Employment or Baseball

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"So Mr. Roth, tell us why you left your last place of employment?"

"I was a Volkswagen salesman, but I couldn't pronounce 'Touareg'..."
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Fahrvergnuegen?

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I'm joining this party late but I have had to miss a number of my son's games due to work.

But I would not miss a second if he was in the college world series. End of story. If I had to quit my job I would do it in a heartbeat. Necessity is the mother of invention and if we needed a way to make some $$ as a result that decision, well, I would find a way.

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Ok, Ok, it's time!.

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"Necessity is the mother of invention and if we needed a way to make some $$ as a result that decision, well, I would find a way."

I know a guy who may be able to give you an idea or two. Last I heard he was holed up down near Butner, NC. Ask around. His landlord is easy to find. Sam. Uncle Sam's his name.






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Would you quit your job to be in Omaha and see your son pitch and win the final championship game of the college world series? Duh? Mr. Roth, my hat is off to you.

I second that. That was quite impressive, and on short rest as well. I KNOW he isn't second guessing his decision. Something tells me he'll be just fine. Congratulations!

Being the director of an office and the one that has to make decisions about staff's time off, I sympathize with the Audi owner. It does sound like according to his rebuttal that they had done everything in their power to support the Roths. While I think I'd move heaven and earth to help an employee do something like this, I also understand that the other employees picking up the slack might not think this was too important of a deal!

On the other hand, if it was my child, I'd be there! Whether I had to take a loan, hitch hike, quit my job (I'm a nurse - could probably get another one quickly), or whatever. My PERSONAL decision would be that I'd be there... wouldn't miss sharing an experience like that with my child. Don't blame the guy one bit!!

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Don't laf mom! It's an Audi© for sure...so let's go! Grab your rallye helmet. I got some time off...we're off to Omaha! Or at least Council Bluffs. Does it look like rain to you?

"Vorsprung durch Technik"

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quote:

Originally posted by bballdad175:
I'm joining this party late but I have had to miss a number of my son's games due to work.

But I would not miss a second if he was in the college world series. End of story. If I had to quit my job I would do it in a heartbeat. Necessity is the mother of invention and if we needed a way to make some $$ as a result that decision, well, I would find a way.

I am lucky, my work would let me off.

Boy, in this economy though, it would be hard to do, especially if the trip cost him a job where he had seniority and a pension that was fairly close.

It is too bad that he and his boss couldn't have worked something out. It is a once in a lifetime thing for sure and something that few of us will have the privilage to see, even to contemplate.

Funny, how the majority of the posters here support Mr. Roth. Yet there are threads on this web site about players missing time for family functions and the responses have been about commitment,letting your team mates down and "if you quit that team your be a quitter for the rest of your life"
So can I assume that Mr.Roth missed a few games in his youth?

quote:

Originally posted by bballdad175:
Necessity is the mother of invention and if we needed a way to make some $$ as a result that decision, well, I would find a way.

I have been torn on this particular subject ever since I began it. Obviously, if I were faced with it myself would I then know what I would do. So it's easy to sit back and make a judgement call from behind a computer screen. lol.

But this particular quote from bballdad struck me quite differently just based on the economic crisis we all face today. I know that countless thousands today are faced with the necessity and mother of invention in order to hold on to their home, automobiles, keep food on the table, continue paying tuition to keep a child in college, et al.

It's not like today that we can just up and go find a job in the local paper or online because there are a myriad of jobs available akin to the good days in our country. They're not. Someone made an earlier statement that they would be ok with Mr. Roth's decision as long as he didn't go draw unemployment. If Mr. Roth was capable of making this decision of quitting, then what makes one think that drawing unemployment isn't high on his list to hold him over in the interim? I don't condone it because of WHY he is, but the fact remains that he is entitled to it. I'm just not sure of the laws of who deserves employment when one up and quits their job so he may not even get it afterall.

But it is quite easy to make a broad statement that "we would just find a way" to make money on the one side in order to go and enjoy something of this magnitude. However, when you get home and those bills continue to show up in the mailbox how are those "ways" working for you now?

I only pose these questions as food for thought. I am in no way calling anyone out. Just stirring the pot from how I see it. That's all.

I had the lucky opportuniuty that my dad owned his own company and got to take off from work whenever he chose so he could come watch me play. I always felt bad that he was missing work, which I am sure he had plenty to do at, to drive 3 hours on a random Tuesday to watch my team play.

I say my team, and not me, because there were games when I did not play. I felt awful about him making the trip and then me either not playing ( or doing badly ), that the guilt at times was unbearable. Of course he made a lot of my good games as well, but I always felt a little bad about the sacrifice he made.

Now I still felt blessed that he came to as many games as possible, and had the freedom to do so, but it did help make me aware today ( now that I am working ) that at what price will I be willing to miss my own ( future ) kid's games. I hope when the time comes I am smart enough to make the right decisions... whatever they are.

Reflecting back now that my playing days are over (graduated in 2009 ) I can finally start to understand why my dad make all these long trips like he did. To be able to watch me play baseball must have been a pleasure like no other in this world.. and the fact ( now obvious to me ) is that we only get a certain amount of games to play in our life. Now he has all the time in the world to work.

I have had a lot of time to reflect on this since I stopped playing. This is just one of the lessons I learned on my 4 year journey, and like so many other I know it shaped how I look at the game today!

Ken Jacobi.

Author of "Going with the Pitch: Adjusting to Baseball, School, and Life as a Division I College Athlete"

quote:

Originally posted by njbb:
Funny, how the majority of the posters here support Mr. Roth. Yet there are threads on this web site about players missing time for family functions and the responses have been about commitment,letting your team mates down and "if you quit that team your be a quitter for the rest of your life"
So can I assume that Mr.Roth missed a few games in his youth?

Excellent point. We teach our kids not to be quitters and to be good team players and yet that is EXACTLY what Mr. Roth did, he quit and he gave up on his team.

Mr. Roth left his job voluntarily so he is not eligible for unemployment.

Mr. Roth left his job because he PROMISED his son that he would be there. This wasn't about an issue so much with his boss (former) about not getting the time off, this was an issue about making promises. I think that thier is more to the story and this was a private matter made public by twitter.
I hope his son appreciates what his dad gave up to keep his promise.

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Don't you just hate that twitter guy/gal/thing? Always blabbing and getting people in trouble. A quitter ratted by a twitter! Take that twitter and throw it in the shi...toilet!




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Here is another dad who took off work to watch his son play

http://www.rawstory.com/rs/201...-sons-baseball-game/

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Good story...did anyone catch the score?



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I don't think it is fair to say it is never Ok to Quit. If you are living in a world that doesn't let you miss work to see your son in the College World Series then perhaps that is a World worth quitting.

Similarly, if you are a player in a bad situation at a school and things are looking bleak, perhaps the right decision in fact is to "quit" that school and move to another. Quitting is only bad if done for the wrong reasons. I am not so sure what Mr. Roth did was wrong.

- Ken Jacobi

Author of "Going with the Pitch: Adjusting to Baseball, School, and Life as a Division I College Athlete"