Game changer!
The New Jersey Little League player suspended for triumphantly flipping a bat into the air to celebrate hitting a home run will get to play in his state tournament game after all, a judge ruled Thursday, leaving the boy overcome with joy.
“My son is ecstatic. That’s all that matters to me. He’s very happy. I think the result was the right result,” Joe Rocco, father of 12-year-old Marco Rocco, told The Post. “He’s looking forward to playing the game.”
Marco Rocco, 12, was suspended from playing in a state tournament game after he flipped his bat in the air after hitting a home run. Facebook/Liz Rocco
The Haddonfield Little League player’s suspension from Thursday night’s state finals game was overturned by Gloucester County Chancery Judge Robert Malestein —who said Little League hadn’t been clear or consistent about its stance on bat flipping.
“If you’re gonna have rules and enforce them, they can’t be enforced arbitrarily and capriciously,” Gloucester County Chancery Judge Robert Malestein said Thursday afternoon. “[I’m going to] allow him to play in tonight’s game.”
The pint-sized player exultantly tossed a bat into the air after hitting a home run against Harrison Little League on July 16, prompting an umpire to eject him from the game, according to court papers.
He was also hit with a one-game suspension, barring him from competing in the New Jersey Little League State Tournament final at 8:30 p.m. Thursday — a punishment the judge called “draconian” before tossing the suspension.
The elder Rocco cheered the ruling, calling it a learning moment for his kid.
“Win or lose, you know it’s just about teaching my son and my family a lesson that sometimes life isn’t fair — and when it’s not fair, there is recourse for you,” said Rocco, who is a real estate lawyer. “If you believe in something, you fight for it.”
“I just wanted to show my son Marco that I love him and I’m always going to be there for him,” he said.
Lawyers for Little League had argued the case would create a slippery slope where parents could run to court every time they disagreed with an umpire’s call.
A NJ Judge is allowing Rocco to play in tonights state championship game, stating ‘If you’re gonna have rules and enforce them they can’t be enforced arbitrarily and capriciously’ X / @Spicoli_____
“The rules are clear: The umpires make the decisions — not us,” Max Billek, a lawyer for Little League, told the judge. “It was a deliberate act the umpires felt was dangerous.”
But Malestein shot down that argument, saying there’s no specific rule in the Little League handbook against bat-flipping, and that the move wasn’t clearly “horseplay” or “unsportsmanlike behavior” as alleged by Little League.
“There’s no specific Little League rule that prohibits bat flipping. It’s not illegal, it’s not a violation of any express rule. And it appears to be promoted [by the league itself],” Malestein said, referencing videos of bat flipping posted on the organization’s own website and social media accounts.
“The issue for the court is, was this unsportsmanlike conduct — or the actions of a 12-year-old kid excited that he just scored a home run?” Malestein said.
“He can’t get this game back,” he added. “There’s no amount of money in the world that’s going to bring it back [retroactively].”
The bat flip and subsequent suspension provoked outrage online, as thousands voiced their opinions on the controversial ruling. X / @Spicoli_____
Lawyers for Little League had also argued that potential litigation would make the volunteer job of umpire for the league unattractive.
They also claimed the act of bat flipping was so “dangerous,” that even the boy’s coach scolded him afterwards, saying, “You know better than that.”
The judge, however, disagreed, saying that the harm to Marco for not getting into the game — which is a step toward his last shot, as a 12-year-old, at getting in the Little League World Series — was greater than the potenal harm to Little League of not finding new umps.
“You get to play in a state championship Little League game at 12 only once, ” , Brian Berkley, an attorney for Rocco argued.
The court papers claim the boy flipped the bat during a “brief moment of celebration” and that Little League breached its contract “by not allowing [Rocco] to play baseball and failing to follow its own appeals process” regarding the suspension.
Little League said Thursday it will “uphold” the judge’s decision but called the case a disappointing distraction.
“While we continue to follow any orders governed by the court of law, Little League is extremely disappointed that time, energy, and attention were diverted away from our volunteers and communities who are creating positive experiences for all players and families throughout the International Tournament,” it said in a statement.
“Little League maintains that tournament rules serve as the guide for any determination regarding conduct, of which falls distinctly under the discretion of the umpire.”
It added, “As all youth sports officiating continues to face challenges and abuse by parents and fans, and as we face a nationwide shortage of umpires and volunteers, it is more important than ever that we are supportive of Little League umpires, including the judgements and decisions they make at the local league level.”