A Big League for Little Players

A Big League for Little Players. Written by Jane Selman.

小小运动员的大联盟。 简·塞尔曼 著

Introduction. Josh Lester takes a short lead off first base. Japan leads one to zero in the third inning. As the sun sets behind the bleachers, the players start to notice the bright glow of the lights above the field. The grass here smells different, almost as if it's been waiting a whole year for the kids to come back to play. Cody Walker steps to the plate to face pitcher Go Matsumoto. We've seen two great pitching performances so far today. Kyle Carter has been at his best pitching for the U .S. team.

序言。 乔希·莱斯特稍稍离开一垒，准备起跑。 三局战罢，日本队1比0领先。 太阳落到看台后方，队员们发现球场上方的大灯亮起了明亮的光。 这里的青草气息都不一样，仿佛它已经等了一整年，就等孩子们回来打球。 科迪·沃克站上本垒板，对阵投手松本刚。 今天比赛到现在，我们已经看到了两场十分精彩的投球表现。 美国队投手凯尔·卡特一直状态绝佳。

Back home in June, there were only about 50 people in the stands. Now it's August, and there are almost 5 ,000, and even more are watching on national TV. All those weekend practices and stretching exercises paid off. The boys are playing in the 2006 Little League World Series. Here's the pitch. Every game is exciting, but this is the championship game. The players are no longer representing just their team or their state. Now they represent the whole United States. There it goes. No doubt about it, that ball is out of here. It's a two -run home run by Cody Walker, and the USA takes a 2 -1 lead. Wow, what a moment for this young man and his teammates.

早在六月家乡的比赛中，看台上只有大约五十名观众。 如今到了八月，现场已有近五千名观众，还有更多人在全国电视台收看比赛。 那些周末的训练和拉伸锻炼全都没有白费。 男孩们正在征战2006年少棒联盟世界大赛。 球投出来啦！ 每一场比赛都激动人心，而这一场是冠军决赛。 选手们不再只代表自己的球队或是家乡的州。 现在他们代表的是整个美国。 球飞出去啦！ 毫无疑问，这球飞出了场外！ 科迪·沃克打出一支两分本垒打，美国队以2比1取得领先。 哇，对这个年轻人和他的队友们来说，这真是太棒的一刻！

That ended up being the game -winning play. Cody's team, from Columbus, Georgia, went on to win the Little League World Series championship game two to one. The spectators watched as players and their families jumped for joy. Gloves and caps flew through the air. A similar scene plays out every summer in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, as some of the best baseball teams from around the world play in the Little League World Series. This is a popular event today. But how did Little League Baseball get to this point?

这一球最终成了制胜的关键。 来自佐治亚州哥伦布市的科迪所在的球队，最终以2比1赢下了少棒联盟世界大赛冠军赛。 观众们看着选手和他们的家人欢呼雀跃。 手套和帽子被高高抛向空中。 每年夏天，宾夕法尼亚州威廉斯波特都会上演这样的场景，来自世界各地的顶尖少棒球队在这里角逐少棒联盟世界大赛。 如今这项赛事广受欢迎。 但少棒联盟是怎么发展到今天这个样子的呢？

Baseball Begins Experts cannot agree on when the game of baseball began. Games with balls and sticks have a long history around the world. Baseball is similar to older games, including the British games of cricket and rounders, but baseball has its own rules and equipment. In 1744, the word baseball first appeared in print, which helps us know that the game existed at that time. Baseball became popular during the Civil War in the mid -1800s. Soldiers used it as a diversion and played it in their free time.

棒球的起源 专家们对棒球运动起源于何时没有定论。 用球和球杆进行的游戏在世界各地都有悠久的历史。 棒球和很多更古老的游戏类似，包括英国的板球和圆场棒球，但棒球拥有自己独有的规则和装备。 1744年，“棒球”一词第一次出现在印刷读物中，这也证明那时这项运动就已经存在了。 19世纪中期的美国内战期间，棒球开始流行起来。 士兵们把棒球当作消遣，空闲的时候就会打棒球。

Professional baseball began around the end of the Civil War. The first major league was organized in 1871. It became the National League in 1876. By the 1890s, baseball was so popular that it became known as the United States National Pastime. In 1901, a second major league formed, the American League. The first World Series, which matches the champions of the American and National Leagues, took place in 1903. The Boston Americans beat the Pittsburgh Pirates in eight games, making them the best baseball team in the United States.

职业棒球大约诞生在内战结束前后。 第一个大联盟在1871年组建完成。 1876年，它改组为国家联盟。 到19世纪90年代，棒球大受欢迎，被称为美国的全民消遣活动。 1901年，第二个大联盟成立，就是美国联盟。 1903年，第一届世界大赛举办，这项赛事由美国联盟和国家联盟的冠军对决。 波士顿美国人队在八场比赛中击败匹兹堡海盗队，成为了美国最强的棒球队。