This One's For All The Crazy Baseball Moms!

There is a nasty rumor going around the travel baseball community.  I know it's always best to ignore rumors and go straight to the source for the truth, but why give up all that delicious drama, right?  The latest rumor is...Baseball Moms are Crazy.  Personally,  I find that incredibly hard to believe!  Moms...Crazy?  Whatever.  

But in the interest of good journalism, I thought I might dig a little deeper and see if I could uncover the reason for such a false accusation.


I have a unique perspective on the label, crazy.  I think my friend, Michelle, started introducing me as "Crazy Sheri" years ago and the nickname stuck like pine tar to a baseball bat.  Now, almost all of my baseball mom friends use that nickname when referencing me. Thanks Michelle! I need to add there are varying degrees of crazy, from harmless to certifiable.  What follows is a compilation of characteristics associated with the so called Crazy Baseball Mom rumor. None of the following case studies are aimed at a specific crazy, baseball mom. However, names have been changed to protect the innocent. 

The Clueless Mom

Everyone knows at least one Clueless Mom.  This is the mom you can't say anything bad about. She is the salt of the earth, always cheerful and kind to everyone.  Clueless Mom is the one Sarcastic Mom makes fun of,  to her face, and Clueless Mom never notices.  She'll invite your son to spend the weekend with her son. She'll bake cookies and take them swimming. Clueless Mom is the first to organize fundraisers or make car magnets to display team spirit! She is at the game to cheer for, not only her son, but the entire team.  She sits in the bleachers, alone with her book.  While reading she tries to keep up with the game, which doesn't always work.  Clueless Mom is the one you'll hear cheerfully yell to her team, "Turn Two Warriors!" Unfortunately, the Warriors are up to bat...not in the field.  Oh well, back to her Harlequin Romance novel until half time when she can bring the cookies and Gatorade into the huddle for the boys.

The Back Seat Driver, Mom

Every team has the Back Seat Driver, Mom.  In the beginning of the season, she is in the center of it all.  By the end of the season, she is sitting alone having forced the rest of the moms to clear away. Why? Because of the never ending stream of helpful coaching tips she yells throughout the game.  These tips aren't reserved for her son alone, she is happy to help coach your son from the stands, too.  Most of the time the tips come after an error is made.  For instance, when the right fielder drops a routine fly ball he can benefit from the words, "You Gotta Catch That" ringing out from the stands.  Perhaps your son is a pitcher and has walked a batter or two.  It's not unusual for Back Seat Driver Mom to offer such wisdom as, "Throw a Strike" from her lawn chair.  Of course, the occasional "Hit the Ball" is always welcome after your son strikes out.  Usually Back Seat Driver Mom is just as hard on her son as she is on yours. However, your son is off limits and that's why you're sitting on the opposing team's side of the field.  You are keenly aware of two things. One,  you're capable of doing something inappropriate at the baseball field. Two, your friends don't have enough money to bail you out of jail.  

The High Maintenance Mom

Put together and center of the baseball universe, High Maintenance Mom is a handful!  You will never find High Maintenance Mom wearing an old t-shirt or sloppy looking attire. She's bringing sexy back in her tiny tennis skirt, designer sundress or athletic jogging ensemble.  Of course, the rest of us are either jealous or don't care enough to doll ourselves up for a baseball game.  When team t-shirts are ordered, High Maintenance Mom won't like the material, the color or the style.  Forget about a cheap hotel, it's the Hilton or nothing for her! And  when it comes to her son, she will make sure you know exactly where he should play and how good he really is.  High Maintenance Mom needs to sit as far away from this next mom as she can.

The Sarcastic Mom

Love her or hate her, it's hard to ignore the Sarcastic Mom.  You never know what she'll say or when she'll say it because Sarcastic Mom lacks a filter most people possess.  She's the one who says, out loud, what everyone is thinking.  There's always witty banter between Sarcastic Mom and the players, especially when they come up to bat.  Beware when you ask Sarcastic Mom a question, she only knows one way to answer and you may not like what she has to say. You always know where you stand with Sarcastic Mom, because she isn't shy about telling you. Sarcastic Mom doesn't play well with others, you'll usually find her with the other Sarcastic Moms, they travel in packs.  Back Seat Driver and High Maintenance Mom are not easily tolerated by Sarcastic Mom. And Clueless Mom, well she's to busy reading her book to know the difference.  

Are you self diagnosing your Crazy Mom category? Fear not, most of us can identify with some or all of these Crazy Mom tendencies.   I can blame Crazy Baseball Mom syndrome on one thing, our sons. Yep, if it wasn't for them,  none of us would be dealing with this illness.  We would be spending our weekends shopping or relaxing after a hard week. We would spend our money on whatever we want instead of baseball bats and sliding shorts.  We would take a flipping vacation that didn't involve baseball once in a while. Most of all,  we would have our sanity!  But, because we love our sons we have been thrown into the world of travel baseball,  the number one cause of all this craziness.  As of right now, there is no cure.  I can only hope someone takes up our cause.  Maybe a Clueless Mom will  organize a fundraiser for research.