Jason said: is all this crying because semo.net lost??? lol

Why, yes, yes it is. We here at semo.net are sore losers! <grin> jk

Honestly, my agreement to publish Toni’s article was to give voice to the 8 coaches (from different leagues), and even more parents, who have expressed frustration with the “manipulation” and promote change.

2 Players are added to any team that forfeits a game for not enough players
1 Player is added to any team that plays a game with only eight players

The games last night were fun to be involved in. The boys on all the teams, including last night’s championship game, played great baseball.

I didn’t see any anger on the field last night and all the coaches seemed to get along great from my viewpoint.

As for the “system being manipulated” comment in Toni’s article, I would echo your words that Greg has done a stellar job of keeping the system on the up and up. He protects the system very well and is good at it. The article addresses that the system has a loophole that can be exploited. The best proof of that is the number of times I’ve heard coaches and parents say “All the teams do that.”

So, KUDOS to Greg and the Parks Department for jobs WELL done. But I do hope that the system can be discussed and strengthened for the betterment of the game.

Congrats to Bluff Transmission for a well-played game. Their congratulations are posted on our home page as well as semo.net’s second place finish.

The “system” you refer to has been in place at the park department during the last several years and I’m familiar with it because I have coached a park dept. team each of those years. If a team loses a player during the season for whatever reason, the coach can call the office and request a player from the pool of players who signed up late and are on a waiting list. You cannot “request a random player” as you suggest. You get the next player on the list and Greg Riggs will not tell you who that player is. Do I totally agree with that set-up? No. Trust me, I’ve been victimized by it every year because of another team(s) picking up a player. However, the system in place is what it is and most coaches know that going in.

As far as “manipulating the system,” if that’s how you feel, you should take it up with the Park Dept. In addition, you choosing to use the word “cheating” is definitely inappropriate because it is simply untrue.

In all of my “spare” time, I am a high school football official and I surely echo your sentiments regarding “sportmanship being extremely important.” That is one of our goals as officials is to make sure that positive sportsmanship is carried out in every game we officiate. Instances last night I witnessed of angry coaches yelling at the umpire, coaches verbally sparring at a parent from the opposing team, and coaches from the losing team refusing to shake the hands of the coaches from the winning team were certainly not examples of positive sportsmanship “for the kids.”

The latter of those was especially in bad taste in my opinion and to several others I spoke to after the game. I’m sure the coaches probably regret that decision today as it most definitely was not behavior “for the kids” to witness. That being said, we are all human and make mistakes. Our emotions will run high, especially when our own kids are involved. We wouldn’t be concerned and involved parents if that weren’t the case. Our ultimate goal though, mine included, should be to set positive examples “for the kids,” both ours and others. After all, young eyes are always out there watching our actions.