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Grants Pass official defends city in ballfield dispute The Associated Press GRANTS PASS - Taking a swing against a sex discrimination lawsuit filed by a softball team, a Grants Pass official claims the city has been fair to the girls, even giving them preferential treatment over other teams competing for time on city-owned ball fields. Martin Seybold, the city's field operations director, says there are simply too few softball fields and too many teams. "We all admit that we need additional facilities, but doing all that takes money," he said. "It just seems unreasonable to me when we have 180 to 200 teams and one is coming forward saying they want us to just give them their own field, at the expense of all those other teams." Six members of the Grants Pass Blaze fastpitch softball team filed suit against the city recently, claiming they were not allowed equal access to city fields. They say the city's policy of reserving two fields at Riverside West All Sports Park for boys-only use is unconstitutional and in violation of state and federal laws. The softball players argue that they are forced to compete for time on city fields with more than 190 other teams, while the two best fields are reserved for exclusive use by the Babe Ruth and American Legion programs, and a handful of other men-only baseball teams. Seybold has been the only city official willing to speak on the matter. He said priority times are given to youth teams, such as Little League, then distributed to the rest of the adult teams. The preferred times, those after school and in the early evenings, are more important to distribute to youth teams, who should not be out as late in the evenings as adult teams, he said. As youth teams, Seybold says the Blaze are given priority over other softball teams, including those with the Men's Fastpitch Association. "This lawsuit gives the appearance that the city's been doing something sexist and I think that's flat-out untrue," he said. "Any of the men's softball teams are complaining about the same thing the girls are. The pie just isn't big enough to give everyone everything they want." Seybold, who said female athletes are allowed to play American Legion and Babe Ruth baseball, noted that softball fields are also physically different from baseball fields. For a baseball field to accommodate softball, several changes must be made: the infield would need to be cleared of grass, the pitching mound would need to be removed and basepaths would have to be shortened from 90 feet to 60 feet. "Those aren't softball fields, and that isn't a sexist issue," Seybold said. Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.