What’s wrong with SFLOI?

I don’t come to SFLOI every week to break records, nor could I if I wanted to. I come to have a good time and to try to hit the softball as hard as I can. Sometimes it doesn’t have much of a result, and sometimes it has the greatest. Either way, it should be fun, and mostly I try to have a good time. However, SFLOI has become increasingly a tougher place to do just that.

When I started here, almost two years ago, it seemed a lot looser; sure there were incidents here and there, but it seemed rather cool. Of course, maybe this was because I started in the fall season. Going into last summer, I could tell the heat heated up competition as well, but that all seemed fine as well. One incident that first raised my eyebrow, though, was a benching of Glen Lawrence that seemed not the right thing to do. That led to a bit of controversy that then led to the 2-inning sitting rule, which in itself is a terrible cop-out which insures that most “good” players stay in.

So, that said, we come to this Monday’s game where I sat an inning in Game One and then was asked to do so again in at the end of Game Two when there were a few players that had not sat at all. Now, let’s get a couple of things straight, 1. I will never say I am a good fielder, but I’m not terrible as well. I’m one of the mid-of-the-road players. 2. Being one of the team managers of my company’s team I also understand having to sit players. However, there lies the major difference and where all the disagreements stem.

See, I play in a league where TEAM victories count. Everyone on our team understands this, and everyone is OK with the tough decisions that need to be made by me and the other manager. Heck, I rotate myself in and out all the time. Whatever contributes to the team winning, I’m into. I understand this.

SFLOI, though, is nothing like the league I am in. SFLOI is a pick-up league where the stats are gods, and there are no real team concepts. You are my teammate and opponent, maybe on the same day, and all that matters is how we do in that game. At the end of the day, if you lost two, but went 8-8, you may act sad, but we all know you’re damn happy with yourself. The “pennant” really doesn’t mean much, other than being another stat.

So, I argue and disagree with the notions presented by Havelock in the prior post, and also by Ian in the comments. Winning a ballgame should never get ahead of doing the right thing in this league. There should never be a player that has paid his/her dues that sits more than someone else. No one should be exempt from sitting, no matter how good they are. Ever! Surely not in this league. Not in a league where team wins don’t mean anything to anyone but the pitcher (more on that in a bit). After all, this is Softball for the Love of it, not Softball Winning at all Costs.

And that’s the basis of my whole post really. SFLOI is getting away from what I thought it was: a fun pick-up league. I shouldn’t walk away with contempt for anyone. Guys like Joe Gerber and others who yell at their teammates need to step back and look at what they are doing. We’ve had numerous injuries in the past year, and one of ours even had a heart-attack. In light of those occurrences is softball that important; why has this game become increasingly more serious?

Which brings me to my next question that stems from all of this seriousness, why is it that certain pitchers are fast pitching or quick pitching? Certainly I’m not the only one that has noticed that the velocity in this league is going up, am I? If I wanted to join a fast pitch league, I would. Yet more and more, I have to deal with looking out for an errant pitch, which I’m sorry control issues are increasing with the velocity, or swinging out of whack and pulling some muscle just to try to catch up. Honestly, it’s becoming harder to just enjoy coming to the plate. Related: On Monday, Ian Lebowitz did everything to turn defensively on a Derek Martinez fast pitch and ended up smacking Ian’s girlfriend with a foul ball. Would he have hit it like that if it weren’t coming in as fast, I don’t know, but it seemed like there were many hard hit fouls balls when Ian and Derek and sometimes Havelock pitched.

So let me tie this all up with a bow, because I think there is a root to these issues, and that being that the pitchers are the players who care the most about winning said game. Their records are the ones most affected, and to this I cannot argue. But what I can argue is that the pitchers, or someone that usually pitches, are usually also the team captains, and this is leading to a more dangerous and unfair game. Certainly not one that sounds like it should be played under the acronym of SFLOI.

I’ve always said pick-up softball is about the hitters, and I think our pitchers need to loosen up their pants, and realize losing isn’t the end of the world. I challenge our fast pitchers to turn it down and be crafty like Dave Rosengard or Jim O’Connor. These guys don’t need speed to win, as witnessed this past Sunday by Dave. I know the three gents I’ve mentioned in this post can pitch well even without it, so I’d like to see them try. Let’s see what you got. I also challenge Havelock to give the captains chair to players who do not pitch at all. Let them make the decisions. But I also tell them to be fair to everyone. I honestly think that would be the case anyway.

I love being a part of the fabric of this league. If I didn’t, I wouldn’t have contributed this website, and everything else I’ve tried to do for it. I wouldn’t have spent the time to write this if not. I want to continue to be a part of this, too, but I want our players to have a good time, I want decisions made for the players to continue to have a good time. So please, Powers-that-be, step back and look at what’s been going on here, and make the right decisions going forward. This is not about an ego gone wild, this about Softball for the Love it. Remember that?

See you all in a couple of weeks.
--Sal