{"id":107228,"date":"2026-02-17T19:04:32","date_gmt":"2026-02-18T03:04:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/?p=107228"},"modified":"2026-02-17T19:39:45","modified_gmt":"2026-02-18T03:39:45","slug":"dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/","title":{"rendered":"Dad Next Door: Just wait ’til spring"},"content":{"rendered":"

In October, the Seattle Mariners<\/a>\u2019 quest for their first-ever appearance in the World Series came up a couple of runs short. As I watched, I was transported back through time to my little attic bedroom in Amherst, Massachusetts: October 12, 1967.<\/p>\n

That was the \u201cImpossible Dream\u201d season for the Red Sox. The year before, they had finished last, and no one had expected them to do much better the following season. But against all odds, they stayed in it \u2018til the end, then stormed from behind to win the last two games of the season and clinch the American League title. They headed to the World Series for the first time in 21 years.<\/p>\n

Carl \u201cYaz\u201d Yastrzemski was their big star. He led the league in batting average, home runs and RBIs that year, and was named the American League MVP \u2014 but their ace starting pitcher, Jim Lonborg, was my hero. His poster was taped to the ceiling above my bed, where I could look at him as I fell asleep and imagine myself in his place on the mound.<\/p>\n

In the World Series, the Sox dropped three of the first four games to the St. Louis Cardinals. But just when it looked like it might be over, they came back to win the next two and even the series at three games apiece. It all came down to game seven at Fenway Park \u2014 winner take all.<\/p>\n

It was a day game, but I went up to my room and shut the door so no one could break my concentration \u2013 which was essential if the Sox were going to win. I lay in bed with my little transistor radio pressed against my ear, clutching my Rico Petricelli autographed mitt. I had half a package of M&Ms and a plastic army canteen full of water in case I got hungry or thirsty. I was ready.<\/p>\n

My idol Jim Lonborg was going up against the Cardinals\u2019 ace, fireballer Bob Gibson. Lonborg was pitching on just two days\u2019 rest, and Gibson had three, but I wasn\u2019t worried. The Sox were the Impossible Dream team \u2014 a team of destiny. There was no way they could lose.<\/p>\n

The game started out tense and close. Both teams put up zeros in the first two innings. By then, my M&Ms were eaten, more out of nerves than hunger. In the top of the third, the Cardinals broke through with two runs, and then two more in the fifth. The Sox got one back in the bottom of the fifth, though, and I wasn\u2019t about to give up hope. The game was still within reach.<\/p>\n

By the sixth inning, Lonborg was gassed, but they left him in. He hung a slider up in the zone, and Julian Javier hit a three-run homer over the Green Monster. They pulled him after that, but it was too late.<\/p>\n

Since that fateful day, I\u2019ve watched my favorite teams lose many times. I\u2019ve also watched the Seahawks win the Superbowl, and I was in Key Arena with my daughter when the Storm won their first WNBA title. Win or lose, I always come back for more.<\/p>\n

Some of my friends make fun of spectator sports. I can\u2019t really blame them. Overweight dudes sprawled on sofas, watching pumped-up kids in silly uniforms give each other traumatic brain injuries. It\u2019s pretty pointless. But to me, that\u2019s kind of the point.<\/p>\n

The fact that these players train and practice and push themselves to the very limits of what human beings can do, for no practical reason whatsoever, is a strangely beautiful thing. They strive for greatness for its own sake, as only we crazy, unreasonable, irrepressible humans do.<\/p>\n

You may have a little person in your home right now who\u2019s feeling lost since their team of destiny stumbled at the finish line. They\u2019ve tossed their J-Rod autograph glove in the closet, and their lucky Big Dumper jersey has finally made its way to the laundry basket. Disappointment hangs in the air like a thick, dark cloud. But a few months from now, when the crocuses are just barely peeking up from the sodden Seattle ground, a bunch of young men will stroll out onto a field in Peoria, Arizona, with crisp new chalk lines and freshly mown grass, and set out in search of greatness one more time.<\/p>\n

Spring will always bring spring training \u2014 and with it, a new season of hope.<\/p>\n

Just wait ’til spring.<\/p>\n

Read more from the Dad Next Door:<\/h4>\n

“Dad Next Door: He Ain\u2019t Heavy”<\/a>: Coming to understand the true gift of my brother<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

