Is a local Little League district responding to the Astros' cheating scandal with a harsher sentence than Major League Baseball?
In the wake of Houston's sign-stealing, administrator Bob Bertoni from the District 16/31 Little League - which features teams out of Pennsylvania's Wyoming Valley area - said this week he's barred the use of "Astros" as a nickname.
Before you go and rant about what seems on the surface like an odd move, let him explain his decision.
Per the Citizens Voice:
“We are suspending the Astros from our district,” Bertoni said. “In our pledge it says to play fair and that has been our pledge forever. All our leagues represent one major league team or another. To me, we need to use this as an educational tool and teach the kids there are consequences for actions. The Astros cheated and broke the rules. Our kids idolize these teams and players, and this is a team we don’t want to idolize.”
Also of note, Bertoni isn't the first to bar the Astros from his league; last week, leagues in California started the movement by banning the nickname.
Frankly, while it doesn't seem like a necessary choice, it's probably a smart one. Kids love to tease each other, especially in sports. Sticking a group of kids on a team named after the Cheaters Of The Moment is just begging for one game gone awry to lead to weeks of name-calling and secretive teasing about a kid cheating during the game.
MLB
Is it a big deal, in the grand scheme of things? Of course not. We're talking about Little League baseball. But Bertoni's choice to dodge the possibility entirely is probably smart.
Rob Manfred, the ball is back in your glove.
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