I wasn't going to post this in this thread originally but it fits. This happened in our little league a few years back. Check it out:
I coached sports for 6 years in my town and one of the greatest moments in those years involved a 7 year old boy named Robert Maichle. Robert is autistic and played on one of the teams in the league in town. Robert had less than average baseball skills.
One late Summer evening four years ago my team, the Reds, played Robert’s team, the Mets. As the innings wound down Robert came to bat with the bases loaded and his team down by two runs. I called time, went out onto the field and called all my players to the pitcher’s mound. I also called the coaches from the other team to the mound and asked everyone to get in real close together so nobody else could hear what we were doing.
I told all the kids on my team that we were going to let Robert bat until he hit the ball……. And once he hit it we were going to make sure that he didn’t get out. I told them to do whatever they had to do to let him get a hit. I figured they would score a run and we would still win. But then something amazing happened.
Robert hit the ball to my best player at shortstop…… and he let it roll between his legs with a big smile on his face. Every parent on both teams was yelling “RUN ROBERT!!”. Then the left fielder picked up the ball and threw it over the second baseman’s head, again with a big smile. And Robert ran to second with every parent cheering.
Robert turned for third and the right fielder threw the ball WAY over the third baseman’s head…. Smiling. Robert rounded third and headed for home while every parent and kid on that field cheered. Robert finished off the play with a perfect slide into home. As Robert’s team mates mobbed him every kid on my team just stood on the infield cheering with huge smiles on their faces. Grand Slam! Mets win, we lose!! But there were no losers that day.
Robert’s Mom came to me a few minutes later and hugged me and thanked me and all my kids. Robert’s Dad simply stood in the third base coaches box with tears running down his face.
