Cheering Changes Things

I never expected to be called a “baseball mom.” I grew up in a home where sports weren’t a priority. I played a few league sports, but because I wasn’t very athletic, I didn’t stay with it very long. We never watched sports on TV, and by the time I was an adult, I thought baseball was so boring. My husband had the opposite experience, and so I knew our children would be involved at a level that I had never faced.

My kids started playing baseball and softball when they were four or five. As a mom on the sideline, there was much I didn’t know. I literally thought that the numbers on the back of their jersey were their batting order. But I began to learn along with my kids, and I loved cheering them on.

Ten years later, I know that rec ball has completely shaped our family – in the best way possible. We’ve made some of our best friends and enjoyed memorable seasons, tournaments, and trips. But looking back over the last several seasons – one thing stands out as my favorite.

I love hearing friends and strangers cheer for my kid by name.

In team sports, when there is a win, there is always one or two players that usually make it happen. Of course, there’s no I in TEAM, but each success has an MVP. While this is still true in baseball, every single kid gets at least one at-bat. One chance at the plate. One faceoff with the pitcher. One shot to hit the ball, advance the batters, and score a run. It can be the difference between winning and losing. So, everyone in the stands is cheering for that one kid to have their very best day.

Last summer, we played in a state tournament. In a double-elimination bracket, we lost our first game, and every game after that was a battle. In one of the games, it was the last inning. The score was tied, and we had two outs when my son came up to bat. This is my most unfavorite scenario as a parent – when you feel like everything rests on them.

Everyone in the place was cheering him on while I could barely breathe. Several pitches later, he walked. And I couldn’t have been more relieved. After the game, another parent came to me in tears. She told me that she could sense that he was carrying the weight of the game and that she just started praying for him. Her prayers were answered, and we won that game! And if you’ve never been involved in rec ball and you are wondering why people are so crazy about it – this is one of the reasons. When you cheer for each other, you become family.

Why? Because cheering can change the whole game.

Hebrews 12 tells us we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses. I imagine those saints that have gone before us, gripping the fence and cheering with all they’ve got. Some of them know me and my family, and some do not, but they all want to see us succeed.  

This game of life is so hard. I’ve been up to bat a few times when I expected to strike out and lose it all. And even though you won’t win every game, it’s best to learn to cheer for each other. Helping one another – win or lose – is what makes a difference when you are down. Because when I hear strangers cheer for my kids, I cheer for their kids too. And that’s what makes a family.

Let’s cheer each other on today.