By RON GOWER

tneditor@tnonline.comDuring my many years of being a journalist, I like most of my peers enjoyed doing articles about successes. These were articles about local people with great accomplishments, such as Lehighton's master drummer Denny Seiwell joining Paul McCartney's band.They were articles about people who had health miracles, who found great success in their vocations, who experienced great joy from personal events, who did something terrific to benefit others and of heroic feats such as two firefighters freeing a trapped person from an airplane crash in Mahoning Township some years ago literally minutes before the plane burst into flames.Not all success stories are in print, though. Some personal accomplishments merely provide satisfaction to those involved and touched by the feats.This is the case with my grandson's Little League baseball team, also known as "Anthracite White."With Tyler's involvement in baseball, I got to appreciate how hard youngsters work in extracurricular activities. I found out his sport is more than just tossing a ball, hitting it with a bat or running from one base to another.There are fundamentals. He learned that when he plays left field he must often run to the infield and back up the third baseman. In other situations, when he pitches, he is responsible for covering home plate on a passed ball or running to first base and making the play in specific instances.I attended practices and watched as his coaches patiently and voluntarily without compensation helped him learn how to bunt, when to steal a base, how to properly catch a ball in the air or on the grass, and especially displaying sportsmanship.Anthracite White, consisting of youngsters just 9 and 10 years old, won their division championship in their league. Now they will be playing for the league championship beginning 2 p.m. today.The players are competitive with each other, but prioritize teamwork. They back each other up, congratulate each other on making good plays and offer support if a member makes an error or strikes out. When the game is over, the winning and losing meet on the field and shake hands.Also, I've seen that Tom Hanks is wrong in "A League of Their Own." There is crying in baseball. When a player makes a mistake in key situations, I've seen tears of self-dejection fall.I've witnessed some great personal accomplishments since I've been going to Tyler's game; feats that often don't get reported by the news media. They are highlights achieved through personal effort which are rewarded by personal satisfaction of the player, his family and his teammates.On my grandson's baseball team, for example, Steve Hood, a tall, ever-smiling 10-year-old, hit four over-the-fence home runs in just four games. I saw Matt Macholic pitch four innings and give up just one run and numerous strikeouts, leading his game to an 11-1 victory. There were amazing plays which happened only because the players were taught the basics of the sport.There also are sacrifices. The schedule infringes on vacation schedules and fun activities. It appears to be worth it, though. At every practice for Anthracite White, there is very little absenteeism. One boy missed a practice because his family was vacationing at the New Jersey shore, but the family brought him home for the game, then went back to the Shore.It's not only baseball where youngsters work hard and learn to be successful adults through the discipline, sacrifices and lessons they experience.Nobody knows but the participants how much 4-H members put into their projects which gain ribbons at local fairs. In all sports, there is practice, practice and more practice, with the reward being accomplishment.Obviously I want my grandson's team to win this weekend's championship baseball series. But even if his team doesn't gain the big trophy, Anthracite White members, as well as all the players in the league, have successes only they can claim.They dedicated themselves to a purpose and saw it through. They worked hard, doing the best they could no matter how good their opponent might be.While the first place trophy isn't everything, it sure would be nice.