad, but these teams should be for the best of the best, and not a team that’s formed because daddy is annoyed that his son/daughter got cut from the team or isn’t getting the playing time that daddy thinks they should be getting, and then being called a travel/select/elite team.

In my opinion, we adults have to realize that the current system for youth sports is no longer working as children are quitting youth sports in droves as 70% of all youth drop out of youth sports by the time that they are 13 years old. Game officials are also dropping out with most leaving officiating within three years of starting. The money they may be making just isn’t worth the possible physical harm they might receive if some coach or parent feels that their future “superstar/professional athlete” has been wronged. I feel that it is time that we go back to the basics and let the kids enjoy playing a sport (or sports) while teaching them the skills of the sport that they are playing and help them develop the character and leadership skills that will be necessary for them later in life and stop making our young athletes in baseball/soccer/softball/basketball little “professionals” when all they themselves want is just to have fun with their friends.