As you’re reading this, I have left Augusta to take my son Caleb back to his mother’s house for most of the remaining summer. He has been with me for most of the events I’ve covered the last couple of weeks both in Augusta and in Derby when I was helping them out last week.

Caleb got to be what every kid wants to be while in Derby: an autograph seeker. He got a baseball and had the Derby Twins sign it before their Jayhawk League matchup against the El Dorado Broncos. Then he started to walk over to the Broncos’ side for them to sign the same ball.

I told my son that it’s not good etiquette — he doesn’t completely understand the word, but he has an idea — and would hurt the Twins’ feelings if he had the Broncos sign the ball. Caleb has his mother’s stubborn streak and my determination, but he also understood what I was saying; so it didn’t completely surprise me that he was in the Broncos’ dugout a few minutes later with a second baseball in hand.

The game was entertaining as the hometown Twins won, but as we adults are prone to do sometimes, there were a few calls that the Derby fans didn’t like and they told the umpires about it. Then my son came to me and asked why everyone is mad, and I told him they were mad at the umpire. Caleb said, “They shouldn’t be mad at him. He’s the person in charge. They’re acting like kids.”

Where he got that, I don’t know; but it does lead me to something.

There have been conversations here at the Gazette asking how would I react as Caleb would get older; and it made me realize that I don’t know how I’d react.  I hope I’d react like I have during my time as a sports writer when watching my son play.

I’ve seen games from youth league to professional where we, as parents, jump on an official for making a call that we don’t agree with while our kids, turn around embarrassed for what they are hearing from those who are supposed to be our teachers in how we’re supposed to be in life.

We, as parents, have to set a good example for our kids, and I am the first to say that I fall short just like everybody else. If there’s a problem, let the coach handle it. I know this may be a futile effort, but everything starts with the right word, maybe even from a seven-year old.