Big 10 baseball disaster

[huskersalways]

The Big 10 hasn't found a place to host the Big 10 baseball tourney yet. Omaha is going to host it 2018-2022 but couldn't this year because Omaha is hosting the BE tourney at that time. All the venues they have tried are busy and they can't get anybody to swap some stuff. They are now looking at on campus stadiums but are fearful that if the host team doesn't make the tourney it won't work at all. A minor league park in Omaha has been approached to trade a home series to an away but I think the Omaha baseball team wants compensation from the Big 10. They are also trying to maybe see about Wrigley field but haven't gotten an answer back.

They have had plenty of time to find a venue but somebody is probably looking for a job right now.

 

[knightfan2000]

Somerset Patriots stadium would be perfect :smiley:

 

[huskersalways]

Somerset Patriots stadium would be perfect :smiley:

I don't know about that stadium specifically but from what I understand any stadium that the Big 10 would use is not available. Plus it doesn't sound like they want to pay to have teams alter their schedule.

 

[RUTrack94]

Flip the RU football game at Yankee stadium for the tourney ... Hopefully Yankees are on the road :).

 

[biazza38]

What about Lakewood or Trenton

 

[RUTrack94]

Lakewood stadium is cool and close to the shore.

 

[huskersalways]

According to Kendall Rogers the Big 10 has decided that they may have it at a campus stadium. Bids are being done now for schools who's baseball complexes meet the needs for the tourney.

 

[Mr_Twister]

Let me guess that that excludes Rutgers as the baseball host.

 

[huskersalways]

Let me guess that that excludes Rutgers as the baseball host.

I have no clue what the requirements are or what kind of facility RU has. It would have to have somewhere around 5000 permanent seats and the ability to add more. Also have to be able to handle all the tech stuff for TV and enough close hotels to host the schools as well as the media and Big 10 folks plus fans. Being in the tourney will be a requirement as well so they will have more than 1 acceptable place. They will award the bid to school A and they will get it if qualify and if don't then school B gets it, etc. Latest rumor is it's between Indiana and Michigan.

Edit: Nebraska is trying to buy out the minor
League games at their field for that week to put in a bid. The Big10 asked them to try because they know the games will all sell out there. Can seat 10,000 if count everything with 5000 perminate seats.

 

[Mr_Twister]

I have no clue what the requirements are or what kind of facility RU has. It would have to have somewhere around 5000 permanent seats and the ability to add more. Also have to be able to handle all the tech stuff for TV and enough close hotels to host the schools as well as the media and Big 10 folks plus fans. Being in the tourney will be a requirement as well so they will have more than 1 acceptable place. They will award the bid to school A and they will get it if qualify and if don't then school B gets it, etc. Latest rumor is it's between Indiana and Michigan.

Edit: Nebraska is trying to buy out the minor
League games at their field for that week to put in a bid. The Big10 asked them to try because they know the games will all sell out there. Can seat 10,000 if count everything with 5000 perminate seats.

As far as I know, that excludes Rutgers if those 5000 permanent seats are at an on-campus baseball facility. Another example of Rutgers Athletics being behind the curve and "out of their league". We are our own worst enemy. It is not enough that the tourney would be played in the media capital of the world -- the tourney would be lucky to get a mention on WFAN. Unless caller "Ira from Staten Island" decides to give up his normal air time pontificating on Jets football.

 

[LC-88]

If we had the greatest stadium on the face of the earth, we wouldn't get the bid.

 

[huskersalways]

The biggest obstacle in this appears to be making sure whoever hosts the tournament is also in the tourney. Since not all teams make the tourney it's kind of a crap shoot. It does not appear that Nebraska will be able to bid which has NU fans pissed. Ha

 

[coachkos]

LAKEWOOD has a great ballpark Hope to see RU games there next year

 

[Mr_Twister]

Zero students will make it to Rutgers baseball games at Lakewood. I'd say yes for Lakewood as a Big Ten tourney venue. Might draw Big Ten alumni in NY/NJ/PA/DE areas for tourney.

 

[MineStreet]

The baseball facilities are the biggest head scratcher among the problems with RU athletics. Fred Hill had RU baseball in good standing for a long time, especially in the northeast. One would think that RU would have built a halfway decent stadium for that team in the early to mid nineties when other schools around the country were upgrading for baseball. Even something small like 2,500 seats with decent concessions, bathrooms and lighting wouldn't have cost much back then. Why was RU satisfied with HS level facilities for so long?

I know the thinking is that the best HS baseball prospects want to play down south or out west but if RU had nice baseball facilities they would have kept a lot of great players home especially with a legendary coach like Fred Hill.

Its shocking that it took this long for RU to build an indoor facility for baseball and softball. I hope Hobbs has plans to upgrade the game day venues for both of those sports soon. If/when that happens we will see a steep improvement there. RU should be among the top baseball and softball programs in the B1G.

 

[1stand3rd]

Surf Stadium in Atlantic City is sitting there empty.

 

[huskersalways]

The Big 10 tourney has been a disaster since they started it. The conference put 0 interest into trying to upgrade the conference. The people running the tourney were not baseball people and the few that had some baseball experience it was with pro ball which is an entire different animal. They hired some college baseball guys and also encouraged schools to update there facilities and money spent on the programs with the added revenue the conference was getting. This started right before NU joined and has continued.

