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Eli Medford

Professor Jizi

UWRT 1103

18 February 2018

Politics and Baseball

There are so many things that I loved about baseball even from an early age. The joy

when you felt the ball hit the bat or the feeling of relief and excitement when you strike out the

last batter to win the game. I always looked forward to going to practice or games after school

and arriving to taste dirt in the air, the smell of fresh cut grass, and those pre-game jitters. Until,

that joy was taken away because of parents buying or politicking for there kid to get to play

where they wanted to regardless of talent. Then that joy is taken and the opportunities that could

have been are lost as well.

As soon as I was old enough to sign up for little league I was there and loved to be on the

field. From the beginning my parents were skeptical of the league and I should have been. If

your dad wasn’t the coach or if your parents didn’t kiss the coaches butt, you didn’t get to play,

or you were stuck in the outfield. But we thought we’ll maybe its just the team that I was on and

it will be different next season. I remember being stuck in center field my whole first year, but I

would always creep up until I was in the infield and try to make plays on ground balls that the

infielders should have caught. After a few seasons playing in the little league of my home town it

became obvious to my parents how flawed this system was and looking back now I remember

more of why we left. My parents refused to stoop to their level and play the political games and

insisted that I earn my spot which I will be forever grateful for.

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They told me that they wouldn’t force me to play but as long as I wanted to play they

would help me any other way they could. So around third grade my parents began driving me to

play in a league an hour from my house where I could earn a spot and enjoy the game. I don’t

know why this league was different maybe it was just organized better. I loved it though, for

once it didn’t feel like I was having to play against the parents, my coach, and the other team.

Those were some of the best years of baseball I had a great time and it was because you got to

play and enjoy the game. Some of my favorite memories from my childhood are days when my

dad would run home from work, I would do my homework on the way to practice or a game, and

I would ride home doing homework with dirty hands and only the cab light to see. On nights

when I didn’t have games or during the off season my parents would take me to private lessons

to help me become a better player, although most would hate the extra work I loved it. Walking

in hearing the ball being hit and seeing other players practicing would get me excited to try to

throw my best bull pen or to see how many balls I could hit to the back of the cage. Looking

back, I remember dreading it some of those nights, but once I got there and I was throwing or

hitting I loved it again even when I was soaked in sweat and so tired I couldn’t hold my arms up.

I don’t regret any of that time spent either it made me feel like I could be as good as I wanted to

be, and no one could stop me. I remember thinking that maybe I could even play in the big

leagues one day.

After playing in a league that was fun and you truly earned your spot I expected middle

school to be the same way especially after all the hard work I had put in. I thought that the

coaches had no attachments to the players so the politics that existed in little league wouldn’t be

there, but I was dead wrong. Middle school baseball seemed worse than little league, it was

obvious from the beginning the coach had his favorites and they were the kids whose parents
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would always be talking to the coach after practice. I remember always wondering how much

more would it take to earn a spot, but it never truly set in that I couldn’t, all the cards were

stacked against me.

The same treatment and actions continued in high school. I was resilient about it for

years and tried to work harder because I figured if I could play better than the people that were

given the positions the coach would have to give me a shot. Also, I didn’t want to quit because I

still loved the feeling of hitting a ball, or making a great play hearing the crowd cheer, the taste

of dirt, and the smell of grass in the air. It rarely happened though, and I had to fight everyone

and everything for playing time and by my senior year I gave up and just tried to enjoy the times

I would get to hit or play a few innings.

The opportunity to enjoy baseball except a few years and to play after high school was

not only lost but taken. When I was playing it made me extremely mad and it still does, but now

I realize that its pathetic on the parents and coaches part. They took something from me and

other kids that could have been fun and possible changed our future. However, I am thankful for

the work ethic it instilled in me and made me realize the world isn’t a kind place and you have to

fight for what you want. The other side is that the parents politicking thought they were helping

their kids but in fact they were hurting them. Most of those kids have no work ethic and never

pushed themselves because it was always handed to them and never earned. I just hope one day

that things will change so kids can enjoy baseball and excel in it without parents and coaches

getting in their way.