They Floated Two excuses. We don't buy either One.

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Barron delivered a 30-minute presentation to the baseball board at the Baseball Board's first fall meeting. Longtoime board member Bruce Young had met with Barron during spring and encouraged him to share concerns with the Board.

One would think the Legion Board would be excited about the success and the growth of All Stars. All Stars was promoted to everyone as an American Legion experience with credit to the Board. We hoped for an "All of Us Together" world when we started despite knowing the inner workings of the baseball board. We repeatedly asked Randy to keep All Stars out of their political arena. It never happened. Leadership never delivered.

The baseball board is widely known as a world of personal agendas, grudges, fixed positions, and  personal turf . The Board is a small group in a closed envoironment. We know. And they know.  But still  we hoped All Stars might be different. If you  want to understand how the Minnesota Board operates read this: The Closed System.

Going into the fall session, it was common knowledge that the Baseball Board had voted to defund All Stars at their Spring 2024 meeting. We knew that key board members had turned it into a political football. "We Together" All Stars was eliminated. They changed it to a turf battle referring the program as a  "Those Guys" thing.   Into the fire Barron went.

The full speech is available below in a PDF.

The presentation covered:

1. Introduction & Review of All Stars and results of 2024 events
2. Concerns raised by coaches, parents, college coaches, and MBL representatives. Such oncerns extended to the quickening erosion of takent from Legion baseball with questions about the political will to address such issues or even talk about them openly.
3. Recommended Ideas: A) Fall Teams; B) Legion Coaches Association; C) Trial beta test of local "Zip Code Teams" if there was immediate confirming interest; D) Form a Board development committee to link All Stars and any other initiatives into a formal Board subcommittee

A board member requested a copy of the materials as well as underlying data. Barron actually went over the time limit and was then excused from the room.

As we heard from meeting attendees, what transpired behind the closed meeting doors was frankly disrespectful at best. With Barron safely out of the room, several board members spewed highly disparaging remarks plus very personal attacks.  We were told the board was against All Star sponsorship funding for 2025. Instead, "they can figure it out themselves."  

Legion All Stars brought so many people together- coaches, families, player, and volunteers had become a part of Legion All Stars.  As feared, The Closed System Board personalities placed ALl DStars firmnly in their tangled web of personal agendas and personal turf wars. 

On  Monday the 23rd, former State Director Mike Perry spoke with his successor State Director Randy Schaub.  These two have been friends for many years and spoke at least weekly. Randy acknowledged that things got ugly after Barron left the room. He said he was angered and sent an email to all board members that said - 'Pay attention to Barron's ideas. Put your personal agendas to the side.' 

State Director Randy Schaub never said a negative word  about Barron's remarks. Schaub never uttered the word "caustic"  to Perry.  The problem,  according to Randy, was with board members. Perry understood during this discussion that Randy was "green lighting" the "Zip Code Team" concept to see if there was confiormed nterest in a trial or beta test. If so, a proposal would be delivered to Randy.  

Spetember 23rd would be the last time that Director Randy Schaub would ever speak with or contact with his long time friend Mike Perry.  Today, his actions seem akin to the Mafia practice of Going to the Mattresses. Likely without the pasta fagioli. 

A valid question today: Was Mike Perry misled by Randy Schaub?  Or was his understanding from Randy genuine, at least in that moment?  All contact with other Board members was cut off from Perry. The "what is said in the board stays in the board" was in full swing - the Oath of Slience?

The board had walls around it . This Secret Board was to have a followup meeting in October. As requested in September, Barron prepared materials and sent them off to each Board member.   Barron's material was immediately labeled "The Memo" or "Barron's Memo". It contained information and viewpoints that were mentioned in September, with some issues or comments provided by coaches - coaches that shared concerns that they had no voice. 

Some went ballistic. Guys! Its just information! Who are these people that cannot allow or handle outside information or other view points to be provided to them?

The leaders had a spokesman send an email:  "Now you have Randy's angry, just shut up, or you wont get your way". He objected  to the term "secret society"that he had apparently heard too often. The email described the democratic structure of the Minnesota American Legion organization, not the Baseball board structure.  Thanks for the reminder, but the American Legion structure is the polar opposite of the Legion BASEBALL. 

