10 players leave Arizona high school team after dugout confrontation

[ASFN Admin]

Ten seniors on an Arizona high school baseball team left the squad after a verbal incident at the high school that appeared to have stemmed from a hard high-five after a home run, a breaking point of what the Arizona Republic reported were "season-long issues" that had been brewing on the Pinnacle High School (Phoenix) baseball team.

On April 14, senior Jackson Marazzo hit a home run in the bottom of the fifth inning. As he rounded third base, volunteer assistant Rex Gonzalez, serving as the third base coach, reached out for a high-five. Marazzo hit his hand as he jogged to the plate. Reporter Richard Obert posted the above video.

Following this, there was a verbal confrontation in the dugout, but accounts differ as to what took place.

Obert spoke with Marazzo and Gonzalez over email, explaining what happened from their vantage points.

Marazzo said that as head coach Sam Messina entered the coaches' room adjacent to the dugout, Gonzalez "came into the dugout and charged at me."

"He said, 'You know what you did (expletive)? Don’t you ever hit my hand that hard again.'" Marazzo said to Obert. He said that teammate Joey Besemer intervened, telling Gonzalez to "quit pressing Jackson up."

Gonzalez told the Arizona Republic that he said, "That was a little bit excessive. What's going on?" and that that was "all I asked."

"I never touched him," Gonzalez said to the outlet. "I'm thinking it's over. They're making it seem like I was the aggressor. If I walk up to a player, which I have a right to do as a coach, that's not being an aggressor. That's just asking a question."

The Arizona Republic added that after the incident, Principal Chad Smith, who has a son on the team, got involved. Obert wrote that the teammate, Besemer, read a statement at a senior meeting:

"Besemer claimed in a statement that Smith threatened to suspend him over the way Besemer looked at him following the incident. Besemer's statement was read at a mandatory senior meeting that took place last Thursday, April 17, with Messina and the school athletic director, David Abrams."

Ten seniors sent a letter to Messina and Abrams announcing they will leave the team. The letter, obtained by the Republic, stated:

"As Pinnacle Pioneer Baseball players, we have decided to step away and not participate in practices or games due to the recent issues that have occurred during and after the game against Sandra Day O’Connor."

"What occurred is completely inappropriate behavior by Coach Rex towards Jackson Marazzo, and Dr. Smith towards Joey Besemer. As a result of this, we have decided to stand with our teammates, even if that means not playing."

"We will not return until it is official that Coach Rex Gonzalez is dismissed from the program and Dr. Smith has agreed to stay away from the field during practice, and removed from making decisions in the lineup. Some things are just bigger than baseball, we hope you respect and understand our decision."

Gonzalez has left the team since the incident took place.

Pinnacle, which lost on April 14, is 3-1 since. The Pioneers are now 13-11-1.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY High School Sports Wire: 10 players leave Arizona high school team after dugout confrontation

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