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Strollerderby
Dad-ication at its Finest: Father Quits Job to Watch Son Play a Single Baseball Game
One dad was determined to take himself out to the ballgame
When Michael Roth’s South Carolina team made it to the College World Series last year, his dad had run out of vacation days and couldn’t make it to Omaha from Greenville, S.C., to watch him play.
David Roth said that wouldn’t happen this year if the Gamecocks got that far again. They did and he didn’t. But he still didn’t have the vacation days. So he did what he had to do. And his son announced it via Twitter a few days ago:
How’s this for dedication? My dad had to quit his job to make it out to Omaha. Couldn’t get here last year. #novacationdays
David, 57, was out of personal time as a Volkswagen and Audi salesman so he quit his job and made it to TD Ameritrade Park the other day as his son pitched 7 1/3 innings to beat Texas A&M 5-4.
“My dad’s been a huge inspiration for baseball for me,” Michael said. “It’s definitely nice to have him out here.”
Michael was a 31st-round June draft pick by the Cleveland Indians but is so far unsigned. But whether he gets signed or not, it seems pretty certain he’ll always have at least one person in his corner — his dad. Especially now that his dad has some, uh, extra time on his hands.
What’s the craziest thing you ever did for your kid?
Image: Creative Commons
Fatherly advice goes a long way: Babble’s Special Lessons from My Dad!
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9 Comments
Holly commented on Jun 22 11 at 12:20 pmWhy did he not save PTO days for this? I mean, it’s June…6 months into the year and he has no PTO, 2 years running??!?! Catastrophic, unexpected illness twice? What happens if he gets the flu in November? Call me suspicious.
Robyn commented on Jun 22 11 at 3:37 pmCompanies don’t have to offer PTO at all. The guy’s a car salesman, and his PTO may be tied to sales. Car sales aren’t what they used to be. He may technically be an independent contractor and not get any PTO.
Amber commented on Jun 22 11 at 5:15 pmI know my husband gets 2 weeks of PTO a year, but he must take them one week at a time, can’t take them when anyone else has requested off, and can’t take them any week that there’s a holiday. Subsequently, we’ve only been albe to take a week off together once in the last 4 years. Not everone gets vacation days when they want them.
bettywu commented on Jun 22 11 at 5:43 pmKind of crazy that he couldn’t take an unpaid day off either. Quit or nothing?
OldMom commented on Jun 23 11 at 12:13 amWhat kind of example for real life is this dad setting? Do whatever you want, no matter the cost? Would the kid have pitched a worse game if Dad wasn’t there, but he knew how much he wanted to be there? Whose paying the bills in this household now? Really, this is NOT something to be lauded, a good man would have kept the job….especially in these rough economic times.
Amy Bo Bamy commented on Jun 23 11 at 10:28 amA person can always get another job. It’s not every day your son pitches in the college world series. I support this dedicated Dad’s decision, and I find it quite moving. Besides, I kinda doubt he would have quit his job if he was in a tight financial situation or if he thought he wouldn’t be able to get it back or find a different one.
im-in-tx commented on Jun 23 11 at 6:43 pmI agree with giving the dad the benefit of the doubt. I don’t think he was irresponsible, and it’s pretty harsh to say, “a good man would have kept the job.” We don’t know the details of his situation, and he made the decision that felt right to him. Enough said.
Jenna commented on Jun 24 11 at 1:05 amI have trouble believing he would have quit if this was his dream job or the only one he could get. This sounds like it was the last straw and a reason to finally quit a crappy gig… good for him. Horray for parenting.
Linda t.o.o. commented on Jun 25 11 at 4:46 pmYeah… great until it’s time to pay the mortgage and bills and the kid’s college tuition.
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