Hellobee Boards

I heard this on the radio this morning and I was livid. My 12 year old SON couldn't believe it either, and he's a rabid baseball fan.

I wanted to show those idiots a map and point out NY/NJ where he plays and Florida where mom/baby are.

seriously!? the nerve of some ppl. im furious for him.

I can't believe you guys don't think that baseball is more important then the birth of your child.........

Seriously, people are stupid. Yeah it is his job but he can't help when his wife goes into labor!

@Mae: AH! I just replied and when the page refreshed Jackie Chan's staring at me!

Wow, just wow!

This pissed me off. My H works for a pro sports team (but not as a player) and there is no way in hell he'd miss the birth of our child for a game -- even a big game! Because I wouldn't want him to and because HE wouldn't want to (I even asked and he said, "There is nothing I would rather do than be at the birth ) I think it's great that he wanted to be there, it's allowed by the team, and it's a personal choice -- no one else's business.

Paternity leave in MLB is very new (less than 5 years). I'm a touch surprised it was a big deal in that I remember hearing a lot about it the first year they had paternity leave but nothing really since then.

This makes me so freaking angry. The birth of your child is much more important than opening day. The sportscasters who are calling him out are complete assholes. If I were a player's wife and my husband hired someone to be with me for the first couple of days instead of being there himself so he could play in opening day, he'd be dead. It takes two to parent and fathers have just as much responsibility as mothers do. Kudos to the players who take leave and are there for their families and shame on those that don't think that having a child is a big deal or that a father needs to be there.

@MrsMcD: MLB gives players maternity leave, so really the only planning goes into whether a player and his wife want him at the birth. If they both want him there, he gets to be there. If they had agreed that he would skip the birth for the game, that would also be fine (although I'm sure he would have gotten a lot of crap for that, too...) But he wanted to be there and he chose to take leave that was his right as decided by his employer. I just don't see why this is anyone else's business if he, the league, and his team are obviously fine with it?

For me, it all goes back to criticizing other parents' choices. That's just not ok with me. You could say "who cares?" to any kind of parenting criticism, but why should we have to?

@MrsKoala: Hahahaha. Whoa. I'm sorry you are so angry over this. And I do know about the bench.

I just don't think any one cares that this guy is missing a few games except talk radio hosts. And the talk radio hosts are apparently doing their job well as they are getting a rise out of you and everyone else.

Nevertheless, I still wouldn't beg, insist, ask or even want my husband to miss his games during the season. But, to each his own!!

I thought I heard it on the news today that he wasn't missing for the birth- he was missing a game a day or so after the birth. Which I still support, regardless, but I think that these men making the comments would be more mad about missing a game a few days later. Either way it's ridiculous. Paternity leave (and maternity) in this country are ridiculous. My husband works for one of the LARGEST family corporations in the country (seriously you would die if you knew) and he got ZERO paternity leave. Had to use his 2 weeks of vacation. I couldn't have gotten through those 2 weeks without him. So.... America sucks.

@MrsMcD: that is strong, I get that. But I only got 6 weeks. And many of my friends' husbands get none. And my SIL got none at her job. I just wish the country could make it a prority/requirement and normalize it.

Actually, in regards to parental leave, I think America sucks. But that's a discussion for another day

@MrsMcD: No need to laugh at my reaction. That was a bit harsh. I'm just pointing out that even though the MLB is different, it isn't as if the teams can't do without the players. I'm angry that talk show hosts are making a big deal out of it. I get that no one else cares but the very idea that these guys think that having a baby shouldn't be a big deal to the players or their wives rubs me the wrong way.

@MrsMcD: I'm not saying I have it all figured out, I just wish America put more of a priority on family like that. Our people, our government, our media. America sucks = tongue in cheek. I feel America has more to offer than other countries or else I wouldn't be living here. I just think our societal norms around this topic are skewed, and I don't see it changing anytime soon.

@kjpugs: True that!

@MrsKoala: My laugh comes from me imagining you, with your hand on your hip, saying, "It's called the bench" as if you were informing me of a new concept despite my saying that I have friends in the big leagues. No intent to offend.

Truce, friends! Let's all hope, pray and wish for a better paternity leave policy for all!!!!!!!!!

Definitely agree that anyone criticizing this guy sucks. They negotiated for paternity leave-- a whopping 3 games-- and he is taking it. I think it is awesome that he realizes that his wife/kid are way more important than ANY job. Even the all-important life shattering job of hitting a ball with a bat. Haters can hate, but I have a lot of respect for the guy for manning up and having the right priorities.

@kjpugs: Agree that America sucks It isn't even just that we don't have paid leave, its that it can be hard to get ANY leave. My husband "gets" 2 days (wowwww lol). But he has a ton of vacation time. He talked to his manager yesterday about taking 4 weeks off to be home with me and the baby because he has lots of time to take and he just wants to be home with us that first month. He was told that they really only allow 2 weeks for paternity leave (i.e. even using your own vacation time, you can only use 2 weeks of it regardless of how much you have). Now, the manager did say that if it was a really big deal to him they could make special appeals and possibly get that extended, which I don't think he is going to do because it sounds like it will hurt his reputation to push for it. But I was just really surprised that if he HAS the time to use, his own earned time, he can't use it for the birth/first few weeks of his child's life!

@Mae: I think you're right, reputation is a BIG issue for men attempting to take leave. DH worried a lot about what he'd miss at his job, especially because he's hoping to be promoted within the year.

And from what I saw on the news this AM, this player is only taking 1 game. So it's not like he's even using the 3 games he's allowed! Ridiculous. He should be encouraged to do so. That time is so important!