'I Hate This Sport': Dan Campbell Shares Classic Baseball Story

Why Dan Campbell ceased playing baseball after Little League incident.
Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell.
Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell. / Junfu Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
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With baseball fever sweeping the Metro Detroit area, Detroit Lions head coach Dan Campbell shared a story of the final time he ever played a game in the sport.

As the Detroit Tigers' Wild Card Series opener against the Houston Astros played on a television adjacent to the Lions coach speaking at the podium, Campbell shared his frustration for the sport stemming from an experience in little league.

While sporting a hat with the Tigers logo on it, Campbell shared that he had a bad memory from his younger days playing the game. As a youngster, he had a game-winning grand slam negated after an objection from an opposing coach.

"All right. Last time I ever played baseball, we're in the playoffs. We're in, I don't even know what you would call it. It's not for my school, you know, it's little league baseball, right?" Campbell said. "And, it's the classic bases loaded, two strikes, the whole deal. (I) get up there and hit a grand slam for the win. And right before I do, I hear somebody behind me and they said, 'Hold on, hold on,' and I hit, I swing. So, I carried my bat to first base to get the first base coach. I go around, well their coach argues that I can't carry the bat to first base, and the umpire agrees and we lose the freaking game. So, I was like, 'I hate this sport.'"

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John Maakaron
JOHN MAAKARON

John Maakaron has covered Detroit Sports since 2013. Brings a vast array of experience covering the Detroit Tigers, Detroit Lions, Michigan Wolverines, Michigan State Spartans, Detroit Mercy Titans, and Oakland University Golden Grizzlies. John brings a wealth of sports broadcast experience. In 2013, John had the vision to establish the Detroit Sports Podcast Network. Has recorded over 3000 podcasts analyzing Detroit Sports. In 2019, Sports Illustrated Media Group, a historical sports media outlet, partnered with Detroit Sports Podcast to provide daily Lions content for their growing and expanding digital media outlet. Our Lions content can also be read in the newspaper at The Oakland  Passionate about Detroit Sports and it is reflected in his coverage of the local teams!