Baldwin’s baseball coach will be suspended for three games due to a preseason workout that was not allowed under state rules, and the entire Baldwin athletics program has been placed on probation through June 2026 by the WPIAL.
In addition, the baseball coach, Scott Wolf, and Athletic Director Anthony Cherico were censured, or publicly reprimanded, by WPIAL officials.
“There was a violation of the PIAA preseason open gym rule,” WPIAL Executive Director Scott Seltzer said.
Under the preseason rule, for the 10 days before the regular season begins, teams can only hold open gym practices with their own athletes. Practices or workouts with athletes from other schools are not permitted during this 10-day period.
Baldwin met with Central Valley’s baseball team on Feb. 22 for a joint practice in which pitchers from one team threw to batters from the other team.
If Baldwin does not suspend Wolf for three games, the baseball team would not be allowed to participate in the playoffs this year. Supt. Dr. Randal Lutz said the three-game suspension will be in addition to a one-game suspension that the district gave Wolf after violation was discovered.
This is Wolf’s first season as baseball coach. Last season, Baldwin violated the same rule under a different coach.
“The Baldwin baseball team violated this rule last year and was on probation for that violation,” Seltzer said.
Meanwhile, Baldwin’s entire athletic program is on probation until June 30, 2026.
“Any further violations may have more serious sanctions, but that would be up to the (WPIAL) board,” Seltzer said.
In the fall, the football team was penalized for holding a scrimmage with an illegal player. Coaches were publicly censured and the football program was put on probation.
Seltzer said he had not been told by the WPIAL board whether that football issue was related to the decision to put the entire athletic department on probation.
“The issue was baseball, and I was not told if the football situation was part of deliberation,” Seltzer said.
There was also a separate football recruiting investigation in the fall, but “there was no evidence provided of recruiting,” Seltzer said.
Lutz said the district does not believe the entire athletic program should be on probation.
“The district is not in support of the extension of the probation period for the entire athletic department. If the issue was baseball, as Mr. Seltzer has indicated in his own words, then let the punishment be limited to baseball,” Lutz said. “Student athletes in other programs have had absolutely nothing to do with this matter and should not be impacted by this decision. The District is contemplating filing an appeal with the PIAA.”
Junior baseball players Gavin Sakely and Ethan Helbling said they heard about the WPIAL investigation when the first stories about it appeared online. Cherico soon met with the team to explain the situation.
Sakely said that at first, he and other members of the team were worried about their entire season.
“At first we had a thought that we were going to not only lose our head coach (for a few games), but that they were going to take away our whole season,” Sakely said.
But after the news about the Wolf’s suspension, the team knew they had to move forward with their season.
“We are dealing with it strongly and are focusing on our upcoming games,” Helbling said. “We are not letting the outer distractions get in the way of the main goal in mind, which is winning games.”
