Let the Little League Madness Begin

Eli's Little League coach was belly bumpin' the ump before he was ejected. His assistant coach, having been thrown out of the game innings earlier, was in his truck yelling and heckling the ump from behind the outfield fence. The parents in the stands were stomping mad with much arm flailing and snide remarks. Mercifully, the game ended soon after. What does a Christian father say to his 10 year old son on the way home?

This post on sportsmanship from CJ Mahaney came to mind. I asked Eli this question, "Which is more important, that the ump calls the game the way we want or that we show respect for his authority, even if we don't agree with him?" We discussed how a coach should handle a situation like this with evidences of godliness.

As fathers, we should want our sons to grow in godliness, not simply athletic ability. This means that we will celebrate when he or other players handle a difficult situation with character and we should prepare our sons before the game with biblical priorities (humbly receive correction, do not complain or disagree, encourage the players, apologize if you hurt someone, play aggressively but selflessly, etc).

Here's a humorous video example of what a coach shouldn't do.