They're ready. After a season of baseball and playoff games, a group of 8 and 9 year-old boys has continued practicing daily, getting ready for The Tournament. They've fought searing heat, ravenous insects and screaming coaches. Today, they even contended with a dive-bombing buzzard who mistook a few outfielders as dead meat.The fun starts tonight.
Sixteen teams from all over the Lehigh Valley will gnaw at each other over the next several days. On Sunday, one will walk away as winner of Coplay's 23rd Annual 9 and Under Baseball Tournament. The victor will get a trophy of a giant mosquito, about 90 feet tall.
Will it be Lehigh Little League? Lower Nazareth? Salisbury? Coplay? Mountainville?
My prediction? Northwest (Bethlehem) will walk away with the honors. That's my grandson's team, of course.
The kids can't wait. Hell, I can't wait. All season long, Little League rules prohibit the use of any bat whose barrel is bigger than 2 1/4 inches. But in tournament play, those monstrous big barrels are allowed. They're heavier and a bit harder to swing, but they make a difference. All these kids will be swinging these war clubs in high school, so this is a good experience for Little Leaguers.
Kids and dads alike have marvelled as these bats would appear, one at a time. They all have names and have been duly christened. My grandson's bat, Little Red, is perfect for him. Most prefer the Silver Surfer, a gigantic silver Louisville Slugger.
It's too late for Lehigh County Commissioner Bill Leiner. His house is getting bombed. If you live anywhere within a five-mile radius of Coplay, board up your windows. Better yet, stop by and watch these kids play baseball the way it's meant to be played, as fun. Just one inning will put a smile on your face. If you can find the one adult who looks most clueless, I'll give you some dill pickle flavored sunflower seeds. They've been a big hit. Even the bugs like them.
I gave some to the buzzard.
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