After six weeks of watching numerous Little League games being played under the first-year policy of rotary lineups, I just have one thing to say: UNCLE!
And, from talking to others, I’m not alone in feeling that way
To this day, I still don’t understand why Little League decided to go radical in making rotary lineups — or a continuous batting order (CBO) — policy. My only guess, and, again, I’ve heard many people whisper the same thing, is that it was instituted in an effort to appease X amount of parents who complained about their sons/daughters not getting the same amount of playing time as others.
And that’s a shame.
For starters, it’s not real baseball/softball being played and everybody knows it. Isn’t Little League supposed to help our kids learn to play the game the right way? Isn’t it supposed to help teach them to win with class and lose with dignity?
Rotary lineups, no matter what, is not playing baseball/softball the right way. And the kids know it themselves.
Look, making an All-Star team is a great accomplishment and something every kid should be proud of. But the bottom line is, just like most sports, Little League baseball and softball has its share of star players and role players. The star players, for the most part, have earned a right to be in the starting lineup, bat near the top of it and play shortstop, centerfield or be on the mound, just to name a few positions. There’s a reason why managers bat the stars at the top of the lineup — they want them to get as many at-bats as possible.
My point is not meant to disparage the players who, in previous years, didn’t start or only got one at-bat a game. They deserve to be on the team and deserve, at the very least, to get one at-bat a game. But I’ve seen several contests during this All-Star season where a team trailed by a run or two and could have benefitted from the lineup turning over to the leadoff hitter and beyond after the No. 9 hitter batted.
Let’s hope when the 2023…
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