Letter: Baseball memories

Ron@lasvegassun.com

Friday, May 18, 2001 | 9:54 a.m.

I am 50 years old and have never responded to a newspaper column before. I am an avid baseball fan and really enjoyed Ron Kantowski's Thursday column on sandlot baseball ("Sandlot ball missing in Las Vegas.")

I have helped a friend coach Little League the past 10 years. The mind-set of the kids playing ball today is totally different from when I was a kid. Sunrise meant you got together with your friends and started playing ball. Sunset meant you needed to hurry up and play another game before it got too dark to see.

The middle of the street was our sandlot. Avoiding a parked or moving car was considered a talent. A scraped knee or elbow was a badge of honor.

I can't believe today how many kids react as if they are going to the dentist if their parents make them play baseball. God forbid if they have to practice on a field with an all-dirt infield.

By the way, a broken broomstick and a wad of tin foil was all we needed.

-- WALTER GIBBONS

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