The Lake Bluff Youth Baseball Association (LBYBA) has terminated two of its assistant coaches after a New York State law enforcement agency received a video allegedly showing the pair running naked on a field last month at an area baseball tournament, authorities said.
The Otsego County, New York Sheriff’s office said deputies responded June 28 to a report at the Cooperstown All Star Village that two males were asked to leave the property but initially declined to vacate. By the time the Sheriff’s office personnel got to the field, the two men had already left.
Upon arrival at the Cooperstown All Star Village, the deputies became aware of reports from employees that two adult males were seen “streaking” at one of the fields at the complex. However, the park employees did not directly witness that event and were not able to identify those involved, according to a Sheriff’s Office statement.
The males were later determined to be visiting baseball coaches from another state, and video surfaced of the alleged incident. Interviews were conducted with identified witnesses after a review of the video.
“The case was reviewed by the Otsego County District Attorney’s Office, which advised that prosecution was declined due to the level of criminality involved and the fact that all parties reside out of state,” the statement added.
LBYBA officials later fired the assistant coaches in question without naming them.
“The LBYBA Board is deeply distressed to learn about the recent situation involving the Lake Bluff 12U Blue Cooperstown team. We are treating this matter with the utmost seriousness and have contacted relevant authorities. We will continue to support those authorities in their investigations of this matter. We have also taken immediate and decisive action by terminating the assistant coaches involved,” LBYBA said in its statement.
“Throughout our history, LBYBA has worked to support and protect the well-being of LBYBA players and families and will continue to serve this community to the best of our ability,” the statement continued.
LBYBA did not respond to additional questions about the incident. It noted in its statement that the organization is a volunteer operation that has been part of the local community for 70 years.
Lake Bluff Police said they were aware of the incident but were not conducting their own investigation. They referred all questions to Otsego County.
Representatives from Unrivaled Sports, the organization that runs Cooperstown All Star Village, did not answer questions about the incident.
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Daniel I. Dorfman is a freelance reporter for Pioneer Press.