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ST. CLAIRSVILLE - After 30 seasons of coaching high school baseball and more than 500 career victories, Tom Sliva will be joining an elite club early next year.
The former St. John Central and current St. Clairsville head diamond boss was informed recently that he has been selected for induction into the Ohio High School Baseball Coaches Association Hall of Fame.
"Monday evening I was at my daughter's house helping her with some landscaping. I got a call and they told me I had to come in the house," Sliva said. "I didn't know why, but they told me I had to call Mike Valesko. I got a hold of him and he was able to give me the good news."
Sliva said he was unsure of the exact date of the ceremony but it would be sometime during the Baseball State Clinic in Columbus which is held in late January. The OHSBCA Hall of Fame will be located at Bill Davis Stadium on the campus of the Ohio State University.
"I was very humbled, very excited," he said of hearing the news. "It feels good. It's humbling. I know all of the guys from the Ohio Valley that have made it and they are a great bunch of coaches, and to be in with them is something that I am very proud of.
"It feels good. I've worked hard at it and I'm happy for my family."
Sliva will join former OVAC coaches Jim Bittengle (Shadyside, 1975), John Nese (Steubenville Catholic, 1981), Richard "Lefty" Hall (St. Clairsville, 1995), Fred Heatherington (Steubenville, 2007) and Brian Perkins (Toronto, 2023) as previous inductees.
Hall, who passed away in 2019, had a huge influence on Sliva during his five years as an assistant.
"He was a big influence. I got to be there when he was inducted," he said. "I learned a lot from him. He was a true baseball guy."
Under Sliva's direction, St. Clairsville has won numerous OVAC Class 4A championships, as well as several Ohio Sectional and District Tournament titles. The Red Devils have one regional crown and a trip to the Final Four in 2019.
"Every coach will say that it is attributed to great assistant coaches," Sliva noted. "Starting at St. John I had great players and great families. You have to have great kids and great support systems to be able to do it, and I appreciate everyone that has ever coached for me. There's too many to name without leaving someone out. I appreciate all the kids that ever played for me and that's where it starts.
"Any coach will tell you that. You need good help and good players and I've been fortunate to have both," he added.
"I have a huge support group with my immediate family," he continued. "We're sports crazy. My son has coached with me and I had the pleasure of being able to coach him. My daughter still does stuff for the program. My wife is probably the most knowledgeable sports person in the Ohio Valley, man or woman. She loves baseball and we hardly ever miss a Cleveland sporting event."
In 2020, Sliva was enshrined in the Ohio Eastern District Hall of Fame.
"This is obviously a step up but I'm very excited for both," he said. "Anytime somebody honors you that way, it is humbling."
Although the 2026 season wasn't one of the Red Devils best under Sliva, he did reach a major milestone in his career with his 500th win.
"That was fun. It was very rewarding," Sliva added. "You sit there and reflect back and say "I can't believe I've been doing this this long.' They add up over time. It was fun to share it with the team, my family and friends. It was very enjoyable."
Sliva was unsure of how many of his former players continued their careers at the college level, be it NCAA Division I, II or III.
"I'm proud of all the kids that went on to continue their careers and get an education. It's just awesome to see them play the game. I've told all my players from Day 1, if they love baseball they'll love me because I love baseball. I was taught how to do it right by my father and I try to coach how to play the game the way it is supposed to be played."
As for the future, he's not sure.
"I don't put a number on it or how long I will continue to teach," he said. "I do know that I am closer to the end than I am the beginning, obviously."
When naming individuals that helped him on his coaching journey, he started with Buzz Donahue at St. John Central.
"He was the one that hired me and that got me back into teaching," Sliva continued. "Two other people that I will forever be indebted to are Joe DeGenova and Rhea Rose.”
Another person is Joe Slavik who has been by Sliva's side since the St. John Central days.
The OHSBCA began its Hall of Fame in 1972 and the 2027 Class will bring the number of honorees to nearly 200.