My Three Sons

As I look back over the past 18 years I notice something I have never really thought about before. There are three distinct and different stages a player and his parents go through.
THE YOUNGER SON:
The younger years include T ball and coach pitch and those years when feet and legs grow faster than the brain cells. Parents do all the thinking and planning and the boys just kinda follow Mom and Dad around to the ballfields. Dad can teach their sons how to hit and how to throw and while their son’s attention span is short, they do listen to Mom and Dad. It’s a time parents can mold and control and be proud of what they’ve done for their little player. He’s proud of his participation trophy and mom and dad know this is just the beginning of a great time for a great kid. All players are equal and all parents are proud.

THE MIDDLE SON:
Now comes the challenge. Here at the HSBBW we deal primarily with the middle stage of the ball player and in my opinion the most difficult, most challenging, and the most rewarding period of his baseball “career”. We call them the high school years. The high school years actually incorporate the transitional years prior to high school and after graduation. It’s a time of being proud that your son can pitch at the varsity level and it’s a time for many to realize their son may never play college ball. It’s a time of adjustments for all involved. Parents become a burden as boys test the waters of manhood but at the same time they are expected to stand ready to throw them a life line if they need help. Boys do “adult” things that make you proud and do “adult” things that make you angry. It’s a time in their lives they decide what baseball really means to them. Some decide to take baseball to heights you never imagined possible while other cast it aside as a kid’s game. You are forced to accept their decision. It’s their call. Those that move on in baseball need your support even more. When he was small he needed a hug, a bicycle, and a $30.00 glove. Now he needs a car, gas, insurance, AE clothes, ipods, a 250.00 bat and a 200.00 glove....and please don’t hug me in front of anyone.

THE OLDEST SON:
When you have almost reached the point of total frustration, a real man starts to emerge. This is your third son. Suddenly slowly an adult starts to see things as you see them. If you do have different opinions both can accept the other’s way of thinking. His decisions and thinking seem to be more in line with a real human being. If he’s still in baseball (in any capacity) it is HIS baseball and you both know that. While you know you were the person that allowed it to happen, the credit is all his and you wouldn’t want it any other way. Yes, you’ve raised three sons and while you’re proud of all of them and you look back and understand all three, the only one that really understands you, and appreciates you, will be the oldest one.
Fungo