What word did't you hear? Caustic. The atmosphere was getting heatedn for all of us. We were gfoing forward on what we thought we were supposed to do. But going forward with the sense that thaty Board was entirely hostile and secreted off behind  a wall of sliene and hiden behind a spokesman.   

The environment seemed just nuts. Why? Its just baseball? 

The 'Cease and Desist Letter'  was delivered by email late on Friday November 1st. No doubt the C&D letter was in the works for a while. Never a call. Never a discussion. Never a meeting.  It was a blackout. SWhat sort of crisis management is that? What effort at conflict rfesolution was attempted? What sort of leadership was attempted? The C&D letter is pretty nasty. Obviously this was an extreme action intending to toss the two founders out of the Legion program and kill the rapidly growing and very popular Legion All Star program. 

Why kill All Stars because you have a vendetta against Barron? Why equate the two? Why were these people so seemingly threatened? 

A reply to the C&D letter was sent. While extensive, we said we knew there were risks in being honest and open with you folks. We hoped you would open a discussion. Why shoot the messenger and the message? And their friends!  If presented a second opportunity, we would again choose optimism that you would act differently. Instead , you reinforced the worst negative perceptions that are out there, and then took a step beyond.

Why? What did they take this action. The word used was "caustic". Barron was 'caustic' in his speech. Maybe even 'caustic" in The Memo? Someone(s) were offended by Barron. They didn't like him (or Perry).  They maybe didn't like his sense of humor. They don't want him (them) around. This word was used by State Legion officiasl and the State Baseball Director himself. "CAUSTIC"  was the only reason/excuse put on the table..... at the outset. Many seemed to think that caustic was a mighty slim excuse for killing All Stars. 

Several third parties contacted Director Schaub to attempt to ascertain why he took these actions. The third parties hoped to put things back together. Director Schaub seemed to give them hope, at first. They did not know (nor were they told) that Scaub and Engstrom were preparing to send and then sent a letter and email to all Legion post commanders that seemed even worse than their "Cease and Desist" letter. Perhaps Randy did not want to disclose what may have been intended as a "private" correspondence?

So there were talks with the Third Party. Randy said that he and his Officers needed an apology from Barron to start the ball rolling. The subject: Barron was caustic. That was the cited as the main cause and the main concern during conversations between November 1 and November 18th. Barron immediately issued an apology. 

Randy quickly replied on November 19th:

 Bruce! Just speaking for myself, I accept your apology, and I hope we can work together to improve Legion baseball here and into the future. You know I valued your ideas and opinions, and the Legion Prospect Series has been a resounding success due to the hard work you and Mike and others have put into it. Thanks for the note! Randy 

Its believed that Randy took the apology at least to his officers - Jeff "Slick" Miller and Brandon Raymo. Randy said Miller and Raymo would not accept an email apology. Instead, the two men insisted that they get an apology from Barron in person. Barron accepted that "invitation" and asked when and where. Well. Not so fast. Randy came back to the Third Party and stated that Miller and Raymo, who wanted a face-to-face, had now refused to meet. As State Director, Randy apparently felt he had no authority or significant influence to bring people together in order to resolve matters. 

To this day, Vice Directors Miller and Raymo remain unwilling to come forward.  Other board members have culpability as well. But they also shun tyhe spotlight.

"Barron Was Caustic", in our opinion, makes a weak  excuse for such violent and drastic action. It would almost seem petty for adults to actually act on behalf of the state's largest baseball organization - a program of 5,500 kids, 1,200 coacxhes, and 11,000 parents - because they didn't likke something they heard or didn't like the tone of voice.  

The "He Was Caustic" story that launched at the beginning to justify their actions, has quietly dropped by the side of the road.  If there was truth or significance to the Caustic Excuse, it would have been an easy fix. Failure address "Caustic" lands in the laps of Director Schaub  and Vice Director Raymo and Vice Director Miller.Reasonlhe Re

But we don't think that caustic was the real issue. Caustic might be a temporary irritannt. Caustric is what is called a 'straw man' - somehting symbolic but it masks the real situaiton. But we think the real cause is explained by the article 'Closed System and Closed Minds'.