And so the pussification of baseball spreads. There is no magic pitch count number.

Regardless of whether there’s a magic number or not, I can’t believe you can say with a straight face that two high school age kids throwing 347 pitches between the two of them isn’t detrimental.

These two kids have about a 1-1,000,000 chance of playing in the MLB. This might be their one shining moment in life. Getting taken out at 100 pitches won’t register in their memory banks other than opportunity lost. Winning or losing this game will.

Absolutely irrelevant. These are two kids who are out there doing what their adult coaches tell them to do. There’s no glory or honor in this.

[Roosevelt quote]

Nothing in there has anything to do with pushing yourself beyond the limits of common sense. However, since you think taking care of kids is “pussification”, here’s another quote:
The moment you declare a set of ideas to be immune from criticism, satire, derision or contempt; freedom of thought becomes impossible
Salman Rushdie

[Once upon a time, I co-moderated a football message board where we actually had a button labeled "Sarcasm.") A poster clicked on the button, and "(Sarcasm)" appeared in the post. We could use something like that on this here blog right here.]

These two kids have about a 1-1,000,000 chance of playing in the MLB. This might be their one shining moment in life. Getting taken out at 100 pitches won’t register in their memory banks other than opportunity lost. Winning or losing this game will. This almost 102 year old quote is incredibly appropriate.

“It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat.”

Theodore Roosevelt

/sarcasm font

And not to be on my high horse too much, but the Coach has their interest at heart (as we all would). Other coaches would coach and use an arm without thinking of long term effects. If one coach does, he/she is at an immediate disadvantage and will more than likely not win too many contest, resulting in them not being a coach anymore. So I understand why any coach would be driven to ride a talent as much as possible if works to their advantage, I just don’t agree with it.

My son’s Little league has a limit, 2 innings or 35 pitches, whichever comes first. It’s kinda low but I guess since they’re 9-10 it’s okay by me. My son was on fire last night and could have pitched a gem. 2 innings, 25 pitches 5 ko’s without a base runner. Proud dad moment? Check.

http://www.twitlonger.com/show/h00jqv