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TOPIC: Kam Koplitz |
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| Tim Norton
March 14, 2012
11:32:20 PM
Entry #: 3880182
| After reading the executive board's decision on the future of Kam Koplitz of Madison L.T. I hope this decision doesn't come back to haunt our league. Common sense says release the player and let him play where he wants to. He owes the team no monies,uniforms,etc. and is moving to Woodland, minutes from Rubicon and has no ill will toward his former team. We all have players that leave our teams from year to year that is the nature of the game. We don't like it, but move on. To ask another team to "pay up" for that players release is unthinkable. This is a Sunday amateur baseball league, cmon on. The kid just wants to play closer to where he lives. I sincerely hope when the rosters are sent in that this team does not have him on their roster. I know for a fact that a majority of teams will not stand for this and this will get changed. To not let a kid play and have to sit out is ridiculous. I hope this is not what our league is coming to?
Sincerely, a concerned member of the Rock River league
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| Gregg Kuehl
March 15, 2012
12:24:30 AM
Entry #: 3880191
| Mr. Norton,
As always, everyone is entitled to their opinion. However, not everyone is privy to all of the information considered while making this decision. As the Northern Division Representative to the Executive Council of the Rock River League I will tell you that there is more to be considered than one side of the story. I feel I represented my constituents as well as possible and felt compelled to vote to uphod the current By Laws as written.
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March 15, 2012
8:02:00 AM
Entry #: 3880221
| well i know the facts and this will get fixed. By laws or no by laws common sense rules.
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March 15, 2012
8:06:09 AM
Entry #: 3880222
| Executive Committe Objectives:
Promote Amateur Baseball
Rule on Eligibility of Players
Ours failed at both!!!
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March 15, 2012
8:24:29 AM
Entry #: 3880230
| Whats the other side of the story Greg?????
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| El Diablo
March 15, 2012
10:35:16 AM
Entry #: 3880273
| Face it, the board moved the way it did because they are scared to face Koplitz and Pankow on a weekly basis. If we are going to get into regulating rosters we might as well just adopt those rules then but if we go by not having roster restrictions like other leagues, then we have to go with that. I don't look forward to facing Koplitz more regularly but to sit there and say he can't play closer to home is a joke.
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| BB H2O
March 15, 2012
2:00:10 PM
Entry #: 3880361
| Another reason why leadership needs to go. What a joke!
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March 15, 2012
3:14:47 PM
Entry #: 3880384
| L.T.-let the guy play where he wants to play. He wasn't leaving because he hates you, but I hope he does now!
It'll get fixedor we'll refuse to play! Nice job executive board! Maybe if some young blood was brought in and the executives weren't all at the top end of serving their life terms we could get some new perspectives that better represent the whole league.
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March 15, 2012
4:28:46 PM
Entry #: 3880408
| No question that Kam has our support here to. Nobody in the north wants to have to face him weekly but we all support him being allowed to play for Rubicon.
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March 15, 2012
4:49:47 PM
Entry #: 3880420
| I'll take it from the other angle. Rules are in place to stop teams from loading up. Rubicon seems like they have orchestrated this like they have for years. If Koplitz doesn't want to play in Madison then he has to sit the year out in the Rock. There is always Monches, North Lake, Merton, Cooney, West Bend in Lakes he can play for if he so chooses.
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| El Diablo
March 15, 2012
5:19:06 PM
Entry #: 3880436
| Speaking of Lakes, what is the point of having "open rosters" then telling a player he can't play on a team? Then we should just adopt the Lakes pick system then!
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| Paul Patten Jr.
March 15, 2012
5:50:18 PM
Entry #: 3880452
| Or we could all start bitching about something when it has to do with us, right? Or better yet our coaches could all be ******* and be afraid to call another coach right? Have your players do it instead and then turn around and bitch and cry to everyone else in the north so they can bitch with you. Then once something is agreed on with the person you had call that coach then you turn around and email the president of the league and piss and moan to him like a real bitch. Why didn't anyone want to vote on the rule in the first 2 or 3 meetings? Because it didn't have to do with you until now? Now everyone wants to bitch. Plain and simple all the north does is bitch and bitch and bitch until they get there way. Not going to happen this time gentlemen.
