Jersey pitching phenom hit with HS transfer ban
Days after throwing a 19-strikeout no-hitter, the top baseball prospect in the country, and the likely No. 1 pick in the June 9 amateur draft, was ruled ineligible by the New Jersey State Interscholastic Athletic Association.
The NJSIAA found 17-year-old Jason Groome, a lanky lefty from Barnegat in Ocean County, violated school transfer rules. He spent his junior year playing for the elite IMG Academy in Florida and returned to New Jersey for this, his senior season.
Because the transfer was voluntary and because Groome’s family never changed their home address, he must sit out what will likely amount to two starts for Barnegat High School. Involuntary transfers who change schools due to unforeseen circumstances are typically allowed to play immediately.
“The association’s rules clearly state that a student-athlete transferring from one secondary school to another must provide evidence of a bona fide change of residence as defined by NJSIAA rules,” NJSIAA spokesman Mike Cherenson said.
If there is a transfer without a change of address, the student must sit for either 30 days or half the maximum number of games the team will play in a given season. In Groome’s case, that will be either 12 games or 30 days, placing his return around May 1.
His starts this season have gained national attention; there were more than 150 MLB scouts in attendance for Groome’s no-hitter this week against Central Regional.
Barnegat must forfeit the games Groome played in and he’s eligible to return by the first week of May.
Barnegat High School Athletic Director John Germano and baseball coach Dan McCoy did not respond to a request for comment.
Neither ruling is open to appeal, the NJSIAA said.
Groome is committed to play for Vanderbilt after graduation, but New Jersey’s latest baseball phenom seems destined for pro ball. The buzz is the 6-foot-5 Groome might end up going to the Phillies, about an hour from Barnegat, with the No. 1 pick in June.
In 1998, Toms River North pitcher J.M. Gold was selected by Milwaukee with the 13th pick and in 2009, Milville’s Mike Trout was the selected by the Angels with the 25th pick. Al Leiter, who played at Central, was a second-round pick of the Yankees in 1984.
Groome’s adviser, Jeff Randazzo, told Philly.com, it is “very sad there are people in this world trying to mess with a 17-yearold kid.
“These rules are in place for athletic advantage and the kid came home to be with his friends and family and to the same school he’s always been at. I think there’s been some malicious intent with this. It’s sad.”
Cherenson said he did not know who reported the transfer violation to the NJSIAA.