When Illinois moved to Phase 4, Little League games resumed. With a condensed schedule they have either 3 games/week or 2 games plus a practice. Boy, you could tell those kids had been inside for 3 1/2 months! They had cobwebs to knock off and very little physical stamina. But William had a great catch as 2nd baseman to end the 1st inning of their first game and score a run after good base running even though he was walked every at bat. As the season has progressed, the boys are becoming much more skilled and natural. William has been playing mostly 2nd base and left field. He had a great game this week where he was 3-for-3 with strong hits and also allowed 3 runners to score! Our next door neighbors also came to cheer him on at one of his games last week. He enjoyed having them there!
John is an assistant coach and during games is usually the 1st base coach. But he did get to be the co-head coach at one game since the head coach was out of town. Usually our neighborhood has nearly two teams of our own, but with so many families choosing to sit out this summer due to the unknowns, we only make up 1/2 a team. But the other parents/kids we were paired up with this year share the same camaraderie and good spirit of our neighborhood teams, so it's been nice to get to know them as well. And we knew one family already - William's best friend from daycare. So that was a nice surprise.
Due to COVID precautions, the teams don't shake hands after games - they line up and tip hats to one another. And each kid has his own equipment including batting helmet and bat. They also fist bump or elbow bump instead of high five. But no one wears masks, and I worry about the kids being kids in the dugout. Parents make some attempt to social distance as spectators - moving our lawn chairs around to stay far enough away from one another. I usually have to move my chair a few times before a game in order to create space if people get too close for my comfort.
John is an assistant coach and during games is usually the 1st base coach. But he did get to be the co-head coach at one game since the head coach was out of town. Usually our neighborhood has nearly two teams of our own, but with so many families choosing to sit out this summer due to the unknowns, we only make up 1/2 a team. But the other parents/kids we were paired up with this year share the same camaraderie and good spirit of our neighborhood teams, so it's been nice to get to know them as well. And we knew one family already - William's best friend from daycare. So that was a nice surprise.
Due to COVID precautions, the teams don't shake hands after games - they line up and tip hats to one another. And each kid has his own equipment including batting helmet and bat. They also fist bump or elbow bump instead of high five. But no one wears masks, and I worry about the kids being kids in the dugout. Parents make some attempt to social distance as spectators - moving our lawn chairs around to stay far enough away from one another. I usually have to move my chair a few times before a game in order to create space if people get too close for my comfort.
