Viral Little League Sign Reminds Parents That "This Is Just a Game"
Stepping up to bat, no matter your batting average, can be a nerve-racking process - especially when you're a kid. Add in the jeers and comments made by members of the crowd, and it can feel like you've struck out before the first pitch.
When those comments come from parents, and are directed towards kids, that uneasy feeling can intensify. Whether it's a parent applying pressure on their own child, challenging an umpire or referee's call or lashing out at another player on the field, tension too often runs high.
With this in mind, Glendale Little League's board set up a sign at their local field which was designed to eradicate parental misconduct before it starts. The sign reads: "These are KIDS. This is a GAME. Coaches are VOLUNTEERS. Umpires are HUMAN. Your child is NOT being scouted by the Brewers today."
Their sign isn't the first of its kind - a similar sign, posted in California, surfaced on Reddit last year, much to the same effect - but it most certainly garnered the Internet's attention. After Evan Primakow, a Little League parent, shared a photo of the sign to Reddit, the post generated over 700 comments and nearly 30,000 upvotes. "I like the message, but I also thought it was a nice tongue and cheek way of getting the message out there. It's not mean, it's kind of funny," Primakow told a local NBC News station.
John Diedrich, Glendale Little League's president, wrote in the Journal Sentinal that he's been contacted by media outlets in Spain, which covered a similar sign for parents at soccer matches - which makes this issue a global one. "I know our league is not alone in having such parents get out of hand," he wrote. "It's a well-documented problem."
And all over the world, kids are picking up on their parent's behavior, said Diedrich. "As these ugly scenes play out, the players - the kids - are watching. The result can be players themselves becoming poor sports," he wrote. "But just as many players turn away from the sport, embarrassed or just burned out by the intensity of their parents."
At the end of the day, no, your child is not being scouted by the Major League - or the NFL, or the NBA. Demonstrating poor sportsmanship as an adult has a longer-lasting effect on your child than does a bad call or a genuine mistake. Let's be sure we're calling it as we see it: "The sign at our park is a reality check and a reminder that this is a game," wrote Diedrich.
[h/t Journal Sentinal]
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