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Just curious about what everyone thinks on this. Last week, we lost our division championship game, 10-5. We have a very young team, and were really proud of the boys to get that far! We will get 'em next year (if not this week in regionals).

HS baseball gets very little coverage around here as it is. Mostly just the box score, and we all get a kick out of how they misspell everyone's names.

In this case, a reporter was at the game. In the resulting story, he chose to focus not on the offensive performance of the winning team, but instead on our sophomore pitcher's bad inning, in which the other team took advantage of some defensive mistakes and hit the ball pretty darn hard to score 8 runs. The reporter called the pitching performance a "disaster" and cited a bunch of incorrect stats to bolster his point. It was brutal. The entire article was negative.

It would have been so easy to write something positive about the winning team's performance. To me, HS players are not fair game for media-bashing. Even at the college level, watching UF games and the CWS on TV, the tone of the coverage is very positive - that's one reason we like watching. I think this reporter was way out of line to rip a HS player like that.

What do you think?

Edit...the young man is fine, although we mammas were pretty hot under the collar for a couple of days. My question is mostly about how you think newspapers should cover HS sports.
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It may be a Florida disease. For a while, I burned up the computer with complaints to writers and columnists who showed with every word that they know (and care) as much about baseball as they do about neurosurgery. It's a football state.

I'd say the bozo could only latch on to whatever was most obvious to his non-fan mind.

Of course, that doesn't give him license to trash hs kids. A letter to the editor and "reporter" is in order.
I'm thinking along the same lines 2Bmom, it's uncalled for. I've seen it done both ways, and I'm one to argue that unless the kid's getting a paycheck, he/she does not deserve to be dumped on in the paper or on the news.

I'll bet he's a young reporter who's grown up hearing mostly trash talk. I see a lot of reporters fall into the same trap that players do. They want to look and sound like they're big time, or they want to make a name for themselves- no matter what it takes. ESPN and the like set a horrible example for amateur sports. Some of them make a living out of ripping flesh off their subjects. It sells and that's all they care about.

There's way too much negativity in the sports
world. I say don't forget that the kid is just playing a game.
quote:
I'll bet he's a young reporter who's grown up hearing mostly trash talk.
In addition, he probably doesn't understand how to place high school ball in the context that it's 15-18 year old boys. He also may not have been happy he was given the assignment of covering high school ball.
quote:
A letter to the editor and "reporter" is in order.
The newspapers don't care what is printed as long as it sells and they can't be sued.

When my son was playing LL all-stars, two of the opposing teams had reporters following them in sections. So of course our kids were going online to see if their names were in the articles.

A pitcher from our team pitched a seventeen strikeout no-hitter. He also walked eleven. The opposing coach was quoted as saying, "That was one of the worst pitched games I've ever seen. He was horrible. He didn't deserve a no-hitter."

His team hit one ball in fair territory. It wasn't pretty. But it was a no-hitter. I called the editor to explain no one should put a comment like that in the paper about a twelve year old. The editor said if the coach said it, it's news.

The next game we faced this team we eliminated them on a 5-0 two hit shutout. There were about six diving catches. He called our pitcher the luckiest pitcher on the face of the earth. No mention of us being a great defensive team (which we were). Once again he was quoted in the paper.

If it sells the papers don't care what is printed.
Last edited by RJM

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