Baseball Widow

Little League Baseball Playoff Loss Makes The Sports Widow Cry

June 9, 2007 4:38 PM | 0 Comments

Today the Boa Constrictors did their best to swallow their prey whole, as boas do in the wild. In the end, however, the Boas choked on the Sweat Sox, ending their playoff run. They placed second in the regular season and third in the play-offs. During the past few games, I made a commitment to TRY to pay attention and TRY to be a good cheerleader for 9-year-old Austin and his team. We could never be accused of lacking in team spirit.

Now, for the first time in my life, I shed tears over a sports-related loss. As a Junior Varsity tennis player (with no hope of ever advancing to Varsity) at Shorewood High School in Shorewood, Wisconsin, I lost ALL of the time. Yet, for the most part, I was happy for my opponents, because they usually cared deeply about the outcome. Today was the first time where I experienced it through the eyes of my child and his teammates, many of whom were still young and emotional enough to cry, too.

Last year, baseball still seemed so low-key, but this year the competitiveness factor definitely intensified and I am not sure how I feel about the pressure that is being placed on these children at such a tender age. In my recollections this level of competition didn't even begin to occur until high school. And, now, it's almost as though children are selecting athletic careers very early on. Or, alternatively, they are over-engaged, participating in a dizzying number of overlapping sports, which prevents them from just BEING.

After the play-off game, Austin spent the rest of the afternoon at the field trying out for the All-Stars. He said it's unlikely that he'll be selected because he's still young, but we'll see....