Gandolfi out as Carmel baseball coach

Having had his knee replaced last month, Chuck Gandolfi was already slow to get around.

On top of that, he's now lugging around a heavy heart.

Gandolfi, who recently completed his 21st season as Carmel's head baseball coach, learned within the last week that his contract at the school had not been renewed.

Gandolfi teaches at an area grade school and only coached at Carmel.

"We're very appreciative of his work here at Carmel," Carmel athletic director Andy Bitto said of Gandolfi, who won more than 560 games for an average of 27 wins a year. Gandolfi also won 11 regionals and took the Corsairs downstate four times, placing third in 2004.

"He's had great years and (the baseball team) maintained a high level of success for most of that time. (This) has nothing to do with wins or losses. How could it?" Bitto continued. "He just won't be back next year. He was not offered a contract, that's all I can tell you."

Gandolfi was willing to expound further.

He said that a series of incidents during a trip with a travel team he coached this summer seems to be at the center of his unexpected release. The 18-and-under travel team, the Lake County Lightning, consisted solely of current and future Carmel baseball players.

"I don't think (I) was treated very fairly in this instance," Gandolfi said. "And when you hear about it, you're going to just go, 'That's crazy.'"

Gandolfi says that the Lightning made a trip to Louisville, Ky. for a tournament. While there, they also had time for some sightseeing.

The players, coaches and various parents who had accompanied the team to Louisville visited the University of Louisville's baseball field as well as historic Churchill Downs.

According to Gandolfi, Carmel officials told him allegations were made that some of the players were placing bets while they were at the racetrack.

Gandolfi says he never saw or heard about any players gambling at Churchill Downs.

"I don't know how many kids allegedly gambled," Gandolfi said. "There were a couple of parents there with them, so they might have bet through parents or they may just have been standing at the window. I don't know. I was down at the track. They didn't bet through me. I wouldn't bet for a kid."

Gandolfi says that the only reason the team was at Churchill Downs in the first place is that the venue is considered "an historic landmark." He says he took his Lake County Lightning team to Churchill Downs last summer and no one at Carmel questioned it.

In fact, Gandolfi says he's never been questioned about the ethics of decisions he's made on behalf of his program because he's put a priority on winning the right way.

"Never, ever have we (Gandolfi and his staff) done anything close to putting kids in danger," Gandolfi said. "We want to be the best team in the state of Illinois. But we have never, ever broken any rules. We've never practiced illegally, anything like that. We've never done anything remotely immoral or in a dangerous way.

"When it comes down to it, we've done nothing wrong."

However, Gandolfi says that his alleged wrongdoings on the Louisville trip didn't end with the Churchill Downs visit.

He says Carmel officials voiced displeasure about the fact that, while in Louisville, the players went to the movie "The Hangover," which is rated R. Gandolfi was also questioned about his decision to eat a meal at a deli while his players ate at a different restaurant, even though that restaurant is right next door to the deli.

"Those were the three instances that did it," Gandolfi said of Churchill Downs, the movie and the restaurant.

Actually, Gandolfi believes there's much more to the story and that his fate could have had just as much to do with his history of being a squeaky wheel.

Gandolfi says he was relentless about asking for things that would improve his program, such as a new scoreboard, better field conditions and new equipment.

"We have fought for a lot of things we wanted. I don't deny that one bit," Gandolfi said. "But it adds up. Over 21 years, they (Carmel officials) may have gotten sick of it."

Now, Gandolfi is just sick about missing out on a great opportunity.

His son Charlie is a junior at Carmel and had a great summer with the Lightning. Gandolfi was looking forward to finally getting the chance to coach him at the high school level.

While Charlie will likely stay at Carmel, Gandolfi's younger son Thomas, an incoming freshman, will be enrolling at Mundelein High School.

"This is the hard part," Gandolfi said. "My kids, how many years have they been growing up in that (Carmel) dugout?" Gandolfi said. "My sons have been with me in the dugout wearing their hats, wearing their shirts, every year meeting new players, meeting kids that they idolize. Now all of the sudden, my son's old enough to play for me and he had a great, great summer, and now it's over.

"But at least I got one summer with him."

Gandolfi will get others as he will likely continue to coach the Lake County Lightning. He may also have other coaching obligations as well.

Gandolfi says he's already been offered a head coaching position at another high school and has been approached by a local college.

As far as his position at Carmel goes, he says that parents and former players are rallying to his side but concedes that probably won't change much.

"There's really no recourse," Gandolfi said. "We'd like to face our accusers. But we have no idea who it is. It's (Carmel's) right not to tell us. You just go on with it and get on with your life."