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Show "Coach-Pitch" Is Exciting Valley View is on top of the 9 year old league. "Coach-pitch" gets my vote for the way baseball should be played for kids. I would like to see it extended ex-tended up to at least age 12 and maybe further. by Jack Hill Little League I baseball has had its critics, not the least of which is this writer. (Pticher catcher dominated, lack of action ac-tion and a general spoiling of kids desire to play by having fancy fan-cy uniforms plus yelling coaches, parents paren-ts and something less than hustle characterizing charac-terizing far to many games.) While at the ball park Monday to take some pictures,- I became aware of the yelling, cheering and activity taking place on another diamond. There a bearded adult (see photo this page) was pitching to the kids. "He's to old for little league," I half said aloud. Inquiring further I was told that this was a nine year old league, sometimes called "coach-pitch." Here's how it works. Ten players take the field on defense. Coach of the team at bat pitches to his own players, who get 4 strikes, swinging or called, and the pitching coach calls those not swung at. (can't get on himself for "missing a call" so there's no blamming the umpire - a big plus!) All players of the team at bat hit! That's all, 15, 16 or 20 if there are that many. Another plus! No kid sitting in the dugout for the whole game. Each player is involved. in-volved. While I watched, no player from either team (Valley View or Grovecrest) struck out and none walked. (Hate that idea that a "walk is as good as a hit." Never was and never will be. Walks are determined by the umpire, um-pire, hits by the player. There's a big difference even though both result in getting on base. A walk is as good as a hit only when winning is the sole objective ob-jective of the game. In little league, winning should be second, even third to FUN and PARTICIPATION. Most hit first or second pitch. Runners were running, sliding and having fun. Fielders were fielding (most of the time), catching cat-ching and throwing. Valley View turned a nice double play and there were lots of hits, runs and action. Valley View won this third game with Grovecrest, 20-16. The two teams had split the first two and now HEAD FIRST SLIDE Shawn Chipman dives into third and ball gets by into left field during nine year old game. Chipman came home to score in action filled coach-pitch baseball contest held recently. TRIPLE Chad Nielsen rounds ftriple as Cards ' s ?W beat Cubs26-16 " 1 downed the Timps. I gecond on waY start tonight with JBtriple QS CardsrJ Fridays big gameI ; beat Cubs 26-1 6 looking to be the Giants w flj jRjjjw f CONFERNENCE Coach Nyal Richens talks things over with Card players during Little League game. Cards have 10-1 record, best in city league. |