A reminder to fans little and big: There is hope after disappointment<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1205,"featured_media":107243,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[36,25],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-107228","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-dad-next-door","category-parenting"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nHelping Kids Handle Sports Disappointment and Hope<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A Seattle dad reflects on sports heartbreak, resilience, and how parents can help kids hold onto hope when their team falls short.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Dad Next Door: Just wait 'til spring\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"A Seattle dad reflects on sports heartbreak, resilience, and how parents can help kids hold onto hope when their team falls short.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Seattle's Child\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SeattlesChild\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-02-18T03:04:32+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-02-18T03:39:45+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/images.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1920px-Ball_of_Seattle_Mariners-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1920\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1440\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Jeff Lee, MD\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@SeaChildMag\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@SeaChildMag\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Jeff Lee, MD\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Jeff Lee, MD\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#\/schema\/person\/caa0558ebd56ea0b840ceb9ed4fd54d3\"},\"headline\":\"Dad Next Door: Just wait ’til spring\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-18T03:04:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-18T03:39:45+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/\"},\"wordCount\":781,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/images.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1920px-Ball_of_Seattle_Mariners-1.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Dad Next Door\",\"Parenting\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/\",\"name\":\"Helping Kids Handle Sports Disappointment and Hope\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/images.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1920px-Ball_of_Seattle_Mariners-1.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-02-18T03:04:32+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-02-18T03:39:45+00:00\",\"description\":\"A Seattle dad reflects on sports heartbreak, resilience, and how parents can help kids hold onto hope when their team falls short.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/images.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1920px-Ball_of_Seattle_Mariners-1.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/images.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1920px-Ball_of_Seattle_Mariners-1.jpg\",\"width\":1920,\"height\":1440,\"caption\":\"(Image: Creative Commons)\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Dad Next Door: Just wait ’til spring\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/\",\"name\":\"Seattle's Child\",\"description\":\"Activities and Resources for Parents and Kids in greater Seattle\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#organization\",\"name\":\"Seattle's Child\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/seattles-logo-1.svg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/seattles-logo-1.svg\",\"width\":455,\"height\":64,\"caption\":\"Seattle's Child\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SeattlesChild\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/SeaChildMag\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/seattleschildmag\/\",\"https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/seattleschild\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#\/schema\/person\/caa0558ebd56ea0b840ceb9ed4fd54d3\",\"name\":\"Jeff Lee, MD\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/images.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Jeff-head-shot-2-3-96x96.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/images.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Jeff-head-shot-2-3-96x96.jpg\",\"caption\":\"Jeff Lee, MD\"},\"description\":\"Jeff Lee, a family physician, lives, works and writes in Seattle.\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/author\/jeff-lee-md\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Helping Kids Handle Sports Disappointment and Hope","description":"A Seattle dad reflects on sports heartbreak, resilience, and how parents can help kids hold onto hope when their team falls short.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Dad Next Door: Just wait 'til spring","og_description":"A Seattle dad reflects on sports heartbreak, resilience, and how parents can help kids hold onto hope when their team falls short.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/","og_site_name":"Seattle's Child","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SeattlesChild\/","article_published_time":"2026-02-18T03:04:32+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-02-18T03:39:45+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1920,"height":1440,"url":"https:\/\/images.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1920px-Ball_of_Seattle_Mariners-1.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Jeff Lee, MD","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@SeaChildMag","twitter_site":"@SeaChildMag","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Jeff Lee, MD","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/"},"author":{"name":"Jeff Lee, MD","@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#\/schema\/person\/caa0558ebd56ea0b840ceb9ed4fd54d3"},"headline":"Dad Next Door: Just wait ’til spring","datePublished":"2026-02-18T03:04:32+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-18T03:39:45+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/"},"wordCount":781,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/images.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1920px-Ball_of_Seattle_Mariners-1.jpg","articleSection":["Dad Next Door","Parenting"],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/","url":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/","name":"Helping Kids Handle Sports Disappointment and Hope","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/images.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1920px-Ball_of_Seattle_Mariners-1.jpg","datePublished":"2026-02-18T03:04:32+00:00","dateModified":"2026-02-18T03:39:45+00:00","description":"A Seattle dad reflects on sports heartbreak, resilience, and how parents can help kids hold onto hope when their team falls short.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/images.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1920px-Ball_of_Seattle_Mariners-1.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/images.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/1920px-Ball_of_Seattle_Mariners-1.jpg","width":1920,"height":1440,"caption":"(Image: Creative Commons)"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/dad-next-door-kids-sports-disappointment-hope\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Dad Next Door: Just wait ’til spring"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/","name":"Seattle's Child","description":"Activities and Resources for Parents and Kids in greater Seattle","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#organization","name":"Seattle's Child","url":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/seattles-logo-1.svg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/05\/seattles-logo-1.svg","width":455,"height":64,"caption":"Seattle's Child"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/SeattlesChild\/","https:\/\/x.com\/SeaChildMag","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/seattleschildmag\/","https:\/\/www.pinterest.com\/seattleschild\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#\/schema\/person\/caa0558ebd56ea0b840ceb9ed4fd54d3","name":"Jeff Lee, MD","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/images.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Jeff-head-shot-2-3-96x96.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/images.seattleschild.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/Jeff-head-shot-2-3-96x96.jpg","caption":"Jeff Lee, MD"},"description":"Jeff Lee, a family physician, lives, works and writes in Seattle.","url":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/author\/jeff-lee-md\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107228","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1205"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=107228"}],"version-history":[{"count":8,"href":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107228\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":107743,"href":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/107228\/revisions\/107743"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/107243"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=107228"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=107228"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seattleschild.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=107228"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}