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March 15, 2012
6:23:12 PM
Entry #: 3880470
| Hey Paul, is this why you're not in Home Talent? Because they would actually have rules in place that wouldn't allow you to run a monopoly? Scared ******** because you are losing your best player? Open roster my ass, this is a joke.
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| Paul Patten Jr.
March 15, 2012
6:27:03 PM
Entry #: 3880473
| Actually home talent won't let Madison teams in. Very good try though. Best player? come on now. He's a very good player but scared ********? You must be ******* joking me. I'm not scared of anyone in this league. Don't be scared to put your name on either. You must be one of those people who can talk when no one knows who they are.
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| Eric Broom
March 15, 2012
11:38:33 PM
Entry #: 3880637
| For years even before we came to the rock Farmington has been victim of good players wanting to leave for all sorts of reasons including bluntly stating they wanted to play for a winning team. As an assistant coach I know the struggles to try to keep a team together and grow for future success. Sometimes it's easier to keep a winning organization strong then to rebuild one. In all the years we have never made anyone sit out games or prevented them from playing elsewhere. I sure as hell wouldn't want anyone have to join a different league for a year. That hurts all of us who are trying to get players from the other leagues to join our premier league.
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| Gregg Kuehl
March 16, 2012
12:24:48 AM
Entry #: 3880645
| Gentlemen. The decision had nothing to do with the player or the team he would like to go to. A decision had to be made based on the information we had at the time of the vote. I was elected to represent the teams of the Northern Division and I felt I did so.
I will not go into detail on here. I personally would have liked to have had the player and the team that he wants to leave present to ask them questions. However, this was not the case. Based totally on the bylaws of the Rock River League the decision, while most of you disagree with it, was made fairly. If more information is afforded or an appeal is placed, I would assumed the situation would be readdressed as it pertains to the new information.
The comments about the Executive Committee ruling being based on anything to do with fear or a competitive imbalance are uninformed, not thought out and hurtful.
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| Troy - Neosho
March 16, 2012
12:32:34 PM
Entry #: 3880802
| I would second Tim Norton's sentiments of setting a precedents like this in the league. It is in the by laws, but by laws weren't written with something like this in mind, or when gas is 4 dollars a gallon. In this case yes, the rich are getting richer and Rubicon is getting a great player on an already amazing roster. But I'm not sure many teams can say they haven't been on either side of this issue in the past. Neosho has been gutted in the past and then last year got a great player from Lebanon. Hustisford got two great players from Lebanon last year too. L.T. got a bunch of really great ball players when the Senators folded, so in effect loaded up due to circumstance.
The real issue is that everyone only has a certain number of baseball years in them. No one is getting paid to play in this league that I'm aware. Gas is going up. Kam is dating a Rubicon fan and living 3 miles from Rubicon. Maybe there are other circumstances but realistically what's right is right. Let the guy play where he wants to play or the can of worms that's getting opened will have far effects. Let's say a team picks up 3 kids as bench players and they don't get to play all year and the next year could go some place and start on a team with openings. Now a coach for whatever reason can say "No," and these kids have to ride the pine or not play at all? I mean right now if I were a bubble / bench player on a team I'd be looking to move to a new team and fast or risk other coaches / teams trying to lock me down. This isn't the pro's, there aren't franchise tags and long term contracts. I thought all you guys played because you loved playing the game? Or maybe I missed something?
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| CL WB7UP
March 16, 2012
1:40:19 PM
Entry #: 3880819
| I clearly don't have a grasp of the rules that you guys use in the Rock like I do for the Lakes rules, but I can ensure you that this is what separates the Rock from us in Lakes. Until talking to some managers and directors here in the Rock I was under the assumption that the Rock was open roster unlike Lakes which tries to keep roster loading to a minimum with the Pick system.
Since somebody brought up the pick system in Lakes, I will just say, that as long as all debts are cleared and the team has a remaining pick, then it is ok'ed. We had an allstar player on the Falls last season switch teams midyear, but because of the pick system it was ok'd by the board. Nobody complains when a former MLB'er Tyke Redmond joins a Lakes team because that team has a pick. That is some of the benefits to the pick system.
It isn't my place to speak to what is right and wrong here, but what I will say is that being petty and holding a grudge over a few bucks or hurt feelings probably isn't worth it. I don't know Kam personally, but from what I hear he is a heck of a player, and do you want to push a all league guy to Lakes, or the East Shore, or force him to sit out?
