Maybe this belongs in FS since the racism charge has been leveled but.... So, there was definitely cheating going on, adults who knew they were doing the wrong thing. The whistleblower was likely just pissed that his team got whooped but the league knew about this issue before the games were played and chose not to do anything. Jesse wants the Las Vegas team to "do the right thing" and refuse to accept the award. Should these kids have the title stripped? Is there really racism behind either side of the argument? Are these kids being better served by being propped up at news conferences to talk about the unfairness of it all or should the adults now be helping them to accept disappointment....it's bound to be part of their lives no matter what they do.
rules are rules and if they were broken then there has to be consequences. from what I've read and heard it was the adults involved who actually broke the rules by allowing kids from other districts to play on the team so I hate it for the kids but rules are still rules. i thought it was pretty sad that the same parents and adults who broke the rules were parading the kids out in front of the cameras yesterday. imo the kids would be better served by the responsible adult admitting that they were the ones who broke the rules and taking some responsibility for it
Definitely the adults....before redrawing a district, all the leagues have to sign and agree. That procedure wasn't followed and when the word got out they back dated the map and tried to get the signatures at that point. Only one league agreed to sign off. You hit on a great point....I have yet to see any of the responsible adults step up to the mic and say, "we did the wrong thing". That would be a lesson worth teaching.
It seems like there is always some scandal in Little League. Remember Danny Almonte? The kid who was striking out almost every better he faced with his fastball. It turned out that he was 14 when the Little League age limit is 12.
I coach pee wee basketball and a few weeks ago I made a few, rather mundane, comments to the refs at halftime. After the game I made a point to let my team see me apologize to the ref and when we huddled later I told them that I was out of line and I made a mistake. Not patting myself on the back because I was out of line to snap at the refs and taking responsibility for ones actions are what you are supposed to do. Point being that the kids would learn a much greater lesson from an adult who took responsibility for their actions and apologized to the kids and the LLWS. Some integrity could be salvaged by doing so. I remember him. If I am not mistaken he signed a minor league contract with the Yankees when he turned 18-19 but never panned out as far as I know. It's too bad that something as innocent as the LLWS gets tainted by adults who never feel the consequences of their actions the way those kids will.
Trappings of little league. I never liked the boundary rule because a kid who doesn't like a coach or some of the players is stuck if they want to play post season. I understand why they have the rule, I just don't like it. I can't see how the parents didn't know. These were a great group of players. I watched them every time they played and they were some beautiful kids, great hitting, solid pitching and total ball hawks in the field. What the adults did is fucked cause the kids are the ones that have the biggest scars. Nobody will remember the adults, but them kids will always carry the burden of their actions. Little League got real old for us. Racism exist pretty bad here. Politics are extreme, bottom to top. Tomorrow begins little mans first season with PONY League. I am hoping for a much...much better year.
The LLWS is a joke to begin with. I enjoyed it for about 2 years way back when until I saw what it had become and haven't paid much attention to it since. The sad part is that ESPN sticks it in your face to the point that you can't avoid it anymore. I still don't watch and it is most definitely because of the parents.
My younger daughter "played" softball for three seasons (two spring/one fall) and hung up her cleats (finally) at the beginning of this school year. She played on a team of mostly her friends from school (along with some other girls who signed up through the local youth association.) I hated the way the parents acted--just didn't like the sports culture at all. In fact, I was afraid that I was not going to like some of the friends' parents anymore if I had to stay part of the team. We're exclusively a dance family now, and while there can be some real bitches in that area, as well, my girls are at a good studio that doesn't go to those bullshit dance competitions. My older daughter is embarking on drill team tryouts (dance team/kick line) for 9th grade. The parents' meeting at the high school last night wasn't too terrifying, but it still makes me nervous. There is so much competitive parenting that goes on out there that kids' activities can be a beating.
I don't see how it would be racism. Hell, the world chipped in for them to be able to afford the trip (supposedly) in the first place. Rules are rules. What I WOULD do is let that team keep the title and place future punishments on the city they represented and not let them participate for a couple years. That would be an annual reminder. Course, that punishes kids who didn't do wrong. Maybe not let the coaches ever coach again and not let ineligible players wear the patch. Course they'll probably all be playing travel ball now anyway. Fuck it, it's just a game- who cares, really.
