Star Iowa Slugger Held Out With Cryptic Announcement About NCAA Violation

Iowa baseball might be the next program to find itself in hot water. There isn't really a barometer as to how bad things may get, because there is little information known at this point, but the unknown is never good.

Especially when it has to do with potential NCAA violations.

The Hawkeyes, 34-11, are 10-6 in the Big Ten and well on their way to earning at least a three-seed in the NCAA Tournament. There are still two three-games series left, and the conference tournament, but they would need a catastrophic collapse to miss out on the postseason.

Don't rule it out. The wheels could still come off amidst a significant period of uncertainty, though it seems as though no amount of outside noise is going to hinder their strong season.

Iowa is hosting Ohio State this weekend. It won the series on Friday and Saturday by a combined score of 31-12 and plays for the sweep on Sunday afternoon.

Not only did the Hawkeyes dominate the Buckeyes in back-to-back nights, they did so without their best hitter. Keaton Anthony didn't play. He is hitting .389 with nine home runs, 51 runs scored and 38 RBIs in 157 at-bats this season.

Iowa released a statement after the game on Friday night but left things very open-ended as to why he didn't play.

Due to a potential NCAA violation, we withheld some student-athletes from competition. We will have no additional comments as this is an ongoing investigation.

The school did not specify whether Anthony was one of the "athletes" (more than one?) withheld, but he did not play. So.

Iowa athletics is under investigation.

The school did not provide further clarification on its cryptic announcement or what the NCAA violation might be. All of that information is unknown at this point, but there are rumors swirling.

Noah Darling of College Baseball Central reported that the investigation involves "several University of Iowa athletes, including at least one baseball player." He also said that it stems from gambling.

Darling's report has not been corroborated at this point, but he is connected within the college baseball space. It would be surprising for Darling to put out such a significant report without legitimate sourcing. But again, it has not yet been confirmed.

As for next steps, that too is up in the air.

Iowa kept Anthony out of the lineup again on Sunday. A timeline for his return could be as soon as next weekend, or never. There is no way of knowing what is to come, but an NCAA investigation could last months, if not years, though it seems like there is a priority to get this figured out — especially after Alabama baseball was hit with a gambling scandal just last week.