That is the question. I have been hearing about this lawsuit against Little League, Sports Authority, and the maker of the unfortunate bat that delivered the near-fatal and life altering blow to the chest of then-12-year old Steven. I vaguely remembered having heard something about it, but I couldn't remember what had happened to him that he was suing the batmaker. Did he get hit by the bat? What on earth could the bat have done to a kid?
So this morning I decided to review the story. Hit by a batter!!! Hmm. Let me think about that. I read the article and a few things hit very close to home. Particularly the description of the boy's pitching abilities: he didn't throw very fast, but he had good ball control. So what does that mean? It means that he usually throws strikes, but they don't pack much power. That's what it meant to me. Most of the time when I have seen these pitches returned, they don't come back with that much force. Actually, when Brian pitches, the best batters are usually lucky to get a lazy fly ball to centerfield.
I remember a few years ago hearing lots of talk about heartguards, and I think this accident was the impetus; although this is certainly far from the only one. I remember last summer reading about a girl killed by a returned softball she had just pitched. Probably to an aluminum bat. They're lighter, and they're all you see on the fields. Nobody plays with wooden bats.
So what is with the lawsuit? I'm not sure what the parents expect to gain. I understand every time Brian steps out there the risk we all take. In fact, it's the reason I hate to see him pitch, and secretly thank my lucky stars that he is one of the 'alternates' and only has to face those smacked balls in about half the innings on his travel team. At one game, such a batter did smack the ball right to the pitcher. Luckily, he had cat-like refexes and put up his glove to deflect the line drive. I do not believe Brian has this reactive ability.
Should we sue football makers for concussions received when players are tackled after making a reception? Can we sue the maker of a swimming pool, when a child falls in and drowns? How about the maker of a skateboard, when the child rides it down the steps of a large building and ends up in a vegetative state? I understand they are devastated, and of course they should be. It just seems to me that the focus is in the wrong area. I don't see how they can win a thing. Focus on the heartguard rule; focus on safety concerns; make the pitching distance longer if the batters are hitting harder.
But, perhaps I am mistaken. Certainly there are bats that create a more impressive thwack than others. Our Little League has rules regarding the size of the bats that were allowed to be used, no wide bodied models were permitted, at least not at that age. On the other hand, we knew a woman whose eye was permanently damaged as a result of being hit with a wiffle ball when she was a child. Sometimes you're just in the wrong place at the wrong time.
Well, that was all I felt like saying. In other news, there is no news on the Fresh Air or the exchange student. The CCI woman sent a letter to the principal at the high school last night, and attached a picture of an unsmiling, rather butch looking chinese girl instead of our smiling blonde Swede. I am not so sure they will be thinking too highly of us by the time this whole thing is resolved. I guess it falls on me to contact the powers that be to see what we have to do to set this process in motion. Right now, I can't assigned until I can get approval to enroll a student. And in the meantime, the poor girl's application is on hold. In order for her to be released, we need an answer, one way or the other. In poring through old meeting minutes, I discovered that they have accepted many students over the years and in 2005 discussed it at a board meeting. However, they have no published policy on their website, which makes it difficult to know from which angle to approach. Our system is so entangled in bureaucracy; and we've been through about four superintendents in the nine years that my kids have been enrolled in the schools.
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