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| Kam Koplitz
March 16, 2012
5:36:15 PM
Entry #: 3880906
| After reading all the posts on the board, I feel that I should let the story out and give the only side of the story. I appreciate all the support from the people that have written kind words.
I played with LT last year and at the end of the year was asked if I was coming back and I said yes. Starting in january I changed jobs and now work in Waukesha and my girlfriend lives in Woodland. When we decided to move in I knew I wouldnt be able to afford the drive to Madison and back every weekend. I would be able to save $1300 over the summer by playing closer to my new home. I then went and asked Rubicon if I could play with them. For the record, Rubicon did NOT recruit me, I went to them. I then told LT that I would not be back with them due to job, personal, and financial reasons. At that time LT said that they would not release me. They said that they wanted componsation from whatever team that I decided to join. I let LT know all this in January as to give them 3.5 months to find a replacement for me. LT has drug their feet on this. When Brad Frank called LT they stuck by wanting to be paid the league fee that I would have to pay for LT as compensation. When they wanted $150, I felt that this wasnt right. I then emailed Carl asking if there was anything that could be done. After no response, Rubicon decided to try and appeal the decision. I then found out that the committee rejected the appeal.
I want to state that I enjoyed playing with LT but this is a decision that I have decided to make based on job, personal, and financial reasons and nothing more. I feel that there shouldnt be any componsation paid when I gave LT 3.5 months notice before the season started. We do not get paid to play and only play for the love of the game. I hope that I can talk to the committee about the situation to try and come up with the right solution. Greg, I am open to talking to anyone on the committee at any time. I hope this can be solved by the time the season starts because I am excited to be back playing baseball soon. If anyone has any questions or any issues, you can call me anytime. 9205737846.
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March 17, 2012
11:07:19 PM
Entry #: 3881210
| Boy I guess when the truth comes out LT doesn't have much to say anymore!
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March 18, 2012
4:28:45 PM
Entry #: 3881380
| Nobody from LT is going to respond now because it makes them look bad, and wouldn't benefit their argument that the North "runs" everything or "gets their way" on everything.
The sad thing with the Koplitz situation is that this could simply been avoided if the folks who run LT didn't have a complex about the world against LT.
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March 18, 2012
7:36:48 PM
Entry #: 3881431
| There is no complex as us against the world. I have no problem facing cam and honestly can't wait for the oppurtunity to do so. It can be this year the next I don't care. So to those of you that think running your mouth about us being scared is going to do anything more then make us play with a chip on our shoulder please keep it up. Your only adding fuel to the fire. Get ready we'll be coming for you soon enough.
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March 19, 2012
5:45:35 AM
Entry #: 3881587
| You people act like you have the whole story. But someone isn't telling the whole truth. rubicon was trying to get cam to switch teams before january of this year it wasn't just him calling rubicon to play after he moved. He told us this himself at our team party. Directly after our loss to rubicon last year they asked him to come play with them He was out partying with them the night before our playoff against them last year I respect the mans decision but let's be honest here. In my opinion he can play where he wants but don't leave out facts to make us look bad. Good luck to you cam
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March 19, 2012
9:25:10 AM
Entry #: 3881674
| The issue here in not that Kam is leaving LT, it the way he did it. For the record Kam is a great ball player and a great teammate, hate to see him leave for that reason. I just have a hard time believing this decision was made in January. He had been dating a girl from the Rubicon area for a while now, there is NO way these plans just sprung up last minute for him to move in with her. He was talking about doing that a month after he started dating her. This has been in the works for a while... All we would have liked is for him to man up and be up front about it. If he would have told us at the end of the year that he was leaving or even undecided on what he was doing this probably would not have come to this point (not that I have a say on out roster decisions or can say for sure) We asked him repeatedly not only if he was going to come back but also If he was going to play for Rubicon which he denied up and down. I'm not trying to argue or attack Kam, just wanted to add a teammates prospective....
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March 19, 2012
11:42:49 AM
Entry #: 3881791
| I play for LT, so please don't lump all of us into one. Kam was a great teammate, and a great guy. I to, like some of you are wondering why we have decided to dig in on this. Clearly we want him to keep playing for us, but I, like most on LT can't fault him for wanting to remain close to Amber. Hopefully they can work this out because hopefully ego doesn't rule the day.
