UC Davis baseball team resumes practice while the school investigates hazing allegation
UC Davis athletic director Rocko DeLuca on Monday afternoon announced through the school’s communications office that the Aggies baseball program, suspended since July due what the school labeled as “credible” hazing concerns, has been “approved to resume practice and some team activities” while the hazing investigation continues.
DeLuca also announced three interim coaches are in place to help the transition to a spring season. They are: Tony Bloomfield, a longtime Davis resident whose Cosumnes River College baseball teams in Sacramento were among the best in the state, reaching the playoffs 17 of his 19 seasons; Randy Choate, a Davis resident who pitched in the major leagues in 2000s and won a World Series ring with the Yankees in 2000; and Ray McIntire, the one-time director of baseball operations at Arizona of the Pac-12 Conference.
DeLuca said that as a university and as a baseball program, “We ask for privacy for the interim coaches and our student-athletes as they start practice later this week. There will be no additional updates or comments until the conclusion of the investigation.”
He said of the interim coaches, “We are fortunate that a few talented members of our local community have agreed to assist with team practices and baseball activities while the coaching staff remains on leave. These individuals have diverse baseball backgrounds and will provide a depth of experience for our student-athletes.”
More than two months have passed since UCD suspended its baseball program after a hazing allegation and we still don’t now the answers to those questions, nor do we know why the school abruptly shut down the sport. The coaching staff has been on administrative leave while the school investigates the allegation. The school has refused to say what happened, when it happened or even whether anybody was hurt.
The school didn’t even initially say why the baseball program was suspended. School chancellor Gary S. May referenced hazing in a note in the middle of a blog posted for faculty and alumni under the headline, “Checking in with Chancellor May: Onward Toward Fall” and the subhead of “Checking in elsewhere.”
He wrote that “we are responding to credible allegations of misconduct primarily related to hazing” and that “the university will take appropriate steps to review those claims. The university has a posture of zero tolerance with respect to hazing.”
UCD went 14-43 this past spring and finished last in the Big West at 8-32, the program’s poorest showing since 2009. UCD said the investigation could last well in to the fall months.
This story was originally published October 4, 2021 at 4:42 PM.