THE LITTLE LEAGUE World Series is an American youth baseball tournament that annually answers the question every sports fan has: which baseball team made up of children between the ages of 11-13 is the best? (Well, maybe ESPN executives are actually the only people that ask it)
The tournament gets extensive coverage across ESPN’s stations due to the absence of the NFL and NBA at this time of year and they really go all out. They even miked up Dave Belisle, coach of the Cumberland American team, just after they lost an 8-7 heartbreaker to Jackie Robinson West.
This may be the best post-loss speech ever. The poor kids are in floods of tears before he even begins, and you might well up a bit after watching this too. Keep an onion and a cutting board handy, in case you need an excuse for your wailing.
It is refreshing to hear someone tone down the emotion in underage sports rather than ramp it up, as is customary. I often wonder what kind of man I would have grown up to be had this guy been my u12 gaelic football coach instead of the bainisteoir who used to rescind his promise of McDonald’s if we kicked more than two wides per half.
James Horan should have this guy on retainer, on the off chance he is needed later on this year.