Baseball Canada Releases Pawlick-WCBA Arbitration Decision

As a result of a number of on and off field events that took place August 21, 2011 at the Western Canada Championships last year in Winnipeg the Western Canada Baseball Association (WCBA) placed a 2 year suspension on Coach Ted Pawlick's participation in the event. This was on top of the 4 game suspension that Pawlick received from BC Minor Baseball as well as the entire Vancouver Mounties Baseball Club being on probation for the whole of the 2012 season. The 2 year suspension decision was appealed on behalf of Pawlick by Baseball BC to the executive of Baseball Canada. Both Pawlick and the WCBA agreed to have an arbitration be settled through Baseball Canada. As part of the arbitration process WCBA upped the suspension, asking for 5 years.

The Arbitration Panel found that the "4 game suspension and the one year probation, imposed by BC Minor, is sufficient sanction for Pawlick with respect to the Vancouver Mounties' behaviour at the championship." The panel noted that while the behaviour of the Mounties was poor at the 2011 Championships, "the response of the BC Coaches was to attempt to make the situations better not worse....a 5 year suspension from the Western Canada championship seems too harsh a penalty."

So after over 11 months the matter is finally settled. The Arbitration Panel took a measured view of the events and responded with logic instead of emotion. Coach Pawlick is relieved to know that this matter is closed so he can get back to concentrating on working with the 2012 Mounties in achieving their collective goal of winning the provincial championship.