Is Danny Almonte pitching for the Yanks yet?

I had planned for some time to wax poetic about the Little League World Series when it got here -- about how pure the the love of the game was, about the hustle on every play, about the endearing and inevitable mental lapses that mark the game.

But then I found out that ESPN, which is broadcasting the games, has decided it needs to do so on a five-second delay. Because of some sort of satellite trouble, you might wonder?

No. Because they're worried about FCC fines, after a player dropped an f-bomb coming off the field and it was picked up on the coach's microphone. Not to be out-classed, the coach hit the player. They were from the New York team. Of course.

The Staten Island squad was eliminated Tuesday. But not so for the Saudis, who've advanced to the semis. Might it have something to do with their 256-pound first baseman with the solid Saudi name, Aaron Durley? Of course, 256 pounds (1/8 of a ton, if you're scoring at home) is actually pretty slim, considering that this 13-year-old behemoth is 6-foot-8. He wears a size 19 shoe.

Do you think this sort of thing is why they moved the Little League fences back 25 feet this year?