A baseball coach at a De La Salle league school is accusing Concord Central of relaying signals from catchers to hitters, according to a formal complaint filed Friday with the North Shore Section office.
In the complaint, which was obtained by the Bay Area News Group, Dougherty Valley coach Kyle Stewart alleged that De La Salle had “staff with devices such as cameras, telephoto lenses, talkies -walkies and the verbal cadence of the coaching staff (which) creates a litany of questionable actions.
De La Salle strongly denied the allegations.
The school’s athletic director, Leo Lopoz, wrote in a text message Friday evening that an internal investigation “found absolutely no evidence of sign theft.”
NCS Commissioner Pat Cruickshank confirmed his office received the complaint and hopes schools can resolve the issue on their own.
“This is a school-to-school complaint, and their two administrations can work together on this, and if I need to get involved, I will,” Cruickshank told the Bay Area News Group Friday. “I would like to see if both schools can handle things themselves, and if it’s not founded, then it’s not founded. If they agree on that, great. If not, we’ll take a look.
Stewart declined to comment on the matter. Dougherty Valley athletic director SueEllen Thomas did not immediately respond to a request for comment Saturday.
The complaint alleges that during a game at Dougherty Valley on March 27, De La Salle manager David Jeans “repeatedly left the third base coaches area to peek over the foul line and in the catcher’s finger signals” before shouting “trust him” for a fastball or “battle” for an off-speed pitch.
The complaint says Jeans stopped relaying the signs when parents in the stands told him they were recording his actions.
During the next game between the teams, Tuesday at De La Salle, the complaint says Jeans attempted to relay the signs in the same manner during the first two innings.
“After the second inning, our pitcher, catcher and staff completely changed our pitching call signs,” the complaint alleges. “De La Salle had one hit the rest of the game.”
The complaint also alleges that during Tuesday’s game, a Dougherty Valley player noticed a man with a camera and a large lens shooting behind the center field fence.
“The same player allegedly heard a pitch called from the same area of (the) fence, and immediately called a timeout and yelled ‘this guy here is calling the pitches,’ the complaint states. “The man in question immediately packed his belongings and ran away.”
Jeans declined to comment when approached by a Bay Area News Group reporter after his team’s 7-3 victory in California on Friday.
Later Friday, Lopoz provided his statement, which reads in full:
“On May 1, following a baseball game against Dougherty Valley High School on April 30, De La Salle was informed that some parents in attendance at Dougherty Valley had alleged that a photographer had been seen in the outfield and that this person had transmitted game signs to the De La Salle dugout during the game.
“De La Salle immediately followed established protocols and conducted an internal investigation. This investigation found absolutely no evidence of sign theft. Additionally, the photographer was identified as someone who attends and photographs high school baseball games and is well known throughout the area. He was at the game to take photos for his personal use and to sell those images. He was not there at the behest or request of De La Salle.
“On May 3, De La Salle received a copy of a letter Dougherty Valley sent to the North Coast Section (NCS), formally alleging sign theft by De La Salle. In response, De La Salle immediately contacted Dougherty Valley to refute the allegation and communicated the findings of its internal investigation to NCS and the East Bay Athletic League (EBAL).
Neither the NCS nor the CIF addresses sign theft in their statutes. This practice is well documented throughout baseball history, but it is generally limited to players and the field of play. When a team uses a ploy or technology to steal signs, it is often considered a violation limits of sportsmanship.
Dougherty Valley won at home against De La Salle 6-5 on March 27, marking its first victory in 15 games against its East Bay Athletic League rival.
In the rematch Tuesday, Dougherty Valley lost at De La Salle 6-0.
Under Jeans, De La Salle has won the last six North Coast Section Division I championships. The Spartans also won Northern California’s first two Division I regional titles, beating St. Francis in 2022 and Valley Christian last season. The complaint was limited to this season’s games.
The win over Valley Christian extended De La Salle’s postseason winning streak to 30 games since College Park beat the Spartans in the 2015 NCS Division I final.
This season, De La Salle is 17-5 overall and 11-2 in EBAL play.
Dougherty Valley, in its first season under Stewart, is 7-16, 3-10. Since joining the EBAL during the 2016-17 school year, the Wildcats have not finished above .500 in league play.
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