Jerry Greene: Participating is a positive, not a negative

Jerry Greene: Participating is a positive, not a negative

Let's talk about sports participation awards for children.

("Good Lord, what are you doing, Greene? That story began with a James Harrison Instagram post eight days ago. Eight days! Mayflies only live one day and our social media lifespan isn't much longer! What's the point?")


Why resume this talk? Because, if you can remember that far back, Harrison's two young sons received "participation trophies" from a youth baseball league, but Harrison returned the trophies because his sons were not winners. Harrison felt he couldn't teach his sons to be men if they thought they could get rewards for just being there.

My friends, this brought back ugly memories. When I was a wee lad (I can hear you snickering!), I tried to participate in a baseball league.

I lasted a day.

Here's that story:

The way this league worked was with a one-day tryout and then a draft as the coaches chose their players. I knew I was in trouble when someone suggested I play right field. There's only one reason a kid gets placed in right field — in the hopes he won't touch the baseball.

I was all for it. Playing without ever touching the ball sounded like a good plan.

"Please don't hit the ball toward me. Please don't hit the ball toward me. Please don't..."

A towering fly ball was hit toward me.

I fearfully watched it. I moved forward. I moved back. I moved right. I moved left. I was back to my original position — and the ball landed 30 feet behind me.

A debate ensued if the result was an inside-the-park home run or a four-base error.

Later in the tryout game, I came to bat with two outs and the bases loaded. Of course. I stepped into the batter's box and glanced over at my team's dugout. The starters were all standing together with their gloves on their hands. And the catcher already was wearing his gear and mask.

Strike one. Strike two. Strike three. They would not be writing poems about me.

Then came the draft.

Somebody has to be the last player picked, right?


A week later at the first game, I had broken my glasses and managed to get myself knocked out, mercifully ending my season and career.

But you know what? They mailed me a "participation certificate" — and it was framed and placed on my bedroom wall.

And no, there was no false sense of entitlement. I earned that piece of paper!

What was the point, Greene?

Hopefully Harrison is a good father. He certainly has the right to return those trophies as a message to his sons, ages 6 and 8. But when he posts it for the rest of us to see, he must be trying to send a message to other fathers and sons. I would remind him that not all the kids who play sports have fathers who are in the NFL or who make a good salary doing other things. Or, in fact, not all kids have fathers at all. Couldn't a baseball program be a tool to give some kids a glimpse at a happier life? And is there any reason the enjoyment and meaning should only be acceptable to members of the championship team?

In the last eight days, many media members have spoken out to say Harrison's approach is the right approach. One reason frequently mentioned is that participation trophies or certificates promote a false sense of entitlement. That's not true. Stressing winning and early success are the cause. Go to any town and there are young athletes who are better than their peers. They have followers in parents, coaches or other fans who constantly tell them that they are the best. But a day always comes when they confront someone better — and the life-long entitled winner will be the athlete that can't handle that.

I loved my participation certificate. It made me feel good — but it never made me a fool.

Is Madden a master?

How old do you have to be to remember that John Madden, age 79, was the head coach of the Oakland Raiders from 1969 through 1978? "Pretty old" would be my guess. But his name still resonates because of the "Madden NFL" video game that is developed in Maitland by EA Tiburon. And give credit to Tiburon's player research because their player rankings are as good as any available. "Madden NFL 16" is released Tuesday. Here are some key player rankings:

•Top 5 QBs: 5. Andrew Luck, Indianapolis; 4. Ben Roethlisberger, Pittsburgh; 3. Drew Brees, New Orleans; 2. Tom Brady, New England; 1. Aaron Rodgers, Green Bay.

•Top 5 RBs: 5. Le'Veon Bell, Pittsburgh; 4. DeMarco Murray, Philadelphia; 3. Jamaal Charles, Kansas City; 2. Adrian Peterson, Minnesota; 1. Marshawn Lynch, Seattle.

•Top 5 WRs: 5. Julio Jones, Atlanta; 4. Odell Beckham Jr., ER Giants; 3. Calvin Johnson, Detroit; 2. Dez Bryant, Dallas; 1. Antonio Brown, Pittsburgh.

•Top 5 teams: 5. Indianapolis; 4. Denver; 3. Green Bay; Tie for 1st. New England and Seattle.

These are the notes, folks

•It was Wednesday and some guy on SportsCenter is talking about the Pirates. Pirates? Does he mean the Bucs? Then I realized he was talking about baseball, so my Tom Hanks cut in: "Are you talking about baseball? Baseball? There's no baseball in late August."

•Best news for fall TV is that John Noble ("Fringe") is joining "Elementary" as the father of Sherlock Holmes.

•Summerslam is tonight. Most matches look repetitive, so what we need are "heel/face turns." Good time for Dean Ambrose to betray Roman Reigns. And is WWE going to try to turn Seth Rollins into a face? Feels like it. But the turn I want is for Lana to go evil and reunite with Rusev.

•Feel bad for Washington Coach (and former Orlando Predator QB/HC) Jay Gruden. Starting QB Robert Griffin III concussed after no protection from starting offensive line. Will Gruden be there next year to choose the first player in the draft?

•Which NFL team has worst offensive line? Washington now challenging those annual dependables: Tennessee, Jacksonville and Tampa Bay.

•You must Google "Madden 16 movie trailer" from YouTube because it is the best five-minute action movie ever. Colin Kaepernick is perfection as Al Pacino's character from "Scent of a Woman."

•Finally, Sharon Stone ("Basic Instinct," remember how well she could sit in a chair?) is 57 and can be seen nude in September issue of "Harper's Bazaar." She also says she cannot get a date.

Jerry has one comment for Ms. Stone: Call me. Jerry will fantasize about that and other things when he makes frequent appearances on The Beat of Sports, hosted by Marc Daniels weekdays from 9 a.m. 'til noon on 740theGame. Most topics are open for discussion at Keep watching football and devote a minimum of four hours a day to fantasy football research, plus don't miss the Sentinel's special football preview Thursday. Enjoy.