High School Baseball Coach Resigns After ‘Incident' Involving Team on Trip

Rocky River High School (OH) head baseball coach Ed Piazza has resigned after his team was involved in an altercation while on a road trip in Myrtle Beach.

According to a letter sent to Rocky River baseball families and shared with Cleveland's WKYC, the alleged "incident" happened on Friday, April 10, and continued into the early morning hours of Saturday, April 11.

"Upon learning about the event, district and building administration ensured all players were safe, contacted Rocky River Police Department, and began investigative processes," Rocky River's principal and athletic director said in the joint email. "As part of that process, baseball practices and games were postponed to allow time for the investigation to be completed."

Rocky River assistant coach Michael Harper also submitted his resignation in the wake of the incident.

According to a police report obtained by WKYC on Thursday, April 16, officers from the North Myrtle Beach Police Department were called to an address at 3:41 a.m. to meet with a person who said one of "his juvenile baseball team members was involved in an altercation earlier that day."

North Myrtle Beach PD confirmed to WKYC that the incident involving the Rocky River High School baseball team happened within their jurisdiction.

The unidentified individual told police he was chaperoning approximately 17 students for a baseball tournament when the group returned to their condo and said they had been involved in an altercation.

The group's chaperone told authorities the team was approached by "older males of a fraternity" who allegedly "began harassing them until one of the juveniles struck a member of the fraternity and left on foot."

Police noted in their report that nobody involved had any visible injuries.

A member of the fraternity painted a different picture when questioned by police, saying he was "unsure of what was happening until he walked outside and saw the younger boys socializing with the fraternity."

"The conversation became argumentative to the point where the juvenile struck the member," the fraternity member said.

Piazza confirmed his resignation and addressed "rumors" surrounding the situation in a statement posted via X on Thursday.

"To be absolutely clear, neither Mike Harper nor I were involved in any criminal investigation or illegal activity of any kind. Any claims or suggestions otherwise are completely false," he wrote. "While I understand that the situation may have created concerns or negative perceptions for the school and the Rocky River baseball program, it is important to state that no wrongdoing occurred on our part."

Piazza continued, "I will not continue to engage with or respond to unfounded rumors moving forward."

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This story was originally published April 16, 2026 at 4:06 PM.