The Little League World Series is once again reminding audiences that it is one of the better things on the calendar, especially on the Sunday when Major League Baseball players descend on Williamsport and give kids the thrill of a lifetime. This year's game between the Detroit Tigers and New York Yankees delivered a ton of drama and everyone who participated, attended, or watched from home was treated to a warm, nostalgic feeling about baseball.
On the other hand, Aaron Judge didn't visit with the team from Staten Island or even turn around to acknowledge them behind home plate during his at-bats so, really, how nice of an event was it?
South Shore Little League skipper Bob Laterza unloaded to the Staten Island Advance about the slight in the type of dispatch one rarely reads from one of the happier places on Earth.
While Yankees players DJ LeMahieu and Tim Hill showed up -- not many others did. Laterza noted that Yankees stars Gerrit Cole, Nestor Cortes and Jasson Dominguez, as well as manager Aaron Boone and former outfielder Nick Swisher, met with the team later on at Bowman Field, but there was still one notable omission, in particular.
Where’s Aaron Judge? The Yankees, of course, are in the thick of a pennant race and had a game to play that night, but that was of little consolation to the youngsters.
Laterza admitted his boys were bummed to miss out on the big man, who he alleges never showed face with his team, despite being seen with others. They had hoped that their seats behind home plate would allow them an interaction with him in the on-deck circle, but Laterza says No. 99 ignored the youths bellowing his name from some 10 to 20 feet away.
That's a tough break for those kids. Judge may be the biggest star in baseball and no team would have gotten more out of the experience. Then again he and every other player there spent most of their day in rural Pennsylvania trying to give everyone a piece of their time and it seems impossible to please everyone.
Laterza also offered up this strange take on the economic dynamics at play.
“How about turning around or wave to New York and the kids that think you’re a hero?” chimed Laterza. “They are the ones who pay your salary.”
“They were disappointed,” he added. “Maybe he’ll want to make up for it and come and see them.”
Maybe!
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Staten Island Coach Offers 'Scathing' Thoughts on Aaron Judge After Yankees Star Didn't Visit Team at LLWS.
