TSSAA upholds sanctions on Haywood baseball after appeal, including two-year postseason ban
The TSSAA is upholding the original sanctions placed on the Haywood athletics program and baseball program, according to a letter sent to the school on Monday.
Haywood appealed the sanctions that followed the ejection of Haywood baseball coach Dusty Rhodes and assistant coach Alex Whitwell during the Class AA state tournament.
Haywood went before the West Tennessee members of the TSSAA Board of Control on June 4 to appeal the sanctions, which included a two-year postseason ban on the baseball team and a total of $4,500 in fines.
Haywood County Superintendent Joey Hassell said via email that the school plans to appeal the decision to the full Board of Control.
After that June 4 meeting of the West Tennessee members of the Board of Control, Hassell sent TSSAA three options for punishing Rhodes:
• Two-game suspension for TSSAA ejection plus a two-year postseason ban for Rhodes. He will not travel or practice with the team during postseason.
• Two-game suspension for TSSAA ejection, plus an additional eight-game suspension for Rhodes.
• Two-game suspension for TSSAA ejection, plus eight-game suspension and one-year postseason ban for Rhodes, who will not travel or practice with the team during postseason play.
According to TSSAA rules, Rhodes and Whitwell already had to sit out two games in the 2020 season and pay a $250 fine each. The TSSAA added the two-year restrictive probation, which includes no postseason play, for the baseball program and a $2,000 fine and a total athletics program probation for two years and $2,000 more in fines.
Rhodes and Whitwell were ejected during the sixth inning of the Tomcats' second game of the Class AA state tournament against Sequatchie County, which Haywood lost 6-4 to be eliminated.
A video of the ejections shows Rhodes kicking dirt on the umpire after he was ejected and Haywood players restraining Rhodes. A TSSAA official's report stated that Whitwell was ejected for using profanity.
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The letter from the TSSAA sent to Haywood on Monday states: “This sort of behavior is something one might see by a manager in a professional baseball game, but it is not appropriate at the high school level. High school coaches must realize that they have more responsibilities than the general public to understand the purpose of high school athletics and the principles behind the TSSAA rules, and they must maintain that level of understanding and purpose when dealing with the general public and students. At the high school level, coaches exert a tremendous influence on young people. Coaches are role models for their players and for other students.”
Rhodes said that he was never confined to the dugout or warned by the umpire.
But the umpires report in the letter sent from TSSAA states that the umpire did restrict Rhodes to the dugout; Rhodes then tripped him and chest-bumped him. The umpire said that Rhodes' arguing lasted more than 10 minutes.
Under its bylaws, the TSSAA cannot punish school employees. It can only punish the athletic programs.
In his five state tournament appearances, Rhodes has a 15-4 record, and he has a 153-28 coaching record overall.
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Reach Michael Odom at michodom@jacksonsun.com or 731-425-9754. Follow him on Twitter @JSWriterMichael.