[Molten]

Originally Posted by gblake

I remain as irritated as when I wrote the previous reply.

I think part of the intent of your original reply was to say that I was urging teams to "throw" matches.

I bristle because saying a team or person "threw a game" is an accusation of cheating/wrongdoing. I don't believe I urged anyone to cheat or to give anything other than 110% of their best effort toward winning a Breakaway tournament.

If purposefully playing a 6v0 match is throwing a Breakaway tournament, then intentionally walking a batter must be throwing a baseball game. Both can appear counterintuitive in the short run, but both can be exactly the right thing to do in the long run.

Blake
PS: I'll bet that winning tournaments has been ingrained in both of us, and that both of us would be properly upset if someone said we were urging teams to be deceitful or cheat. That "Throw a game" term is the sort of phrase that I think of as fightin' words. It must not be allowed to stick in contexts where it does not apply.

6v0 isn't throwing the tournament. It is throwing a single game. If it helps you in the overall tournament and your ok doing it, go for it. I won't stop you. And I won't judge you for doing it. I also don't see it as being deceitful or cheating. 6vs0 is only deceitful if you deny it when asked about it. It should be painfully clear to everyone involved what is happening. As for cheating, I really don't think that applies either. It just doesn't settle with me. I'm not accusing you of wrongdoing. Far from it, I think it is a creative strategy that people should be free to use. Just don't expect everyone to be open to doing it. Some of us are just stubborn about these sort of things.

PS: I also get annoyed when someone walks a batter or runs down the clock in a game. Both acceptable, but I wouldn't do either. Nobody thinks its cheating, I just couldn't feel right doing it.

I apologize for the strong wording, but I stand behind every thought that was presented.