The KPL boss, who pushed aside his chairman accused of insults, took a stand on the uproar – “Provocation must be related to playful matters”

On Tuesday, the top match of the men’s Superpesis was played in Kouvola, a rematch of last fall’s final, where Kouvola Ballonlöjät beat Manse PP in the super innings 2–1 (0–3, 6–1, 1–0).

The autumn finals charmed the audience both in terms of play and atmosphere, and in the end, Manse celebrated its first men’s WC gold with a 3–2 victory. However, there was also enough talk about things outside the game.

Especially after yesterday’s regular season match, the great performances and the victory of the home team were overshadowed when a Manse PP player emerged on social media Juuso to Myllyniemi targeted yelling.

Kouvola’s Ballonlöjät announced on Thursday that Lehto will be sidelined from his duties for the time being.

– I will step down from the position of chairman of Kouvola’s Ballonlöjie until the Baseball Federation has resolved the issues and KPL will have complete peace of mind, Lehto commented in the press release.

– I still state that I have not actually committed anything, but the club’s interest is the most important. I hope that the matter can be resolved quickly.

KPL vice president Stefan Sburatura said that Lehto’s move to the side was intended to calm the situation. Lehto’s return will be reviewed when both clubs have submitted their report to the Baseball Association and the association’s decision is finalized.

Sburatura was not in the same stand as Lehto, so he did not observe the situation personally.

– Yesterday we made inquiries and heard from those who were there. People have contacted us and told us their own views. We depend on their comments. Some kind of snapshot is formed.

Manse PP demanded a response from Pesäpalloliito, Superpesis and KPL due to the shouting. According to Sburatura, it is good to intervene in inappropriate and inappropriate yelling that goes “over a certain limit”.

– On the other hand, sports involve a certain kind of provocation. However, it has to be related to gaming issues.

There were also sparks between Mansen and KPL in last year’s final series. However, according to Sburatura, Manse PP is not a redder garment for the people of Kouvola than other clubs.

– It’s good that Tampere has a super baseball team and that baseball has taken wind in its sails in the big city. There is perhaps still a bit to learn in terms of top nests.

On Wednesday, Manse PP published a strict statement announcement (you will switch to another service)according to which “during the match, a person belonging to the club management of KPL shouted very derogatory insults aimed at the person at the Mansen player”.

Manse PP points out that the Finnish Baseball Federation and through it the clubs are committed to the Don’t break sports campaign. The slogans of the campaign include that sport is broken if harassment is not dealt with in all situations.

Manse PP demanded a response from the Päsäpalloliito, Superpesis and KPL.

– Manse has raised the issue of harassment at the meeting of the Superpesis club leaders already at the end of the 2021 season as a result of the events of the final matches. Now, at the latest, is the time for action for baseball as a hundred-year-old national game.

Rämet commented to STT that the punishments can vary from warnings of varying degrees to monetary sanctions. Rämet stated that one must be able to play sports on the field in such a way that there is no fear of being injured. According to Rämet, even one incident of harassment is too many, so the union takes the suspicions seriously, the executive director told STT.

This season, 12 warnings for loud inappropriate language have been issued in the national leagues of the Päsäpalloliitto. They have not been seen in the men’s Superpes this season. In the men’s Finnish series, there have been six warnings for inappropriate language. There have been three warnings on the subject in the men’s Superpesis, two in the women’s Suomenserija and one in the women’s Superpesis.

Provocation has been pointed out in three matches in the lower leagues.

According to KPL’s Sburatura, who himself played for Superpes in the 2000s, inappropriate yelling in baseball has decreased in recent years.

– The sport has cleaned up and is going in a good direction.

Chairman of Manse PP Pirkka Savilahti opened the events and the club’s press release in even more detail to Urheilu.

Baseball is a sport that has always involved mentally destabilizing the opponent and strong emotions. It has also been one part of the charm of the sport from the viewer’s point of view. Savilahti says that he completely agrees that strong encouragement and joking are part of the sport.

According to Savilahti, Manse PP’s view is that you should not cross that line when a player feels that he has been personally insulted.

– Then we have to decide whether we as a club accept it. It is not part of our club’s values.

– Players cannot be criticized for their skin color or some other personal trait. We don’t see it as fitting. It’s not today.

Manse PP’s announcement also referred to last fall’s finals. According to Savilahti, it refers to yelling at players and personalities, which, according to the club’s view, already exceeded the boundaries of good taste.

– As a league, as a federation and as a sport, everyone surely agrees that inappropriate behavior no longer belongs to elite sports. The union is definitely missing so that this kind of thing doesn’t happen again, that’s our wish, says Savilahti.

There are 4–6 matches per team remaining in the Men’s Superpesis regular season. Vimpelin Veto is firmly attached to winning the regular season. Second is Sotkamo’s Jymy. Manse PP and KPL are two points away from Jymy.

It is very possible that the medal games will see more heated encounters between last season’s final teams.