Just when you think youve seen it all.......

[baldgriff]

This weekend I was working one of the City Leagues tournaments here in MN. Its USSSA. Its mid 90's all weekend. Did 9 games on Saturday and show up Sunday a 8:30 for my 6 game set. I look at the schedule and I have Adult Co-Rec all day. Great! This shouldnt be to tough a day. YEAH RIGHT!!

First game - No problems.

Second Game (Losers Bracket game) - Home team is down by 1, bases loaded and a woman at the plate, two outs. She strikes out looking. Needless to say I get the complaints from the team that lost, but I just walk away. Those things happen and its part of the game.

Third game - (Loser Bracket) Rematch of a first round game. Apparently these teams dont like each other. Home team is winning and at bat in the bottom of the 4th. Just before the pitcher starts her motion I look down the third base line and see the Home Teams third base coach/player in the visitors dugout swearing at the other teams player. I call TIME and head down the line and tell the coach/player that he is ejected from the game, he continues arguing so I tell him to take his stuff and leave the park. His team is winning and he gets thrown out of a game. Of course his teammates are all up in arms about where is the warning. No warning on something like that. Here is the kicker, the didnt have a substitute for him. Not only does he get booted, his team loses on forfiet because they cant field a full team.

So now I have a whole team yelling at me that I cost them the tournament.

Game Four - (Losers bracket play in to Championship). Players from forfieted team stay to root for the team playing the team the just "lost" too. Supporting Home Team for htis game. They tell the home team them that their team has their support. Top of first and any time the Visiting team was possibly going to swing the Home team "supporters" would all yell to distract the batter. We got through the top of the first and I went over and told the "fan support" that they could cheer and root for whoever they wanted too. However, if they continue to try and influence the game by attempting to distract the batter I will call an interference. Then I informed the Home team Manager of the same. HE said I dont know any of them. I told him that they had declared who they were supporting and now they are his problem. Most everything cools off after that.

The team that won the forfeit goes on to win the tournament 10 run rule in all three games.

Win a game on a forfiet in the losers bracket and go on to win the whole thing. Crazy!

[mcrowder]

Ahhh... the old Verbal Fan Interference. Rule 11.04c. Nice. All I can say is OOO.

[baldgriff]

Just trying to keep the game fair and already heated emotions down.............

[mcrowder]

I understand that... but had I been the coach of the other team, and you ruled that, I'd have protested immediately. in fact, just issuing this threat to me, as coach, probably would have gotten me upset. There's no rule supporting your idea of granting interference on a fan for something verbal, and you put this coach in a crappy position of having to deal with people he didn't even know and had ZERO authority over.

If this team was so rowdy that you felt some measure was necessary, perhaps getting field admin to remove them would have been more appropriate.

[baldgriff]

Spectator Interference: (Yes this may be a somewhat loose interpretation but was fitting for the moment - another had to be there situation)

Is defined in USSSA:
Occurs when a person not engaged in the game toughes a live ball or thrown ball which could prevent a blocked ball to occur, or when a person not engaged in the game physically interferes with a Player's opportunities.

Now strictly speaking there wasnt "physical interference", however, 15 - 20 people yelling "Swing" or "Wiff" or other type of things specifically attempting to interfere with the players opportunity to hit the ball works for me.

You may think that it was unfair that I handled it this way. However, people that specifically announce they are rooting for one team are the responsibility of that team, whether they like it or not. If he doesnt want them doing it, he can tell them to stop. If they wont listen to him, then he can have the tournament director remove them.

I was tired of dealing with the BS and the only way to get it to stop was put it back on them "the fans".

[mcrowder]

I don't mean to bash on this, as I'm sure the situation was tense, and you were just looking for a solution.

But next time (if this should ever occur again), try not to resort to inventing rules (stretching the interference rule on spectators to include verbal is WAY out of bounds), and use field admin if possible. It was YOUR job, not the coach's to get field administration involved, and your forcing of him to do so was completely unfair to him. He didn't ASK for these fans. What happens if he asks these folks ... belligerent jerks that he doesn't even know ... to cut it out, and they tell him to screw himself? Now you expect HIM to go find field admin?!?! Or worse, ask HIS fans to shut them up? Advocate violence lately? Wrong wrong wrong.

Also - even if these verbal outbursts designed to make the batter swing WERE his fans - they weren't illegal.

[azbigdawg]

I think mcrowder is right..bypass putting the coach in a tough spot, and go to field personnel to handle it.... the coach MAY have some influence on his fans, but in this situation.....I dont think he did.....