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| Historical Perspective
March 19, 2012
11:58:13 AM
Entry #: 3881795
| It is not unprecedented for a player to leave a Madison team (Southern Division) to play for a Northern Team (Rubicon Rams / Red Sox).
Approximately 20 years ago to the month, a player was under almost the same circumstances work / girlfriend / travel. It is possible then commissioner Mr Kuehl and Hustisford L handed pitcher Tim Norton recall. The player was not unlike Kam a great hitter and pitcher. The player was conflicted, feeling allegiance toward the Madison team...and probably felt pressure to say one thing (stay), when feelings were clearly different (move).
He was granted his release.
Most Madison teams do rely heavily on player fees to supplement field rental. If it is a matter that the Laurel Team had budgeted the fees for 2012 with the player in questions "fee" then this should be addressed.
This should be a matter easily resolved if money is the only obstacle. As a former Madison team manager I never experienced any bias from the Northern or Southern Division.
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March 19, 2012
12:08:40 PM
Entry #: 3881802
| It's not a matter of money on EITHER SIDE. If only it was that simple.....
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March 19, 2012
12:17:56 PM
Entry #: 3881807
| If its not about money, then what is it about? That's the only thing that it could be, why else would Paul Sr. not release him?
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| Historical Perspective
March 19, 2012
12:21:30 PM
Entry #: 3881809
| Fair enough...
But, is there not a way for both sides to save face and move forward? An anonynous donor most assuredly will cover the money.
As for the rest...It's baseball. Life is short.
I urge both sides to see past their respective differences.
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| JS
March 19, 2012
1:33:16 PM
Entry #: 3881862
| I play for LT and kam is a great ball player and great guy and it was great to get to know him and play with him last year. If it was up to me a hand shake and goodbye would have solved this issue. He should be allowed to play were he wants and never did anything wrong to us. This is un needed drama I say let him go and move on guys come on now lets all be mature about this and do whats right. Im worried about the guys we do have and getting wins not the past and Kam is in the rear view for us so lets move the F on.
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| donnie bryant
March 19, 2012
2:08:25 PM
Entry #: 3881876
| He may not have been completley honest about how this went down but financially it makes sense and he is with amber. She has been associated with rubicon for a while and am sure kam has become friends with the guys from rubicon. Understandable. The asking for $150 dollars was not a team decision. And honestly may do more damage to our own team then to anyone else. I don't like how it was handled but it is what it is. Best of luck kam. And to the rest of u not involved with this situation keep your two cents to yourself
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| Jared Staudenmayer
March 19, 2012
2:42:57 PM
Entry #: 3881903
| I posted earlier under JS just want to say that I completely understand your decision Kam and have NO hard feelings. Like I said earlier you are a great ball player and even better guy and this whole situation is extremely sad and dumb. I say free Kam and let him play this great game closer to home!!! good luck to you kam and rubicon i hope we can all be men about this get it right and move on but I do not support my teams decision to make you pay or sit out its just not cool. It was great playing ball with you and we will miss you in the dugout thats no doubt but I will be happy if you are doing whats best for you. best of luck brotha!!! Il do what i can to let my team know were I stand and see if we cant end this garbage soon.
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| BB H2O
March 19, 2012
6:29:16 PM
Entry #: 3882037
| It is as simple as an ego thing between old men. This is why there needs to be new blood. Listen to Ziegler!
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| Paul Patten Jr.
March 19, 2012
9:03:33 PM
Entry #: 3882113
| To all the bitchers and complainers. He is being released. Thank you for all the fun reading your ********. IF WE ALL DON'T LIKE THE RULE, CHANGE THE ******* THING!!! All you want to do is waste my tuesday nights bitching about money for this and money for that. And by the way, yes he was figured into our 2012 fees. and it doesn't cost $1300 to drive to games. Good Luck this season ladies and gentlemen, Thank you bye
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| 6666
March 28, 2012
8:56:28 PM
Entry #: 3887892
| I played in the rock back in 2010 southern division. I was disgusted with
with the leadership no coaching and let the players run the team what a joke .
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| Rocket12
March 29, 2012
2:57:50 PM
Entry #: 3888427
| The best decision to make was the one that was made. Glad everything was worked out.
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