With spring sports in full gear, it is the time of year for doubleheaders, something more and more schools have gone to for baseball and softball games in recent years.
While the Catholic League has always had doubleheaders under three-ball, two-strike rules, the OAA in softball went to doubleheaders three years ago and will go to doubleheaders in baseball this year in the second cycle of the league schedule.
The KLAA also has doubleheaders on the second cycle.
Kosmo wishes they would've stuck with single games.
Yes, there are some pros to playing weekday doubleheaders, such as fuel costs for buses, travel time, having to only get the kids out to play games on weekday of the week and the fact it's easier to get umpires for two games rather than one.
But there are some cons as well. For one, Catholic League teams are usually able to get their doubleheaders in because of the three-ball, two-strike rules, unlike the OAA and KLAA, which play traditional rules.
That means rarely do teams actually get the doubleheader games in before darkness sets in, even when the sun sets later in May.
Often, games don't start until 4 or 4:30 anyway, which makes it difficult to get two games in.
When that happens, teams have to come back and resume those games the next time they play, which makes it harder to get those other scheduled games in when they have to resume a previous game beforehand.
Teams should probably start playing doubleheaders at 3:30, but often can't get out of school in time.
Late doubleheaders also makes it more difficult for kids to do homework that night given they might not get home until 9:30 or 10 from a doubleheader that goes to the brink of darkness.
Everything becomes even more problematic when there's rain that postpones the two games and they have to find a makeup date that creates the frenetic, play-games-each day-schedules that doubleheaders are designed to avoid.
From a media perspective, it makes it harder to get scores online that night or in the paper the next day when coaches can't call in scores until 10 or 10:30 because everything ended so late.
Kosmo understands the rationale behind doubleheaders, especially considering the horrible spring weather we had last year. But there are too many downsides.
As far as your seer goes, it's better to play more league doubleheaders on Saturdays instead of tournaments or non-league doubleheaders, and leave the weekdays for single games.
Heck, even play doubleheaders on Sunday. Catholic League schools can clear it with the MHSAA, so why not other schools?