SPORTS WATCH : Big League Long Beach

Is playing in the Little League more pressure than children should have to endure at such a tender age? Maybe, maybe not; but a certain group of Little Leaguers from Long Beach are showing the world that they can handle all that pressure, and with no sweat.

After posting 21 consecutive wins to capture the United States Little League Championship Thursday in Williamsport, Pa., Long Beach plays the Philippines Saturday for the international title.

Led by pitcher Sean Burroughs, who pitched a three-hit shutout through all six innings, Long Beach beat the East team from Hamilton Square, N.J., 1-0. Standouts Ryan Beaver, Dane Mayfield and Randall Shelley have also anchored a team that posted 46 victories during the regular season and an amazing 17 consecutive wins through district, sectional and divisional playoffs.

Of the 7,000 teams that began play each spring, only eight teams--four from the United States and four international teams--earn the right to play in the round-robin championship. In recent years, the teams from Taiwan have dominated the contest. Not this year.

These Little League heroes are a giant shot in the arm for Long Beach, a city that has suffered recently from the devastation caused by last April’s rioting and protracted economic hardship as a result of aerospace layoffs.

Tomorrow, Long Beach’s Little Leaguers will have all of Southern California cheering for them.

We wish them the best of luck.