Little
League offers one for record books
I saw it happen. Twenty feet away from where
I stood behind second base, one of the greatest
plays in baseball took place. It took some coaching,
but it happened.
According to the Society for American Baseball
Research, there have been 672 triple plays in
Major League Baseball in the last 131 seasons.
That is an average of only five per season.
Since 2000, the chance of seeing a tripl
e
play—all three outs completed on one continuous
play—in a given inning has been less than
1 in 10,000. The rarest and most fabulous feat
in Major League baseball, the unassisted triple
play has been accomplished only fourteen times
in MLB history.
I serve as an assistant coach for my son’s
team in the Marquette Rookie Little League.
This is the league which is a step up from Tee
Ball. It is made up of boys and girls seven
and eight years old. It is a developmental league
where players learn skills, teamwork and sportsmanship.
They learn this game is not about winning or
losing but about trying your best, having fun
and making new friends.
No score is kept. Players rotate positions after
a few innings. Every batter gets a chance at
six pitches and then can use the tee. The goal
is to hit the ball and become a runner. The
inning ends after six runs or three outs. If
we are lucky, we get in a full three innings
a game.
The coaches pitch to their own players and often
serve as back-up catcher behind the team catcher.
From this position, they can give batting stance
tips to their players. Coaches also are in the
field to assist players in locating their positions
and learning the decision making that goes along
with each play.
That’s what set me up to be in a very short
center field, with Luke Mattson playing second
base. The bases were loaded with no outs, as
they often are in this league. A pop fly was
hit in Luke’s direction.
All base runners began to advance, as they have
not yet mastered the concept of staying on base
until the ball is caught and then tagging-up
if the decision is made to advance to the next
base.
In our case, Luke made the catch for the first
out. The opposing team’s coaches called
for the runners to return to their bases. We
shouted to Luke to tag second base then throw
back to first. Luke put his foot on the base
before the runner returned for the second out.
“Now throw it to first base!” the
world seemed to call out.
As the throw was made back to first I held my
breath. It was caught before the runner returned
for out number three. A triple play, three outs
made on one continuous play.
Cheers and applause were combined with dances
of disbelief. I hugged the boy as we left the
field and said, “Luke you just got all
three outs at once!”
I said to his mother, “Do you realize what
he just did? A triple play! One of the greatest
plays in all of baseball. You have to let him
stay up an hour later tonight, get some ice
cream, call everyone he knows!”
According to Pat Morrison, Marquette Rookie
Little League coordinator, he has heard of a
few such plays in our league in the past few
years. I started playing softball in the fourth
grade and played until I was nearly forty. I
never saw a triple play, let alone participated
in one.
I could not find any record of a triple play
being accomplished in a Little League game organized
in this country since the mid 1800s, although
it probably has been witnessed on other ballfields
like ours . . .
—Leslie Bek
"Marquette
County free meals show importance of community"
Marquette County free meals show
importance of community
One of the most remarkable things about Marquette
County is the way we take care of our own. And
nowhere is it more evident than in the abundance
of community meal programs throughout the area.
Churches all over the county and the Salvation
Army have been reaching out to their communities
by providing a free meal to their neighbors—regardless
of means, social situation or religious affiliation.
These meals provide a place to come together
to enjoy a hot, nutritious meal and share ongoing
relationships with friends, neighbors and community.
The community meals are offered on set days
and times throughout each month (see list below).
All you have to do is show up and enjoy the
food and conversation. There are many different
circumstances that motivate people to attend
these free community meals, but the most common
theme is simple—to socialize.
Betsy Jessup of Messiah Lutheran Church of Marquette
explained that even though a diverse group makes
up the average eighty to 110 diners at their
meal, the goal of the attendees is clear—not
only to get a hot meal, but to mingle with old
friends and make new ones.
She said the large numbers of children who attend
really look forward to playing with other children,
and children of the appropriate age actually
get to participate in the whole process in a
very hands-on way, whether helping clean up
or participating in serving the meal.
Another example of the importance of community
socialization was provided by Patrick Brennen
of St. Peter Cathedral.
“The people we serve often have access
to food elsewhere,” he said.
Brennen said social interaction provided at
community meals often is the most fulfilling
aspect of the experience for diners and servers
alike. It also is apparent that this socialization
experience is very important to one particular
sector of the dining population—the elderly.
Jessup said the elderly benefit from this opportunity.
Many times they feel isolated and lonesome;
community meals are an excellent way to get
out, talk, and feel connected with others. Relationships
are fostered and quality of life is enhanced.
Other circumstances that bring people to the
meals are more practical. Pastor Ron Libey of
First Baptist Church of Gwinn said socializing
is only one factor that brings diners. At his
church, of the average fifty attendees, many
consist of older couples and families with children
trying to stretch their food budgets.
Since there never is a shortage of food at the
meal sites, they really help with family food
costs. In fact, many of the participating churches
provide enough food so the patrons can make
extra plates to take home with them for the
following day. Libey said his church has just
entered its eleventh year offering community
meals.
The average number of attendees varies from
church to church; however most of them serve
from fifty to 120.
This service is a benefit to all of the citizens
of Marquette County and should be taken advantage
of. A reoccurring theme found throughout is
that these community meals feed anyone hungry
for food or conversation—no questions and
no distinctions are made.
Community meals are important for Marquette
County not only because they feed the less privileged
among us, but because they provide a venue for
everyone to be involved in something positive
at the local level.
They bring about the power of closeness and
acceptance. It is clear that at the end of a
community meal, everyone leaves fulfilled—workers
and diners alike.
Unless noted, all meals are in the City of Marquette;
other locations will be posted at www.mqthealth.org
as discovered.
• Messiah Lutheran Church—6:00
p.m. on the first Wednesday of the month.
• St. Peter Cathedral—5:00 p.m.,
last Friday of the month.
• First United Methodist Church—5:00
to 6:30 p.m., second Wednesday of the month.
• St. Mark Cathedral—Thanksgiving
meal offered.
• St. Paul Episcopal—soup supper
at 6:00 p.m., last Wednesday of the month.
• Grace Lutheran Church (Gwinn)—5:30
to 6:15 p.m., fourth Wednesday of the month.
• United Methodist Church (Gwinn)—5:30
to 6:15 p.m., second Wednesday of the month.
• First Baptist Church (Gwinn)—
5:30 to 6:15 p.m., third Wednesday of the month.
• Salvation Army—noon to 1:00
p.m., Monday through Friday.
— Jaime Barber
Editor’s Note: Each semester,
the Marquette County Health Department accepts
student interns from NMU to review a community
health concern and report on how the community
addresses it. Barber is this year’s intern.
MCHD family health education coordinator Betsy
Little had a need to locate free meal sites
for the low-income population. She asked Jaime
to help. The poverty rate in Marquette County
is all too high at nearly eleven percent of
the population including six percent of all
families. Good nutrition can be difficult if
you don’t have the means to pay for it.
