Softball Season begins.....and it's serious!

Well, here it is.....another year of Softball for Abbi. She is on the Girl's 9/10 yr. old team at Mendon, and let me tell you........it's taken a bit of a serious turn. Let me preface this entire post with the fact that I'm not much of a sports buff, and am really not athletically inclined in any way. That being said...
It seems that softball is now way more competitive than I remember. Parents are pacing back and forth, stressed to the max because their daughter didn't catch the ball, hit the ball, didn't swing, didn't run fast enough, ran when they weren't supposed to, weren't paying attention......the list really DOES go on, but I'm certain that you get my point!

My question is THIS: Why aren't kids allowed to have FUN anymore?

It seems to me that kids are not allowed to simply have fun playing sports, or anything else for that matter. I guess it's our jobs as parents to make sure that things like this are still "fun"----but there are those parents who are constantly yelling at their child, putting pressure on them to be the BEST......and God help them if they don't do exactly as their parents say. I actually feel bad for the pitcher on Abbi's team, as her Dad (also Mom--but she's a bit passive compared to Dad) paces back and forth, coaching her from the fence. This 10yr. old child already has a pitching coach, as she is being groomed to pitch for High School.

**Side thought----I wonder if she had a CHOICE in all of this. If one day she said to her Dad, "I like pitching," and Dad went HOG-WILD and got her every pitching video he could find, set her up with lessons, and made her practice, even when she was too tired, or was too afraid to tell him "I don't want to pitch anymore."

I understand that as parents, we are supposed to cheer our kids on and be there for them, helping them to achieve their goals....yada-yada-yada. I just wonder:  When do you cross that line from being supportive to being psycho-obsessed?

It's needs to be said that Abbi is just an average softball player, and plays to have fun. Doug and I cheer her on and encourage her to do her best. It also needs to be said that there is an ALL-STAR 9/10 Softball Team that continues to play and travel to play other teams throughout the Summer.

Happy Softball Season everyone!