Pirates host Youth Baseball Summit

As concern continues to mount that youngsters don't enjoy the sport of baseball, the Pirates – led by chairman Bob Nutting – hosted the first-ever Youth Baseball Summit to address to problem in Pittsburgh.

"The idea for the Youth Baseball Summit was borne from our desire to address this critically important issue in a meaningful and impactful way," Nutting told Pirates.com. "Pulling together this diverse group of individuals to share issues and ideas is the first step in a long-term approach to addressing the issue.

"Youth participation in organized sports, not just baseball, has been on the decline. We need to discover why that is and find ways to encourage and promote healthy lifestyles with our youth through participation in sports."

While the Pirates may have been the first team to host a summit, all of Major League Baseball is trying to figure out how to get the youth more involved in the game of baseball.

Pirates All-Star centerfielder Andrew McCutchen dropped in to share some of his ideas as well.

"I had a lot of time dedicated by my friends and family through the course of growing up that really helped me," McCutchen said. "The older I got, the bigger that group of people that helped me got. I know for a fact that, if I didn't have any of that help, I wouldn't be in the position I'm in today.

"So, time and money are the two biggest issues, I feel, that are going to make the difference between a kid making his way through the system or going another route."

(h/t Pirates.com)
Photo Credit: AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar