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STATE OF THE SPIBL: A Note From The Commissioner
June 14, 2005
Hi Everybody -
As its been a little over six months since I
assumed the office of Commissioner for SPIBL, I thought it would be a good time
to reflect back on the past half year, and to take a look forward to the future.
As most of you know, the SPIBL was in really bad shape
towards the end of last season. Many owners had become disinterested, or
left altogether, which was quite understandable considering how communication
was non-existent. It definitely looked like the league was going to fold at that point. But as
one of the founding members, particularly since the structure of the SPIBL was
my idea in the first place, I felt responsible to do what I could to keep it
going.
Before deciding to assume the responsibilities of
Commissioner, I composed a list of issues which I felt needed to be addressed in
order to make this league enjoyable and even "special" to its
membership. First and foremost was improving the overall level of
communication within the League. Alan Lecher's extraordinary work on the
League website (www.spibl.com) has allowed the league to disseminate information
on a more timely basis. Owners can now access current standings,
statistics, and news, as well as historical archives, anytime
they want. I cannot emphasize how important this is to the success of our
League. Alan's dedication has allowed me to focus on other administrative
areas, and for that, I am extremely grateful.
Another area in which I feel we have improved
dramatically is in the quality of our ownership. I am extremely pleased
with the overall baseball
savvy, responsiveness, and general enthusiasm which Melt, Mike P., Alan, Dave,
Dan, Mike V., Mike G., Larry S., Willie, Stan, Larry R., Chris, and Jason have
brought to the league. I truly feel we have a great group of owners right
now, and judging by the amount of inquiries we continue to receive about
openings, I believe the SPIBL is inching its way towards becoming an
"elite" league once again. Congrats to you all for that.
We are doing a great job sticking to our published
deadlines. The league is on track and keeping pace with real MLB.
This area is one of many in which our league's structure shines compared to
others out there. Furthermore, netplayed games are becoming more and more
commonplace amongst our owners. I commend all who take the time and
commitment towards playing head-to-head, and encourage any holdouts to give it a
chance. Netplay truly is the best way to play on the computer.
Looking forward, I'd love to be able to organize some
type of SPIBL Owners Meet-And-Greet at some point. Perhaps some/all of us
could meet up in Las Vegas, or Florida, or Chicago, or wherever at some time in
the future for a weekend of hanging out, Strat, going to a real MLB game, golf,
food & drink, etc. Maybe just try to get the East Coast guys together
to start. Depending on everybody's feedback/interest, I'd like to try to
get something arranged for our Fifth Anniversary season next year. Please
drop me a line and let me know whether this is something you'd be interested in.
In conclusion, I feel like we're on the right track
with the league and I'm proud to be associated with it. I'm having a lot
of fun this year, and I thank everybody for helping me enjoy the SPIBL
experience again.
Thanks,
Mike Sorochen
Commissioner, SPIBL
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