A scary play turned into a touching moment at the 2022 Little League World Series on Tuesday afternoon in the Southwest Region championship game between Texas East and Oklahoma. There might not be a better example of sportsmanship this year.
This Little League World Series hug after a batter was hit in the head is perfect sportsmanship
Sportsmanship at its best.
Ricky O'Donnell has covered basketball at all levels for more than a decade at SB Nation. He’s currently the Associate Director of Programming.
Oklahoma hitter Isaiah “Zay” Jarvis was hit in the head with a pitch from Kaiden Shelton of Texas East in the first inning with two runners on. The pitch appeared hit him in the earflap, and knocked his helmet straight off his head. After several moments on the ground, the Jarvis took first base. Then he called timeout and walked over to the pitcher, who was clearly struggling after hitting his opponent in the head.
The two embraced on the mound before other Texas East teammates joined in to comfort Shelton.
The Little League World Series produces some amazing moments every year, and this is definitely one of them. In the majors, a pitch like this very often produces a benches-clearing brawl. In Little League, the players hug and exchange words of encouragement. The children really are our future.
It’s easy to get caught up in the beefs or viral highlights or off-court drama when watching sports, but its purest form this is about respectful competition between the lines. These little leaguers showed the whole country how it should be done.
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