They are working to make Omaha the permanent home of the tourney because MECA(the group that runs athletic events in Omaha) knows how to put on College baseball stuff(See the CWS) The stadium is built for college ball and Omaha will never quit supporting college sports. More people showed up for the first session(NU was not in that session) of the tourney the first year Omaha hosted it than had shown up for all the Big 10 tourneys all sessions combined. It was the first time the tourney had ever shown a profit.

I hope the Big 10 keeps quietly pushing schools upgrade their baseball programs. It beats the hell out of watching MLB.

 

[PSU_Nut]

I hope the Big 10 keeps quietly pushing schools upgrade their baseball programs. It beats the hell out of watching MLB.

The only way the B1G and college baseball is ever going gain popularity is move the season to summer. Rutgers could build the nicest state or the art stadium and fans are still not going to show up for a home game in march when temperatures are in the 40s. Players are still going to want to play down south in the warm. The southern schools just don't want to give up their advantage despite it being in the best interest of the sport. They should move the season back weeks. For this year the schedule would be like this:

The regular season would start first Friday in April and end the second weekend in July. This year it would April 7 to July 9.

The conference tournaments would be the following week then regionals and super regionals the weekends after that.

The college World Series would be start the first Saturday in August 5 to August 17

Many northern teams would still want to schedule southern games those opening weeks. Perhaps to throw southern schools a bone you could allow each school to have a one week preseason schedule where teams would be allowed to travel and play a week of exhibition games. The southern schools could host these spring training tournaments.

 

[DJ Spanky]

Too bad that they knocked down that stadium in Newark.

 

[huskersalways]

The only way the B1G and college baseball is ever going gain popularity is move the season to summer. Rutgers could build the nicest state or the art stadium and fans are still not going to show up for a home game in march when temperatures are in the 40s. Players are still going to want to play down south in the warm. The southern schools just don't want to give up their advantage despite it being in the best interest of the sport. They should move the season back weeks. For this year the schedule would be like this:

The regular season would start first Friday in April and end the second weekend in July. This year it would April 7 to July 9.

The conference tournaments would be the following week then regionals and super regionals the weekends after that.

The college World Series would be start the first Saturday in August 5 to August 17

Many northern teams would still want to schedule southern games those opening weeks. Perhaps to throw southern schools a bone you could allow each school to have a one week preseason schedule where teams would be allowed to travel and play a week of exhibition games. The southern schools could host these spring training tournaments.

The summer thing is never going to happen.

While I agree about the Southern schools having an advantage, I completely disagree on whether or not the Northern schools can compete. Michigan used to have a very good program and are building back up. Indiana and Purdue have spent huge money on their programs in the last 5-7 years and they are very good programs now. Nebraska was rolling ti they made a boneheaded coaching hire with Van Horn left and are finally building back up. There are a lot of Northern that have very good programs. College baseball is probably the hardest college sport to win a NC in. With there being about 400 schools in D-1 and the conference tourney/regional/super regional/CWS all in consecutive weeks, it is just brutal and you have to be very lucky and good. Schools that want to compete can. There is good baseball played everywhere. The Northern schools need to quit crying about weather and put the resources into baseball that they need or drop their programs(there are about 150 schools in D-1 that need to do this).

 

[e5fdny]

Like I mentioned in another thread on this board...if you want to move it play less games. Still do your series , just less of them

 

[HeavenUniv.]

DJ,
The stadium in Newark (which is only about 15 years-old) is going to be torn down for a new apartment or office building but there have been some type of delays in acquisition. I have been told that Rutgers-Newark and NJIT will play their games their this Spring and then it will be demolished. I was told by someone pretty high up in the RU athletic department that Rutgers is looking into buying up parts of the stadium--lights,scoreboard,other items.--On another note, I have been told by many people over the years that the Somerset Patriots stadium could have been built right next to The RAC,but Gruninger said no. Fred Gruninger--the gift that keeps on giving Ugh !!!

 

[huskersalways]

Indiana has been selected to host the tourney this year. Great choice. Their fans will support it pretty good and they have a great facility. One of the best in the Big 10 and the country.

 

[Mr_Twister]

The summer thing is never going to happen.

While I agree about the Southern schools having an advantage, I completely disagree on whether or not the Northern schools can compete. Michigan used to have a very good program and are building back up. Indiana and Purdue have spent huge money on their programs in the last 5-7 years and they are very good programs now. Nebraska was rolling ti they made a boneheaded coaching hire with Van Horn left and are finally building back up. There are a lot of Northern that have very good programs. College baseball is probably the hardest college sport to win a NC in. With there being about 400 schools in D-1 and the conference tourney/regional/super regional/CWS all in consecutive weeks, it is just brutal and you have to be very lucky and good. Schools that want to compete can. There is good baseball played everywhere. The Northern schools need to quit crying about weather and put the resources into baseball that they need or drop their programs(there are about 150 schools in D-1 that need to do this).

There might be good baseball played everywhere, but the great college baseball is played in the south. I'm guessing that a baseball program like Georgia Southern, a modest school in Statesboro, GA, outdraws most Big Ten teams in terms of fans and season tickets. Baseball is meant to be played outdoors. The pitching staffs of the southern teams dwarf those of northern teams in most cases. Very few pitchers thrive in chilly, windy, wet weather (Spring weather up north).