8-Year-Old Baseball Fan Helps Her Poor Father Make a Fortune in Betting – Story of the Day

When their landlord shouted at her father, 8-year-old Leslie entered his online baseball betting account and showed a prowess far beyond her years. A week later, her father finally realized how mistaken he had always been about his daughter's interest in baseball.

"Mr. Cardigan, I swear. I'm working on the money. Please, give me some more time," Austin pleaded with his landlord, who had pounded on his door and wouldn't leave until he had to answer. Austin's daughter, Leslie, heard the pounding and went down to see what was happening.

Austin was laid off a month ago and was yet to find a job. His wife was working, and it was just enough to feed their family of four. However, their main financial troubles came from Austin's online betting, which was legal in New Jersey but led to so much trouble. He had spent a tremendous amount of money right before he was let go, and now, they were terribly behind on rent.

Their landlord didn't want to be any more lenient.

"I've been patient! I've been nice! But I'm tired of people taking advantage of it! You have three days to come up with the money, or I'm filing for a legal eviction!" the landlord yelled one final time, leaving in a huff.

Austin closed the door quietly, but his hand remained on the handle. Leslie wanted to run to her father and ask why the landlord was so angry, but she stopped herself and hid behind a shelf in the living room.

Her father's whole body started rocking softly. His hand left the doorknob, went to his eyes as his back connected with the door, and slowly slid down until he was on his butt on the floor. With utter horror, Leslie realized her father was crying.

It was her first time seeing that, and it didn't make sense. Austin was a tough guy who often told Leslie's big brother, Chuck, that boys don't cry. He was also hard on her, especially when he crushed her dreams of bonding with him through baseball.

When Chuck was born, Austin decorated his entire room with baseball paraphernalia. It was his dream for his boy to take up the sport just like him, but he wanted his son to go further. Austin dreamed of joining the major leagues, especially the New York Mets.

He started training as a little kid and had even played in front of scouts by the time he turned 16. Everyone thought he would soon be bought by an MLB team until a career-ending knee injury took him out of the game. So, he placed his hopes on Chuck.

Unfortunately for him, Chuck hated everything related to baseball – to any sports, really – instead, he wanted to be enrolled in dance lessons, something Austin didn't approve of. However, his wife protested, and Chuck eventually joined a school team for various kinds of dance.

Even more surprising, Leslie took up baseball from a young age, but Austin didn't think it was that serious. A year ago, she came to him with Chuck's old, unused baseball glove and begged her father to practice throwing.

Instead, he laughed. "Baseball isn't for girls!" Austin mocked and frowned. "Go play with your dolls and give me that."

He took the glove, threw it to the side, and sat back on the couch to watch a game. But Leslie didn't go back to play with dolls. She was only seven but sat down and watched the game with him. Austin rarely noticed her, but Leslie paid attention to every game.

She would also wake up in the middle of the night, go to the living room to turn on the television, and watch baseball stats. Whenever her mother let her use the iPad, she looked for baseball information, watched Youtube videos, checked MLB draft stats, etc.

And secretly, she always stood right behind her father when he was using the online betting site. Leslie had even tried to suggest something the last time she saw him betting, but he dismissed her.

"Leslie, this is for grownups. Let me focus," he stated, waving a hand so she would go away.

"But Dad, you're betting on the wrong team. I think the Mets have a better chance," she commented.

Austin scoffed mockingly. "What do you know about baseball? You're 8. Leave me alone."

His eyes returned to the computer, but Leslie stayed and watched him make a mistake and lose a lot of money.

Despite everything, she loved her father and her family. After digesting all that information, she wanted to show him how important baseball was for her and how good she had gotten. So, instead of rushing to hug her father, Leslie went to his room, grabbed his laptop, and hid in her room.

She pulled up the page, which was already bookmarked, and looked through everything. She obviously didn't have a credit card as an eight-year-old, but she checked her bedside drawer for her savings. There was $124 in cash.

Deciding only to use that money, she focused on the site and placed her bets. Her selections were careful and precise. She had another tab on the browser with a few searches for extra information.

Everyone had told Leslie's mother that she was gifted and should pursue math or a science degree, but those weren't her passions at her age. It was better to use her skills, so her father would see that baseball was not only for boys.

Her father was so distracted after that encounter with the landlord that he didn't notice his laptop missing. But Leslie returned it that night with her cash savings. She took it the next day and the following, making more bets because the others were successful.

A week later, she had just clicked on one final bet for the day when her father came into her room, angry and red-faced.

"Leslie, what are you doing with my laptop?" Austin shouted frantically, snatching the laptop. "What have you done, Leslie? Have you been placing bets!"

"In your name, Dad!" Leslie replied, smiling despite his anger.

"Young lady! We don't have the money for that, and you don't know what you're doing! This is serious!"

"I only bet what I had saved. I put the money on your desk, and look what I've won already!" Leslie screamed, knowing she had to be loud or he wouldn't listen.

"Don't talk back to me!" Austin retorted but looked at the screen, frowning immediately as his head leaned closer to his laptop. "What is this? What did you do?"

He sat down on her beside her. "Look! You've been betting all wrong," Leslie added happily.

Her father's eyes were huge, and his mouth was slightly open. "Leslie, this says you made over $40,000. How?"

She shrugged. "I told you. I'm good at baseball."

Austin had to check that the money was real, and finally, he looked at his daughter with wonder. He asked how she learned so much, and Leslie explained. By the end, he had tears in his eyes – the second time he cried in front of her.

"Don't cry, Dad. The landlord can't kick us out now, right?" she said, hugging his shoulders.

Austin put down the laptop and grabbed his child tightly. "Thank you, baby. No one will kick us out of our house. Thank you, you brilliant girl."

Her father sent the money from the site to his bank account and paid the overdue rent and several other debts. Afterward, they all went to a special dinner at Leslie's favorite restaurant to celebrate, but the betting remained a father-daughter secret.

Leslie's mom and brother thought they were celebrating his new job, which Austin eventually got. However, he changed all his passwords and told Leslie not to bet again because it was dangerous. But he took her outside to practice catch and bat swinging.

She was enrolled in the school's team after a few days and continued practicing baseball all the way through college. Eventually, Leslie landed a job with a major league baseball team, climbing to manager and executive director of players.

Her dad attended every game.

What can we learn from this story?

• Never crush your child's dreams. Austin disregarded his daughter's interest in baseball due to his prejudice, but he learned how wrong he was.
• A prodigy needs support to grow. Once her father realized her prowess and talent, Leslie was allowed to pursue her passions and thrived.

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If you enjoyed this story, you might like this one about a woman who mocked a hotel maid and became her partner a day later.

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