College Baseball Team Cheated Using Wireless Devices And Still Didn't Win, Coach Resigned

PublishedMay 13, 2023 2:31 PM EDT|UpdatedMay 13, 2023 2:31 PM EDT

A college baseball coach has resigned after his team was caught cheating using wireless headset devices in a recent game that they didn't even end up winning.

Talk about a strikeout.

Atlantic Cape Community College coach Rodney Velardi stepped down this past week after an investigation found that at least two of his players were using a communication device that was found in their helmets.

Atlantic Cape Community College were found to have illegal wireless headsets in some of their players helmets. (Photo: BFA Sports Media)

HOW THEY WERE CAUGHT

Opposing head coach Rob Valli of Rowan College Gloucester County said that his first baseman alerted him after the first inning that he was hearing noises coming out of the helmet when one of the players was on first. Despite his coach initially not believing him, when both players got on base again - the first baseman was adamant he wasn't crazy and the voices he was was hearing were real.

Turns out he was right.

"Second time up, those same guys got on, and he was confirming with me the whole time. Once those guys got on, he's saying, "I hear it. I hear it!" Valli told the Courier Post. Sure enough once the umpires looked into the helmets, they found the internal communication devices on both the runners that were on first and second base.

Video footage from the game shows how the entire incident played out. It starts around the 49 minute mark:

Valli says that the umpires was shocked when he found the ear pieces in the helmets, however they didn't initially know what to do.

After calling his supervisors, the umpires removed all the earpieces from the helmets and resumed play. Bizarrely however, no one was thrown out of the game despite the clear violation that something was going on.

HOW DID IT WORK?

Valli believes that Velardi was watching the center field television feed while the game was going on. He says that he kept seeing him with an iPad in the dugout, which is prohibited. Once Velardi would learn the catcher's signs, he was able to relay the pitches to the players at bat that wore the modified helmets.

According to league rules, the only communication devices that are allowed are for the dugout to speak with the bullpen as well as for the catcher's helmet to have an earpiece for the pitching coach to speak to him.

Velardi admitted that the team uses them during practice but denied they do during actual games. After intense criticism however, he stepped down.