Catcher In Ump Beaning Loses College Scholarship
Thursday, June 5, 2008 – updated: 6:27 pm EDT June 5, 2008
CARTERSVILLE, Ga. -- A "missed pitch" has cost a Georgia high school baseball player his college playing time.Gordon College has withdrawn its offer to catcher Matt Hill. Hill was the catcher during a game in which Hill seemed to duck and miss catching the ball which hit an umpire in the face mask.State athletic officials fined Stephens County High School $1,000 and placed the baseball program on "severe warning status" Wednesday for beaning an umpire during the state championship game last weekend.See Video Of The Incident At The End Of This Story Video of the incident during the game on Saturday shows Stephens County catcher Matt Hill ducking at the last second and the pitch striking umpire Jeff Scott in the face mask.Scott told Channel 2's Richard Elliot, "(The pitch) came as a surprise. Disbelief more than anything."The pitch from Cody Martin came during the third and deciding game in the state championship between Stephens County and Cartersville, won 13-1 by Cartersville.SURVEY: Was Pitch Intentional?
The players and their coach still insist there was a mix-up on the pitch. But Georgia High School Association executive director Ralph Swearngin, who watched video of the pitch, didn't see it that way."I made my decision primarily by watching whether the catcher tracked the pitch with his eyes," he told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "In my opinion, he did not. I think that he would have been searching for the ball if it were a matter of being crossed up.""I'd say the video pretty much speaks for itself," said Scott.Scott also said the pitch did injure him. "I'm currently under a doctor's care and I'm still waiting for all the results to be evaluated."The Stephens County principal has apologized for the incident and said he thinks the punishment is fair.
The players and their coach still insist there was a mix-up on the pitch. But Georgia High School Association executive director Ralph Swearngin, who watched video of the pitch, didn't see it that way."I made my decision primarily by watching whether the catcher tracked the pitch with his eyes," he told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. "In my opinion, he did not. I think that he would have been searching for the ball if it were a matter of being crossed up.""I'd say the video pretty much speaks for itself," said Scott.Scott also said the pitch did injure him. "I'm currently under a doctor's care and I'm still waiting for all the results to be evaluated."The Stephens County principal has apologized for the incident and said he thinks the punishment is fair.
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