LITTLE LEAGUE'S LATERZA NEEDS TO PIPE DOWN

I'm sorry, but who's this grouchy old man and what the hell does he know about celebrity and the New York Yankees?

Bob Laterza is the Staten Island Little League coach, and his team was in Williamsport when the Yankees and Tigers decided to make a visit to the complex and hang with the kids.  It was a pretty incredible gesture if you ask me. But not everyone was happy. Enter Laterza who became cranky and accused Aaron Judge of ignoring his guys. 

SILive.com writes:

"... the outspoken skipper, who says his team of New Yorkers was promised a special meet-and-greet with the Bronx Bombers at the International Grove, where the Little Leaguers are staying.

While Yankees players DJ LeMahieu and Tim Hill showed up -- not many others did. Laterza noted that Yankees stars Gerrit Cole, Nestor Cortes and Jasson Dominguez, as well as manager Aaron Boone and former outfielder Nick Swisher, met with the team later on at Bowman Field, but there was still one notable omission, in particular.

Where’s Aaron Judge? ...

“How about turning around or wave to New York and the kids that think you’re a hero?” chimed Laterza. “They are the ones who pay your salary.”

“They were disappointed,” he added. “Maybe he’ll want to make up for it and come and see them.”

Now if you know anything about how this stuff works, you know that the players aren't the ones make the schedules, picking where they go, etc. They are selected and scheduled by a small committee of people trying to figure out the best, fastest, easiest scenario to get the MLB Players seen and moving so it doesn't cause chaos.  

And so, Aaron Judge had no say in this. Aaron Judge did was he was told to do.  And let's be honest Coach Laterza, if you really wanted that the happen, all you had to do was ask and maybe they could have accommodated you. 

But let's take it further... who the hell do you think you are?  And why are guys like DJ LeMahieu not important?  What makes your team so special?  

It is my opinion that MLB was trying to do the right thing to help promote the Williamsport tournament and sharing this special moment with the kids.  It wasn't an autograph signing.  You've heard the expression in Little League, not everyone gets a trophy.  Well Coach Laterza, in this scenario, Judge is the trophy, and your team didn't get it... GET OVER IT.

Sometimes you get what you get, and you still smile and move on because in this scenario IT'S ALL ABOUT THE KIDS. MLB did the best they could.  Everyone wants to meet Aaron Judge... many will never meet him. Suck it up and move on.

Thankfully the Yankees fired back.

SILive.com writes that the Yankees released a statement:

"Our entire roster spent the day in Williamsport connecting with as many Little Leaguers as they possibly could prior to our game, including the team from Staten Island,’’ the statement read. “We commend all of our players for devoting their complete attention to the hundreds of kids who literally walked step-by-step alongside them from the moment the Yankees landed in Williamsport through the entirety of the evening. Our players were unequivocally committed to making the experience what it was intended to be – a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for young baseball players and their families from around the world to have meaningful and genuine interaction with some of Major League Baseball’s greatest players.”

Now it's my opinion that the Yankees made statement but really didn't need to.  In fact, the organization was classy enough to do that and end it. 

Now the question is will Laterza shut up and move on.  Look, the Staten Island team did something great, but it was reported that Judge was doing an autograph signing when Laterza suggests Judge should have met his team. Again, the MLB schedule dictated that, Judge didn't snub anyone on purpose.  

And so, I am just tired of cranky people that expect to get everything they want.  The Yankees, the Tigers and MLB did a great thing for the Little League... Laterza just needs to shut up.