[IRISHMAFIA]

Any ultimatum by any team should be, "thank you, maybe the next tournament" and move on.

Use to hear all sorts of crap from teams and the State Player Rep (ASA) whining about how 'WE', not anyone else, did not run tournaments for SP teams in the area and that is why the teams didn't play ASA. It should be noted that 'WE' have tried, but it seems no matter what weekend is chosen, it just wasn't good enough for them. So, last year at the state meeting I stood up and challenged the State Player Rep to get together with his friends and teams and pick any weekend and we would run a tournament for them, they set any parameters that would not be a safety issue (HR, time limit, etc). The next call I get from him will be the first in more than a year.

Had an associate work a Men's Major or Super Nat for either Bernie P or Dan B and the tournament had to go to a reserve box of softballs and two brands ended up on a field in the same game. My buddy threw in whatever ball came out of his bag, didn't really pay attention to the brand name. Well, at one point the manager of one of the teams started giving my pal a hard time and demanded they be able to hit the ball they want. The umpire told them they were going to hit whatever ball came out of the bag. After a few minutes, the UIC was at the field and asked what the problem was. Before the umpire could say anything, this manager started on him and stated his team wasn't playing with XYZ ball. The UIC told the PU to pull his crew, the game was over. The manager started back-pedaling quickly. The UIC told him he and team could pack their bags, if they weren't going to play, they could go home.

Moral of the story is that dealing and complying with ultimatums usually doesn't end well for anyone and can actually be detrimental to those who think they have helped the situation through accommodation.