Yeah without actually seeing the players, I have no idea about the actual situation in the OP (which is why I said in most cases when I mentioned 5 runs vs no-no). What I am talking about ( I guess I should have prefaced my statements by saying this) is a hypothetical situation where the underclassmen is the better player and is not being played due to seniority..that is a punishment IMO. It isn't a punishment which will scar the kid for life, but a punishment nonetheless.
But that's the macro for all these conversations. It's rarely a matter of big differences. A freshman shortstop's parents get mad any time the senior botches a grounder, because their kid is perfect in club games. They assume it's a seniority thing -- and it might be -- but we also might be talking one meaningless play every three games. And the parents don't see how the freshman does in practice. Or a freshman batting .367 being behind a senior batting .345 -- the differences in this game are usually minute. As parents we see our kids int eh best possible light, and that lighting might not always be as good for the rest fo the world. Or a coaching staff.
No one -- at least not me -- is arguing that when there's a giant ability discrepency that the older kid should play all the time. It's just that the differences are rarely as big as the parents of kids who aren't playing make them out to be.