A summer ritual unfolded this August in Williamsport, Penn., when the 58th Little League World Series got under way. Sixteen teams from nine countries competed for the most-sought-after championship in youth sports.
But in the United States, where the game was born, fewer young people will notice. Coaches and youth sports organizations say a lot of American kids are losing interest in baseball.
Some youngsters are lured by the speed and individual glory of such extreme sports as skateboarding, in-line skating, and stunt bicycling. Others are riveted to their chairs by computer games, including some that simulate great baseball games.
And many are simply choosing other team sports with more action and faster play. Once America's signature sport, amateur baseball now ranks sixth behind basketball, soccer, softball, football, and volleyball in number of players, most of whom are youths, according to the Sporting Goods Manufacturers Association.