Go ahead and tell me that isn’t the cutest stinking picture you’ve ever seen of two brothers!  I’m blown away by how great this picture is.  With the exception of the aluminum bat, you could make this picture black and white and it would look just like brothers in the 50’s playing baseball.  Good Stuff!

This year we’ve had a an exciting spring with both the boys playing on the same baseball team.  We’ve only had victory once; but the chance to coach a team with both my boys on it has been a thrill.  Today I had an experience that made me want to encourage all parents to give their children the opportunity to play organized sports.

Ryan, my 6 year old, is one of the better players on the team.  It helps that he’s 6 months older than everyone else, but nonetheless he’s a pretty darn good baseball player.  Over the past few games he’s had a rough go of it, with a grand slam called back for throwing his bat (it really just rolled out of the batters circle) and some fielding miscues that have cost his team dearly.

In today’s game as he returned to the pitchers mound after again being called out for throwing his bat, he was pretty messed up inside and trying to fight back the tears.  I got down on a knee and told him to get a grip!  I know, I know…it sounds mean, but what I really told him was that now was not the time to think about his last mistake, and that instead he had to help his entire team by being ready to give his best in the field.  I helped him count to 5 to clear his head, and slapped him on the butt and told him to go out there and kick some butt.

As I returned to the dugout, I had this clear thought.  Where else would my kid learn such a valuable lesson?  I know that not all kids are athletically gifted, but at the youngest of ages I don’t think it matters.  The lessons of giving your all for a team, putting your mistakes behind you, and learning to get better are going to prove invaluable to both my boys…not to mention all the great snacks given away at the end of every game.