Copyright TODAY
While much of the nation is fixated on the Dodgers and Blue Jays as they face off in the World Series, social media can’t get enough of a different, much cuter match up. Two teams in Watkinsville, Georgia, became Instagram stars after The Yard Training posted the highlights from their mic’d up T-ball game. The kids, ages 4-6, “had a blast,” said Phil Roberts, Executive Director of The Yard Training. Roberts told TODAY it was one of the first games for the new league. “This fall, we started a six on six Indoor Tee Ball League. By having a smaller number of players on each team, players see more action, get more training, and have more fun,” he said. Roberts credited Marketing Director Janie Henderson for the idea of putting microphones on the kids. “Since they [the kids] really don’t have any history of being ‘mic’d up,’ their responses and interactions were perfectly genuine,” he said. Genuine — and hilarious. “How can you hit like that?” one asks another. “Cause I’m four,” is the response. “I’m four too!” reponds the child who posed the question. Another baseballer explains how a home run works. “And it like goes all the first, you like run all the bases, until you get to home. That’s what happens when you get a home run.” One player is heard pumping himself up: “I have to run, and I will catch it!” Roberts told TODAY he was surprised how much the players were talking. “The content was priceless, and it created a vibe for our league that quickly became contagious.” Roberts said The Yard Training believes “sports build community. It is our hope to provide a positive environment of training for baseball and softball, to help people reach their goals, and play the game they love.” And as for the World Series, Roberts said it’s hard to not to root for the “underdog” Blue Jays. But there’s a bigger picture to look at when looking at the Series through the eyes of a person leading young players. “In working with young athletes. We want them to emulate players like Shohei Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, and Mookie Betts,” he said. “My overall preference is for both teams to play the game the right way so that we can show young athletes the benefits of competing at a high level with respect and effort. To this point, we haven’t been disappointed.”
