It's Not Just A Game !
By Sharon Roberto-Reyes
BASEBALL. Before my son got involved in the sport, I thought it was the most boring game ever conjured up by man. When my now 16 year-old son, Matt, started 6 years ago, HE thought it was boring too. He wanted to quit right after his first game. Of course I would not allow him to quit for all the valid reasons any parent could think of.
I’m glad I stood my ground. Not only has Matt grown to love the game, he’s learning the game of life through this sport. He’s made good friends and has learned valuable lessons, been given unique travel opportunities, while having fun along the way.
Matt was a reluctant 10-year-old rookie back in the year 2000. Most of his team mates had played baseball since they were 5 or 6 years old. It was difficult for Matt to catch up and through the next three years, he would play baseball because I wanted him to. Until in 2003, even though Matt was not one of the best players, he was invited to join a team going to Fukuoka Japan for a home-stay baseball program initiated by the Alabang baseball and Softball Club (ABSC). Here, each boy would stay home with a Japanese family and be immersed in their culture while playing baseball on scheduled days. I learned that this sport wasn’t just a game. Cultural and language barriers could be bridged because of baseball, and my son gained a generous and loving foster family and friends in far-away Japan. And to think, the only thing they had in common was baseball. Matt would never look at this game the same again.
Since then, the ABSC has organized and participated in several international and local tournaments with more fun and training in mind, rather than competition. Coaching seminars were organized as well as outreach activities. The once informal baseball clinics were formalized, giving numerous children an open door to the world of baseball. In 2004, four Alabang teams participated in the Hawaii Baseball and Softball World Series in Honolulu. In years past, the minimum age for joining international tournaments would be eleven years old. ABSC sent children as young as seven to the 2005 Hawaii World Series along with three other older boys baseball teams and two girls’ softball teams. For the past three summers, the “Summer Classic” tournaments would gather teams from as far away as Pampanga, Nueva Ecija and Bukidnon right here at the Alabang Country Club. Christmas time would get baseball families together to share glad tidings with the Muntinlupa public school community through baseball games, gift-giving and baseball equipment donations. In most of these, my family would always try to be invlolved, and year after year, Matt would improve his game more and more.
All these endeavors would test the will power and team spirit of the baseball community in Alabang. It takes tireless efforts and drained pockets to send a team abroad or organize a tournament. Here, the Junior Baseball and Softball Foundation of the Philippines (JBSFP) spearheads the fundraising and organizing for these events. Because of all the good these endeavors had done for my son, I saw myself getting involved in and helping out in any way I could. And in the little that I give, I have been blessed to witness first hand, the generosity and warm-heartedness of so many people. These people, so engrossed in trying to make the community an ideal place for raising children and playing baseball, have become my irreplaceable friends. There are fathers, who aside form watering the gigantic field all by their lonesome, go out of their way to coach, and even counsel, children who are not their own (including my son). My fellow mothers attend to uniforms, schedules, children’s knee injuries and… heartaches. I am touched by big-hearted parents who assist less privileged kids get that chance in a lifetime to play in a foreign land. Coaches try to go beyond physical training, to give our kids the much needed positive motivation to go through the rigors of this difficult sport. Our “yayas” and drivers who, aside from being official and unofficial equipment and field managers, have become the number one fan club and cheerleaders of the children. And our kids who simply want to play while making friends along the way...go on and make their parents happy…just by being happy. All this make my drained pocket and many a sleepless night so worthwhile.
This year, the Muntinlupa Little League (MLL) has been formed. This means that Alabang and its neighboring areas can have a chance in fielding teams to compete among each other and other Little League communities. Some of the children in these teams may be chosen to participate in the Philippine Little League Series to compete against teams in their age bracket from many different cities across the nation in the hope of representing the Philippines in the Little League Asia-Pacific regional tournament. This regional tournament is held every July in a different city in Asia wherein teams from cities like Guam, Bangkok, Hong Kong, Singapore and the Philippines compete for the chance to represent the Asia-Pacific region in the Little League World Series held in the United States every August. The last time the Philippines won in the Asia-Pacific regional tournament was in 2003 when the International Little League Association of Manila (ILLAM) senior division (15-16 year old boys) beat all odds to go all the way to the USA to complete against the best teams from all over the world.
Just this summer, a flagship MLL major division (11-12 year old boys) team participated in the Philippine Series hosted by Cabanatuan City. For a beginner, the MLL gave an inspiring showing by beating many teams in their division. This underdog team gave its all to reach the semi-finals and got the chance to compete against home-town Nueva Ecija, to whom they unfortunately lost to. Nevertheless, this was just the beginning.
My son, Matt, is now too old for the Little League Muntinlupa Charter. But he continues to play and is being nurtured by his original Little League Charter, ILLAM. He’s still having fun, making friends, traveling, and focusing on college, all because of baseball. What started out as a game for passing the time away, has opened up a world of opportunities for my son and countless other children.Surely, this “boring” sport called baseball isn’t JUST a game. Because of this “game”, and the caring people behind it, my son has turned from a shy, unsure little boy, to a more confident and friendly young man with a bat in his hand, good friends by his side, a goal on his mind, and a smile on his face. I’m sure he’s not the only one.
(Should you want to join your community to make Muntinlupa a fun place be and have your kids play baseball too, come to the Muntinlupa Little League registration day on June 24, 2006 at the Alabang Country Club. You may call Pureplay Sports Management Inc. at ( ) for more information. Come on outside and let’
posted by Leyteno @ 9:05 AM
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