Former High School Baseball Player Is Suing His Coach For $150,000 Because He Got Benched And Says It Was "Bullying"

(Source) — A former Los Altos High School student and baseball player is suing the school district and his former coach for hundreds of thousands of dollars because the coach repeatedly benched him. According to the suit, the school’s head varsity baseball coach, Gabriel Lopez, repeatedly refused to let 17-year-old Robbie Lopez, no relation, play throughout his senior year. The suit claims this constituted a pattern of “harassment and bullying.” The teenager and his parents are seeking $150,000 or more, according to the suit. Hacienda La Puente Unified athletic director Andrew Formano and assistant superintendent of human resources Jill Rojas both said they could not comment on the matter. Gabriel Lopez did not respond to a request for comment. Among the incidents the suit singles out is the annual alumni game, in which the varsity team plays against former Los Altos players. It states that “the game is supposed to be a fun day; especially for seniors on the team” and that “every senior on the team played except for” Robbie Lopez. The boy’s father, Robert Lopez II, believed the coach’s decision to bench his son throughout the season was because he complained to the district’s athletic director after a disagreement over a fundraising game.

I don’t know if I’ve ever hated a person as much as I hate Gabriel Lopez. It’s shocking since I didn’t even know he existed 30 seconds ago but now he’s my sworn enemy and there’s nothing he can do to get out of it. The craziest part is I’m not even the most upset due to the lawsuit, in fact I kind of respect it. I’m all for setting a precedent that people have to pay you outrageous sums of money if they ever embarrass you or inconvenience you. Get dumped? Lawsuit. Get fired? Lawsuit. Don’t get to play in the alumni game? Cut me a check, bitch.

But I fucking HATE the kids who make highlight videos like this when they’re not even good. I think every high school had that one guy who thought he was a superstar but was never going anywhere. Always had the best equipment that he didn’t know how to use and was convinced that he was gonna play college ball. They were big into “chasing their dreams” instead of giving up like the rest of us. I hated that kid and it’s exactly who Robbie Lopez is. He’s garbage. That ball has zero pop off the bat, it’s a highlight reel of soft liners. This video should be all the evidence the coach needs to get out of the courtroom because it screams “you got benched because you weren’t good not because your dad complained about a fundraising event.” That’s exhibit A and the defense rests, your honor.