The Thompson Rivers University WolfPack Mens Baseball  Team has had to forfeit 12 games by the Canadian College Baseball Conference.   The WolfPack have been deemed to have used an ineligible player when they utilized the services of Infielder/Right hand Pitcher Jeff Paz.
The President of the CCBC, Ted Hotzak ruled that because Paz played with Kwantlen College in 2006, he was ineligible to play for the WolfPack.  “I don’t see how this is right,” says a frustrated WolfPack Coach Ray Chadwick.  “Jeff sat about a year and a half voluntarily.  He moved to Kamloops on his own. We didn’t recruit him.  He and his girlfriend bought a house and decided to live here.”  Chadwick adds that Paz started to play with the Kamloops  Sun Devils when he came to Kamloops and that players on that team encouraged him to return to school.
The Paz situation came to light earlier this month when the coach of Kwantlen, Murray Gage-Cole launched a protest of Paz and three other WolfPack players eligibility.    While the issue was being sorted out, Paz sat out league games against the Prairie Baseball Academy on April 5 and 6 th.  He did play this weekend though in exhibition games versus Douglas College.  Paz was 6 for 10 with two homers and 10 RBI.
“What I don’t understand is that President Hotzak first told me Jeff was OK to play,” says Chadwick “That he had sat out enough time and was scholastically eligible as well. Then he changed his mind.”
“Its unfortunate,” said Hotzak from Vancouver  “I didn’t  see any intentional malice in what happened with Jeff. According to our records, he needed to take 9 credits between championship seasons.  He played in 2006 and didn’t go to school until this January.”  Hotzak didn’t rule out Paz playing next year and having his 4 th year eligibility reinstated. He is willing to look at the situation personally.
TRU Athletic Director Ken Olynyk plans to appeal on compassionate grounds which include Hotzak supporting the premise that Paz was allowed to play because he had sat out over a year.
In the meantime, Paz, a former member of the Canada’s National Junior Team, will not be allowed to play any league games while the appeal takes place.
Hotzak says following this incident, the CCBC has instituted a rule where any player moving from one school to another needs to get a release which will include his educational transcript.
The WolfPack have only 12 league games left in the spring season, ironically all against BC opponents Kwantlen and Malispina.  Their league record would go from 15 and 3 to  4 and 14, putting them into fourth place in the league.    Their next league game is this coming weekend (April 25 and 26) at Norbrock Stadium against Malispina.