|
|
 |
 |   |
EVENTS Fantasy Central Inside Game Video Plus Statitudes Your Turn Message Boards Email Newsletters Golf Guide Cities 
CNNSI.com GROUP
COMMERCE
|  |
Reactions: Little League dilemma Posted: Tuesday August 28, 2001 6:46 PMUpdated: Tuesday August 28, 2001 6:46 PM Birth records uncovered by Sports Illustrated in the Dominican Republic suggest that Danny Almonte may have had an unfair advantage against his 12-year-old competition. We asked CNNSI.com users if Almonte is overage what should be done? A sample of the responses follows: At this time there isn't much that can be done. The teams that were beaten by Almonte, such as State College suffered the most. There is no way to make them whole. Since Little League is based on the integrity of the adults in charge of the program the negative publicity Almonte will receive will discourage similar future acts.
If it is determined that Almonte is older than 12 years old, no sanctions should be taken against the team. Almonte's parents presented documentation to the team showing that he was the appropriate age. I do not believe the team should have to go to the Dominican Republic to verify the authenticity of the documents. The team presented their players on the faith of the documents it received.
It's a little late now to do anything if in fact Almonte turns out to be overage. In the future the powers that be need to be more vigilant in this area. If it turns out that any of the players or coaches on the team knew of his actual age then Little League Baseball has failed in getting the message across. It's not about winning at any cost.
The Bronx team should be forced to forfeit their third-place finish and should be banned from competing in Little League World Series play for the next year. I know that punishes the kids, who are innocent, but it would put pressure on the entire organization to police this kind of stuff. Also, any knowing adult should be banned from having any participation in Little League, perhaps permanently. Harsh, yes, but it's a travesty having this kind of thing happen, and it's totally unfair to the kids.
I think that someone needs to be held accountable for this situation. It's not the boy's fault. It's his parents and coach's. The rest of the teams that finished below the Bronx team should all be moved up one position and the team should be banned from further participation in the Little League World Series. It was obvious that the "Bronx Bombers" were the "Bronx Bloopers" without Almonte on the mound.
If it is true that Almonte is overage, then the team he played for and the coaches should be held responsible. The team should lose their Little League charter for a minimum of five to 10 years. The coaches should be banished from coaching Little League for the same time frame. Almonte himself should not be punished because he is a child and can not be held responsible for legal documents being counterfeited.
I blame this on the media and television coverage. Winning at whatever cost has damaged the integrity of Little League. It is no longer just a game, and that's the tragedy. Who ever is responsible should be banned from Little League for life.
First, they must find out if the coaches knew about this or were ignorant that he was overage. I know I would feel cheated if I were on a different team and played against Almonte. As for what they should do, they should discredit all his stats.
The responsibility lies with each team's local baseball program. If found guilty, that organization should be banned from the series for five years. This kind of punishment would hopefully create an effective deterrent so that each local organization would police itself.
Since it is over and done with there is not much that can be done. Obviously, the team should forfeit any game he participated in. If it can be established that his coaches or league officials were in on the deception then all of them should be banned from Little League Baseball for life. I just feel sorry for all the teams that played against the Bronx, particularly Oceanside.
It would not be fair to punish the other children if, in fact, the allegations are true. The only realistic option I see is to strike whatever records the young man set in the Little League World Series from the record books.
If it is true, then the damage has been done. Little League is based on honor, and the honor has been broken. Dissolve the Rolando Paulino Little League, and ban the responsible parties from any involvement with organized youth sports. I don't feel that the people involved are bad but just lost sight of what we are trying to get done. That is playing baseball and creating lifelong fans of the game. Aggressive play is welcome on the field not on birth certificates.
|
