Allow me to present a recollection from covering Little League tournament softball in Warner Robins. It was, in fact, among the last competitions I covered before relocating to Moultrie.

This particular evening featured typical summertime severe weather, mainly in the form of ‘lightning detected in the area.’ The tournament director in charge of monitoring these conditions had no choice but – on more than one instance – call for a stoppage of play.

One of the games (may have been the only game, can’t remember) was the local program’s team vs. an out-of-town squad from Macon. The visitors were ahead on the scoreboard, and my own bit of detecting skills noted at least one team parent getting a little frustrated by one delay after another. Could this possibly be a plot to give the host team some kind of an advantage?

I did hear this from the director, clear as day, with a serious facial look accompanying it, “You want to get hit by lightning?” This was followed by another person from that visiting crowd addressing his people, telling them to cool it and that the man was only doing his job. That job was to look out for everyone’s safety. (Macon did win.)

That brings me back to 2020 and a time when something not quite as visible as lightning is in the air and pulling athletes off playing fields everywhere. Some people are still waiting out the delay, which is three weeks old; others packed everything up and sent everyone home; still others either put things off for another day (Masters, Indy 500, Kentucky Derby) or said we will try again next year (Olympics, Wimbledon).

The Georgia High School Association takes its share of lumps seemingly on a regular basis. In the reclassification process late last year, several schools had their requests for moving – be it from one class or one region to another – denied. I can’t imagine too many of them leaving the room with positive feelings about the fairness of it all.

For those who turned GHSA bashing into its own art form, now is not the time to be critical. This one wasn’t even the call for the group led by executive director Robin Hines, and it is the most important call ever.

Gov. Brian Kemp Wednesday ordered the closing of the state’s public schools for the remainder of the 2019-20 school term. First, it was just until March 31, then it was extended to April 24.

No school means no school sports. Period. No need to debate on how to salvage what were already in-progress seasons, the springtime being the one with the most on the GHSA calendar.

Before I get any further, this is about the coronavirus. It’s almost a given now that anything you read is somehow COVID-19 related. Credit always where credit is due.

Last month, it didn’t take colleges long to make a bold move, calling off each and every one of its remaining 2019-2020 athletic contests. Pick any university out there with a big sports department and you will find one common dynamic. Their student-athletes come from all over, and a majority fall in the 18-22 age range. Them being at home and being able to get home as soon as possible had to be a top priority, then they can figure out the academic side (which they have, because not every college student plays sports).

The professionals, they are grown adults who run their own households and make their own decisions. Why have we not seen the NBA or the NHL make a ruling about what little was left of their regular seasons and full postseasons? It could be because there’s a lot of money involved, salary money that is.

These respective commissioners could go a few different ways, the ultimate move being to call everything off. Right now no NBA game has been out-and-out cancelled. If they find there is a way to salvage a postseason, how likely is it to resemble any other before it? Could we see fewer teams involved, or fewer games per series? Will anyone be sitting in the stands to laugh or cry over the result?

There is of course a players’ union that would need to sign off on any proposal. The same holds true for …

Major League Baseball … go ahead and scrap that Atlanta Braves schedule you got a hold of. How in the world can anyone expect a 162-game season if it doesn’t start until mid-July? Now is certainly not the time for any silly new playoff formats, because the powers-that-be here need to decide how far into the year they want to go and how many regular games they could get in if you want to finish things at the usual time.

Plus, we need to get back to hating the Houston Astros. What was it they did again?

Pro athletes like golfers work under a different set of circumstances. They have their endorsement deals and other sponsorships. Otherwise, they get paid based on how well they play week by week. No cut, no check.

Two years in a row I covered a minor golf tour event at Southern Hills outside of Hawkinsville. One thing it didn’t have was a throng of spectators … if any at all. No ticket takers. No pass gate. Even though it’s not a big gathering, even the minors today are postponing its tournaments.

Hines’ April newsletter on GHSA.net says his Alabama counterpart already made the gut-wrenching decision; they are done too.

This is bound to bring forth varied reactions. Here’s another part of the April “Items of interest:”

“I have heard mostly from parents of senior athletes who are losing their senior seasons day by day. I hear from the athletes themselves and they talk about how important our activities are and they feel they are being robbed of something they have worked so hard for.”

At the risk of sounding insensitive, was any of it really worth the other kind of risk?