On Sunday, January 19 during the 7 year old evaluations, one of the volunteer coaches who was assisting with the process decided that he would chase away some birds that had gathered on the diamond. His choice to use a batted ball was a very poor choice, hitting one of the birds and severely injuring it. Clearly he did not think about this possibility, nor did he intend for the bird to be harmed. There is no justification for this conduct, and the League will take the necessary steps to deal with this, including punishment and suspension.
More importantly, on behalf of the League and our Board of Directors, I am embarrassed and ashamed that this could happen. I apologize for this incident, and so does the person who did this terrible act. We want all parents and players to know that we certainly do not approve of this kind of conduct and we will do everything that we can to deal with it fairly and correctly. We ask that you speak with your children about this incident, and explain how our League feels about it and that we apologize to them if they witnessed it. While adults may be able to understand how this could happen, a 7 year old may not, and may be confused. Please help us by taking this step, we believe that it is important to discuss.
Please feel free to call me or write me an email, my contact information is on the website at www.alamedalittleleague.org. Again, I deeply regret having to write this letter and pray that I don’t have to do this again. Best of luck in this 2020 baseball season!
Ron Matthews
President, Alameda Little League