Chipper Jones offers dissenting view of Rutgers situation

Former Atlanta Braves infielder Chipper Jones posted his opinion of the Rutgers men's basketball situation on Wednesday via Twitter. Jones' stance is notable because he is certainly the highest profile athlete or coach of any kind with a different view of what happened between Mike Rice and his players. Rice was fired Wednesday by the university after videotaped evidence showing him verbally and physically abusing players during practices went public.

 Here are the tweets Jones sent out:

I got cursed at and called names by a ton of people growing up. Were they fired? Nope! Do I care? Nope! What's the big deal? Toughen up!
— Chipper Jones (@RealCJ10) April 3, 2013

Yeah, been hit w/ bball equipment on purpose, been dragged around a football field by my facemask and ran suicides til I puked! I ain't mad.
— Chipper Jones (@RealCJ10) April 3, 2013

Jones is certainly entitled to his opinion, but he is wrong and his stance is not helpful to kids. I'll address his tweets directly. Being cursed at and called names did not make him a better athlete. Talking to a young man that way did not help him make it to the major leagues.

Yes, those who cursed him should have been fired. The big deal is that Chipper Jones and the Rutgers players are human beings and should be treated as such.  Being able to absorb multiple curse words in a single bound is not a superpower. It's not a sign of toughness.

People curse when they have nothing constructive left to say. Coaches who curse have run out of things to teach. Being hit with baseball equipment doesn't make a kid better. If that's the case, I might be in the major leagues. I've been hit in the head with more fastballs than Charlie Brown. Ugh!

No kid should be dragged around the football field by his facemask. Does that make him a better blocker or tackler? Does it make him catch more balls or run better routes? Steve Nicollerat, the lead instructor for our Coach It Right! Baseball Clinic and Missouri Baseball Hall of Fame coach often says, "Coaches always have to know why they are doing something. And if the reason doesn't make kids better, stop it."

If your kids are running suicides until they puke, stop it! If you aren't making your kids better student-athletes, stop whatever it is you are doing. We have to fundamentally change the way we view coaching and the role of coaches. Despite the metaphors, sports are not the military. Coaches are not drill sergeants and kids are not soldiers.

As a matter of fact, even the military has changed over time. My brother-in-law is a Marine and we were watching the movie Full Metal Jacket one day. It's about a platoon of U.S. Marines being trained to fight in the Vietnam War. The drill sergeant is one of the most foul-mouthed, abusive and uncaring individuals I have ever seen on-screen or in real-life.

When he wasn't using profanity toward his recruits, he gave them effeminate or emasculating nicknames to break them down even further. My brother-in-law served in the Gulf War, the Iraq War and in Afghanistan. He told me drill sergeants are not allowed to talk to soldiers that way anymore.

He said they can receive a court-martial (military criminal charges) if they do. Our military's not weaker because of it and there's no reason to think our kids will be weaker if we treat them with respect. Go to sportsmanship.org and get involved. We can change youth sports - one organization at a time.