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B. Scott Anderson: Something seems a bit odd in JBO decision |
Baseball, as in life, can
bring out the best in people. It can also bring out ... well, not
the best in others.
The best shined recently on a group of players that make up the
Newberg Senior American Junior Baseball of Oregon team coached by
Steve Mayfield. Last weekend at the Washington County district
tournament in Reedville, Newberg scored a pair of victories before
falling 15-3 to Scappoose in the semifinals. Normally, that wouldn’t
be much of a story. But it turned out to be an important one.
Mayfield protested the win, saying Scappoose used an ineligible
pitcher in the semifinals. Mayfield said he, along with several
other league coaches, had never seen the player in question play
during the season.
“I had my suspicions,” Mayfield said. “And every one I had ever
talked to had never heard about or saw this kid.”
Mayfield protested the game to the league. Since Washington County
league commissioner Rick Peterson was on vacation and not at the
tournament, league officers handed down a decision that allowed
Scappoose to keep the two wins it had earned in the tournament, but
the league officials would not allow the ineligible player to
compete in any remaining games. Peterson later backed up the ruling.
The ruling was unbelievable, at best, for Mayfield. In the rules
governing the Junior Baseball of Oregon, it states, “If a team has
won a game using an ineligible player, the game is to be forfeited
to the opposing team except that illegal substitution shall not be
grounds for forfeiture.”
Mayfield couldn’t believe the ruling. “It is very black and white,”
he said.
Since Mayfield was still baffled about the district officials not
adhering to league rules, Mayfield spent most of July 22 and 23
pleading his case to the state board of Junior Baseball of Oregon.
However, the state board was unable to get involved because the
district tournament wasn’t a state-sanctioned tournament, making
Peterson, the district commissioner, the last say.
Newberg finished 3-2 at the district tournament, good for
second-place, after losing 6-5 to Scappoose in the finals. As a
result, Newberg didn’t qualify for the state tournament held this
past weekend in Hillsboro.
But if it seems like Mayfield is just upset his team didn’t qualify
for the state tournament, he’s not. He was happy with how his team
played and how they represented themselves at the tournament. In
fact, the team won the sportsmanship award.
“That says a lot for this group of kids, the parents we had involved and
the coaching staff,” Mayfield said.
Still, Mayfield wishes things could have come out differently. He sent
out an e-mail to the coaches in the league, Peterson and other
district officials in the state regarding the situation. He urged
Peterson to issue an apology to the Washington County teams and the
JBO state board.
“If he is truly a man of integrity, he would have made the right
choice to begin with,” Mayfield wrote in the e-mail. “He still has
the opportunity to save some face, do the right thing and apologize
to all. The state JBO organization should not have to be apologizing
for you.”
“Put an end to the disgrace (Peterson). Admit you made a mistake
and apologize for your actions. This is not going away until you
step up and do the right thing.”
When I called Peterson to get his side of the story, he politely
said, “No comment.” When I asked him again if he was sure he didn’t
want to comment, he again said, “No comment.” According to Mayfield,
Peterson’s unwillingness to talk has become the norm lately.
Mayfield said Peterson has been unresponsive to phone calls and
e-mails regarding the district tournament. Seems a little tough to
get something resolved when the person in charge is unwilling to
talk.
In the end, you can only hope people learn from the fiasco. You
have to hope Peterson is willing to not only talk, but come up with
a solution that satisfies those involved. You also have to hope
coaches won’t bend the rules by allowing ineligible players to
compete in games that will be forgotten sooner rather than later.
Mayfield said he didn’t think that happened.
“When it’s all said and done, we know what’s right,” Mayfield said.
“Unfortunately, what Scappoose and the Washington County league is
saying is that cheating is OK and that’s not OK for us.” |
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From Aug. 1, 2007, Newberg Graphic
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