Small Talk: The Biggest Little Baseball Tournament

The end of August is the most exciting time of the year…in Williamsport, Pennsylvania. Fans pour in from near and far to take part in the excitement that builds as hundreds of 11, 12 and 13 year-olds come from near and far doing battle on pint-sized baseball diamonds in an event that is known as the Little League World Series.

And what an incredible phenomenon it is.

Kids travel from thousands of miles to compete in what may become the most important stage of their young lives. Lamade Stadium, one of two stadiums built for this event that returns to the remote Pennsylvania city every year, is constantly packed with more than 33,000 fans all there cheering on the epic triumphs and failures of the world's youth. That's right- 33,000. But come the finals, the stadium accommodates up to 45,000. There are professional sports teams that can't even find 33,000 people to put in their stands, let alone 45,000. In addition to the thousands of fans watching right there, ESPN broadcasts all of the games bringing elation (or in some cases complete detachment) to home viewers all over the globe.

So why on earth does Williamsport erupt into life once a year? Why would the nation's largest sports channel sign long-term contracts promising to display the athletic talents of pre-teens? And do we even care?

I think that in it's simplest form, the Little League World Series is a display of raw emotion in its purest form. Let's face it; adults find ways to mask their feelings. They put on their tough guy faces when they lose and play it cool when things go their way. However, unlike major leaguers, when these one of these kids hits a home run, you'd think it was the happiest moment of his life (which it may be). Similarly it's obvious that a loss spells the deepest of lows from which recovery is unclear. It's a return for many to the days when we played games for fun and bragging rights. During these few weeks in August, life IS baseball and baseball IS life.

But let's not forget that even the Little Leagues are plagued with drama. Just this year, a team from Uganda, the first African team to ever qualify for the LLWS, was denied visas to the United States by the State Department after several discrepancies were found between the players' documents and interviews conducted with parents and guardians. While this may seem like a routine occurrence for many, without a doubt it was the most exciting possibility of those kids' lives and it was dashed even before they left their borders.

Though episodes of great size and infamy are few and far between, I suppose they aren't inescapable at any level. In 2001, Danny Almonte, 12-year old from the Bronx became a sensation showcasing his 75 mph fastball (the equivalent for that distance of a 98 mph Major League fastball). Though his team didn't win the Series that year, they were the feel-good team and he made headiness everywhere.

And then disaster struck. This kid was too good to be true- and he was. It was shortly thereafter discovered that Almonte was actually 14 years old making him ineligible for play in the Series and forcing his team to vacate their victories. Now, as a result, prior to the Little League World Series every single player must provide several forms of documentation proving their birth date as well as residence.

All in all, I do believe that the attention the Little League World Series is not a bad thing. We could all use a break from NASCAR or Major League Baseball and watch people who are playing exclusively for the love of the game. For once, winning isn't everything and there aren't millions of dollars on the line. The Little League World Series paints an optimistic picture of sports for both kids and adults alike and furthermore, it's indisputably nice to see small communities rally around the a group of kids who are proud to represent them. Sure, you're not going to be watching Albert Pujols hit the longest home run in Busch Stadium history, but you also aren't going to be questioning whether the batter is taking steroids or not.



Author's Note: Many apologies to those to expectantly and diligently tuned in to read another edition of Small Talk over the summer and were let down by its absence. We're back now...and ready to deliver.