POLL: Are Kids Getting Priced Out of Baseball and Softball?

Have you bought a baseball glove for your Little Leaguer lately? Did you pay more than $100 for it?

How about a $250 bat?

A New York Times story headlined "Big Price Tags Attached to Even the Littlest Leagues," looks at the big business of equipping youngsters for participation in youth baseball and softball leagues, quoting those costs and more.

"A batting helmet protects tiny heads for $39.99," the Times reports. "A pair of Nike Jordan Black Cat cleats will make your child fast and fashionable at $51.99 until he or she outgrows them."

For the Johnston Little League, this year's registration costs were $110 for the first child and $60 each sibling for the minors, majors, and Junior and Senior Leagues (max. $160); $65 for instructional league players.

The price tag to play softball in town this year is $80 per player and $115 per family.

So what do you think? Has the cost of youth sports taken our kids too far from the simpler days of sandlot and playground ballgames? Or have you had better luck finding more modestly-priced equipment for them?