As a dad and former little league coach, I'm grateful my son has played at McCabe Park

A little over a year ago I drove to McCabe Park to pick my son up from baseball practice and as I waited, I chatted with a man in the car next to me.

His 13-year-old son had just aged out of the league the year prior, but he had played there ever since T-Ball. On his way home from work, the gentleman had noticed the lights glowing from the ballpark and he just stopped by to reminisce about the days he spent there with his son. As we spoke, my son Jack walked up to the car, and when I helped him unload his bag the man smiled and said, “Cherish it while you can ... that last year goes by quickly.”

I think of those words often as I look forward to my son playing in the 12U district tournament at Goodlettsville this weekend. It’s his final time playing for McCabe, and it’s the first stage of competition leading up the Little League World Series. The competition is steep and the odds are stacked against us, but I’m confident our team will surprise some people.

Regardless of the outcome, I now find myself thinking about what it will be like after the tournament, on the other side of McCabe, and I feel an overwhelming sense of gratitude for my unique experience there.

'The McCabe Way' fosters healthy competition

McCabe Park Little League is a recreational league run almost exclusively by volunteers, the majority of whom are parents. For the past six years my son has been coached by parents who’ve thanklessly dedicated their time and skillsets to his development. Off the field, parents have worked to keep the park clean, maintain the equipment and concession stands, and meet regularly as board members to chart the future course of the league (typically in lawn chairs under the large hackberry tree near right field).

Their collective efforts have culminated in a culture affectionately referred to as “The McCabe Way” — a mindset that focuses heavily on developing players of any skill-level within an environment of healthy competition. For many years I took this mantra for granted, not knowing there was any alternative. Growing up, I was fortunate enough to have my dad coach my own little league team in a small town in Maryland, and we had a similar approach to baseball back then.

As the kids get older and approach larger stages of competition, the stakes and intensity inevitably rise. We’ve competed in several local tourneys in the run-up to the District Tournament, and in doing so we’ve met many similarly committed parents and coaches along the way. Yet I’ve also witnessed programs that are starkly different than ours, and I have come to learn that McCabe’s culture is not available to everyone.

These kids are well-rounded and learn to respect others

I’m just so grateful that McCabe Little League was available for my son.

He’s grown into a well-rounded ballplayer with a competitive mindset, one that is bounded by respect for his coaches and fellow players.

I can confidently say the same about every player on Jack’s team.

It has been an uncommon gift to bear witness to such growth over the years, and while I’m sad to see this chapter of his life close, I’m comforted by the fact that the seeds of McCabe culture have been well-sown in that ballpark, and that their fine traditions will continue for many years to come.

Mark Phillips is a retired little league coach currently working as a professor of entrepreneurship at Belmont University. He and his wife, Uyen, are the proud parents of Jack (12) and Ruby (7), both of whom have played ball at McCabe Park.

This article originally appeared on Nashville Tennessean: McCabe Park has formed fine little league baseball players and humans