For the Love of the Game

Photo Courtesy: Milford Little League

Something to Look Forward To

On March 21, 2020, Milford Little League was scheduled to have its spring evaluations, but that was not the case.

Instead Mike Liebelt, the president of Milford Little League, placed the season on hold after Connecticut Gov. Ned Lamont shut down the state due to COVID-19. After making that decision, Liebelt had to figure out what to do next.

Liebelt along with his team had multiple hour-long phone calls. The focus was the affect their decision would have on the 650-700 athletes that participate in Milford Little League.

“It was a very carefully and well thought out discussion, but in the end, we were all on the same page,” Leibelt said. “Our goal was to give the kids something to look forward to, something to do. I think canceling the little league season earlier, or had we canceled it, it would have taken that hope away from the kids, we did not want to do that.”

Milford Little League was not alone, another shoreline town, Madison, Connecticut, had to make the same decision.

“When the pandemic initially hit, we had two choices to fold up and say when it gets better, we will deal with it, or we had the decision to say we will postpone it indefinitely,” President of Madison Little League Matthew Anderson said. “We have 400 kids that play in Madison Little League, and we only had three people ask for a refund.”

Just like Madison Little League, Milford Little League offered its parents and athletes an out. While it costs a parent between 75-180 dollars to register their child, Liebelt offered each parent a refund, or a credit for a future season. With that structure set in place, Liebelt remained hopeful that Milford Little League would play the season.

Rely on Your Community

Milford’s motto is; “Small City with a Big Heart.” This motto describes the town completely. The fact that the members of the Milford community wanted to provide a season putting all safety measures in place says it all.

While opening day for Milford Little League was set for April 18, that day would come, and no games were played. Rather, coaches, parents and athletes had to wait a bit longer. Although Little League International told its members to postpone its seasons until May 11, Milford Little League was instructed to wait longer as Connecticut was not ready to reopen yet.

After three months of waiting, finally the day came. On June 7, Gov. Lamont announced that Connecticut would move into its phase 2 opening plan on June 17. In those guidelines, the governor announced that low risk youth sports can be played, which meant little league baseball was back.

After hearing that news, Liebelt and his board members put together the protocols needed for a safe season. Those protocols had to adhere to the guidelines set by Little League International and the state of Connecticut and had to be approved by the Milford Department of Health.

Some of the guidelines Milford Little League proposed included: no sharing of equipment, masks must be worn, a 30-minute buffer in between games to allow time to disinfect commonly used areas, and players could not gather in dugouts.

Along with those guidelines, Milford Little League searched for disinfectant, wipes and hand sanitizer. These were very hard to come by, so the league had to be resourceful and look to the community for assistance.

With limited supplies, some Milford Firefighters and local paramedics taught the league how to make their own disinfectant. Also, Liebelt turned to his community by writing a letter to the Milford Professional Firefighters IAFF asking for help.

That letter ended up in the hands of Jeff Luciano, the President of the Milford Professional Firefighters IAFF, and was read aloud at their monthly meeting on June 28. With no hesitation, Luciano and his team decided to donate $100 for supplies.

Since before Luciano joined the Milford Fire Department, he stated that firefighters in Milford have been coaching and sponsoring Milford Little League teams. Over the years, their relationship grew.

“Having the connections, we do in town, and not only that, but a lot of our guys that live in town their kids were directly affected by it (COVID-19),” Luciano said. “We usually donate every year, and this year we wanted to donate to get them up and running, so they can have some kind of season.”

With the help from the Milford Fire Department, Milford Little Leaguers were able to begin their season on July 6.

“We are a community at the end of the day, when you are a volunteer organization like a little league,” Liebelt said. “Rely on your community to serve its purpose. It’s why I love our league; a lot of people work hard to make sure we can do what we do.”

Beyond the Fence

We may live in a world nowadays filled with face masks, social distancing, but the game of baseball is the same. If you visit one of the 12 little league fields in Milford, CT. you still hear the pop of the glove, the crack of the bat and parents cheering.

If you take a closer look, you will see the leagues COVID-19 protocols in place, parents sitting six feet apart, wearing masks and little leaguers that are not playing are sitting outside the fence.

In addition, Coaches must limit their contact with their players and sanitize all the equipment.

Umpires had to change their protocols as well. Nowadays, the umpire is calling balls and strikes from behind the pitcher’s mound. According to Joseph Trapani, the Umpire Coordinator of Milford Little League, this was quite a challenge since they are used to making calls as it reaches the catcher’s mitt from behind.

Now that baseball has returned in Milford, a bit of normalcy has returned as well.

“I find it necessary for our children to have some outlet for stress that the times has brought them,” Jannette Linarte Rees, mother of a Milford Little Leaguer said. “Exercise for overall wellness. Socialization in person rather than on social media.”

With the advantage of social interaction, sportsmanship and fun, this season Liebelt noticed a change in some to the athletes registering to play.

A lot of players who do not normally participate in baseball or softball have joined because their normal activities have been disrupted due to the pandemic.

Even though new athletes have joined, the effect this pandemic will have on the future of youth sports is still unknown.

“We are still a little cautious about our next season,” Liebelt said. “Do we still need to have Covid regulations in place, are we going to start on time, are we going to be able to conduct a normal season that we are accustomed too and those are still things that are up in the air.”

While the lasting effects of the pandemic is unknown, Milford will continue to provide an outlet for its youth.

“It means the world to them” Liebelt said. “At the end of the day when you see the smiles on those kids faces when they are out playing a sport, having fun and just enjoying the game that is why we do it.”

It’s all for the love of the game.