Column: Assessing the arrests of Peter Rose and Jody Ramsey

By Laura Clark

Published: May 22, 2008

The atmosphere among Lancer fans along the first baseline at Jefferson Forest the evening of May 16 was reserved. Even when Ashton Paige hit a solo home run to tie the game in the second inning, the crowd barely murmured.

Perhaps they were distracted by the presence of a local TV news station, out to get reactions from baseball families and friends about the seven drug-related student arrests that included two of Amherst County High School’s star athletes that day.

The Amherst crowd was not in the mood to talk.

But one woman in front of me was irate at their presence. I wanted to sit on my notebook when she loudly said, “They don’t have any right questioning these kids. They’ll do anything for a story.”

Some media can be callous and prone to sensationalism, I agree. But you cannot blame the media for honestly reporting a situation, however negative it is.
The arrests of a couple of star athletes wounded the community’s “Lancer Pride.” But reality can’t be ignored. And neither can the fact that these kids have only been charged with crimes and not convicted.

I spoke with the father and aunt of two baseball players, and what they told to me about their respective young men conveyed a sense of pride in their accomplishments and hope for their future, with a dash of anxiety about their well-being.

Was this worry the result of football quarterback Peter Rose and baseball catcher Jody Ramsey’s arrests?

I wondered later if these adults spoke with the son and nephew that night to emphasize that actions have very real consequences.

I hope Amherst parents talk about what happened May 16 for another reason.

When I interviewed players on the field after Amherst lost to J.F., I was asking the players what they thought and how they felt. These players are not after all really kids for much longer. In a short time, many of these players will be making their own way in the adult world. I kept the questions in the realm of baseball and how the day’s events had impacted the team for this game.

Yeah, they had been distracted, but at least one player was dismissed from the team several games ago, so baseball-wise, they were adjusting. What the player’s expressions said was more important: the team was hurting.

Ramsey and Rose were their teammates, their friends. Parents and coaches can ignore the subject, but they will be doing these young men a disservice.
And still the angry comments about the media, and then made after the game directly to me, echo days later.

My job is to cover Amherst sports – wins, losses and everything in between. It’s a heck of a lot more fun to write about a team’s journey to the state championships and the players who made it happen than the drastically altered legacy of Ramsey or Rose and the impact it has on the Lancer community.

Reality forces responsible/rational actions from all parties.

Perhaps next fall, since Rose won’t be giving a locker-room pep talk, he’ll be invited to share with young Lancer players about the choices he’s made.