A losing situation for everybody

That's the only way I can think to sum up Sunday in a nutshell.

It should have been the best of times for Keystone Little League. Eleven members of the Clinton County squad should have been having a blast, playing baseball against kids from another state to have the chance to take part in the crown jewel of all youth sporting events: The Little League World Series. Coaches should have been strategizing, and parents and fans should have been cheering their heads off.

And as the rain continued to fall, the worst of times immediately set upon us.

I can not tell you how many times we heard the phrase "window of opportunity" today in the press box. Probably at least 20 times. It usually followed the sentence, "We are still in a holding period."

After about the fifth time around 2 p.m., it got old really fast.

I can't say why the game was started at all, because the weather did not look good for Sunday. We were told any game wouldn't be started if the chance to finish it wasn't there. Well, I watched that field for nine hours during the rain delay, and not once did it look like it was in playing shape. Not once.

We figured at some point, common sense would take over and the game would be shifted to Monday - or at least try to be shifted to Monday because the forecast doesn't look good for today, either.

I have a hard time understanding why it took 9 hours and 13 minutes for it to sink in that the game wasn't happening.

It was frustrating, because there was nothing we could do. Passing along updates and keeping everyone as best informed as we could was all we had on our plate, and half the time, the fork was missing to dish out the information.

That dinner saucer didn't come with a free dessert, either.

I feel most bad for the kids and their parents. Keystone parents had their bags packed up and were ready to head back to the comfy and familiar confines of Clinton County, only to be forced to book a hotel for at least one more night so they could watch their children play baseball.

It is unfair to everyone, folks. There was no winner Sunday, and today, there might not be one either. New Jersey parents are in the same boat, and they are just as upset as everyone else.

I wish I had the right answer, but I'm afraid no matter what happens or when this game is played - Little League officials in Williamsport will have to eventually answer a lot of questions it doesn't want to. People have the right to know why the game was put off so long, and why fans and parents spent the day huddled under a pavilion catching glimpes of their kids when they appeared from the dorms.

I hope the kids' best interest is still a top priority today, because if it gets lost in all this, why are we even playing anyway?