Day 4 of the Washington State Major Baseball Tournament.

None of the teams wanted to quit playing today. Both games went into extra innings. Two very exciting games. See the updated game bracket attached. A summary follows:

Game 17: D2 3 vs D12 3 in 7 innings – Loser Out. D12 was also in an 8 inning game their first game of the tournament.

Game 18: D6 7 vs D4 8 in 10 innings – Loser Out. Holy cow, yes 10 innings.

Two games tomorrow.

Game 20: D10 vs D4 – Loser Out

Game 21: D1 vs D2 – Loser Out

Things got a bit ugly at the conclusion of the D2 vs D12 game which was very unfortunate. It was a hard fought game and both teams played very well. The trouble began with what was either real or perceived sign stealing by a player on the D2 team. The umpires were alerted by one of the players that they thought the player was signaling to his teammate. The umpires warned the player and the manager that stealing signs was not allowed. Several innings later the same player was on base again and one of the umpires saw what he believed was similar behavior to what the player had been warned about previously. At the end of the play the player and manager were ejected from the game. Of course he was not happy about the decision and insisted that he would never teach his players to steal signs. I have known this coach since he played himself on the same field. While I do believe he wouldn’t teach his players to steal signs I also know that the umpires had to make their decision based on what they saw on the field. They thought the player was stealing signs and continued to do so later in the game. Therefore the rule is clear and the player and manager are ejected from the game.

The fans on both sides actually seemed to handle the warning and subsequent ejections fairly well. It wasn’t until the game was over and D2 held off D12 in the bottom of the 7^th inning that things got a bit ugly from both sides. It was an emotional game (a loser out game after all) and the D2 team was, in my opinion, overly celebratory following the final out. However, I didn’t see anything that was directed toward the other team. Both teams quickly reassembled and did their common high-five good game hand shakes. For some reason a few (maybe only one to start) of the D2 fans made taunting gestures toward the D12 fans. That provoked several of the D12 fans to come over to the D2 side and get into a verbal altercation. Whether it was this incident or just frustration I don’t know but I had a rather lengthy discussion with a number of D12 fans who couldn’t believe I would condone having a team cheat the whole game and allow such horrible behavior from the home crowd throughout the game.

Now I was at the game and watched nearly all of it close by both sides fans. I didn’t hear anything during the game that game me pause from either side. The umpires thought they saw misbehavior and dealt with it. The game ran smoothly otherwise. I did not witness the behavior by the fans after the game ended but did get first hand reports. As mentioned above I did spend quite a bit of time talking with the fans on the D12 side who were quite agitated.

I have informed the D2 team that if there is even a hint of derogatory comments during the next game that I will not hesitate to clear the stands. There is no excuse for poor behavior and it won’t be tolerated.

Sorry for the lengthy briefing but I thought you should all know how that game ended. Really a shame because it was a very well played game by both teams and prior to the blowup at the end it had been a pleasure to have both teams and their fans participating. The D12 coaching staff did a great job with the players and they should all be very proud of their accomplishments.

More tomorrow.

Regards,

Pat

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Pat Ryan
District Administrator
Little League Baseball and Softball
Washington District 2

2686 NE Lillehammer Lane
Poulsbo, WA 98370
360-779-1824 home
360-271-5193 mobile
888-300-6193 fax
Pat.Ryan@WAD2LLB.org
www.WAD2LLB.org

"If you want 1 year of prosperity, grow grain.
If you want 10 years of prosperity, grow trees.
If you want 100 years of prosperity, grow people."
Old Chinese Proverb
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