The magnificence of youth

Yesterday Jonas and I went to the final game of the Ontario Little Championship here in Timmins. The hometown LaRonde Lynx defeated East Nepean 13-5 to advance to the Canadian Little League Championship in Sydney NS.

I was suitably impressed by how well these 11 and 12 year olds played the game. They played hard, with a great amount of passion. They were also tremendous young sportsmen, very encouraging to each other. I was struck by how many of the East Nepean players were crying following the lost - and how completely understandable it was. They played their hearts out, after all.

The game brought back a lot of memories for me. I loved playing baseball as a kid. I recall endless summers filled with baseball and friends. We played because we loved it, organizing games ourselves, whether it be at Federal School or Civic Stadium. I just don’t see kids playing ball on their own anymore. Maybe I’m not looking hard enough.

My favourite baseball memory occurred on Aug. 18, 1989. Pitching for the Kirkland Lake Downtown Dodgers, I hurled a one-hitter to defeat Rouyn-Noranda 9-0 in the first game of our own tournament. I was never as dominant as I was on that summer night. I made up my mind that I wouldn’t be touched and then followed through. Because I was moving to Lindsay in four days, I wanted nothing more than to leave Kirkland Lake with a bang. I think of that night often - and how it was the highlight of my sporting career.