College World Series could find new home

Greetings from the College World Series in Omaha.

Here a couple of notes on some of what goes on here as I work for ESPN providing the television coverage.

The great concern for the city and the coaches is the ongoing discussion that a new ballpark may be built in another section of Omaha to house the CWS.

There are many loyalists who view the idea the same way the Red Sox faithful view tearing down Fenway.

This is the 61st year of the event here and there is no question the CWS has become a major attraction nationally. Rosenblatt Stadium has become the hallowed site for these games.

There is also no question that the NCAA continues to flirt with the idea of moving the CWS to an entirely new site for travel and facility purposes, and we’re talking someplace other than Omaha.

So far that idea has been beaten back, but it lurks in the shadows and further fuels the idea of a new park in Omaha with more suites, seats and sales.

There is no question if one was to start the CWS today with the fan base it has, the games would not be played in Omaha. The travel is too difficult, the stadium too old and the list of potential sites that offer more is long.

There is also no issue that part of the reason the CWS has grown is the support from the city and fans in Omaha. The historic relationship between the site and the event is strong.

For now, it’s Rosenblatt, but the discussion goes on.

How far will the college baseball coaches go to sell their game? Well, every day of the CWS the coaches who have teams playing that day meet with the television announcers and producers to set their lineups and discuss strategy.

They do this at 8 in the morning and do so with a smile on their faces and provide insightful information. This is not going to happen in football or basketball.

The fact the MLB draft occurs during the super regional games that lead up to the CWS is a matter of concern to players and coaches.

It is a lot to ask of players to focus on their college teams as they wait for the draft announcements to see if they are selected by a team and if so, how high up.

Wayne Graham, the 16-year head coach at Rice, says, “It’s not only hard on the players, but on the coaches as well.” He had a high draft pick in Joe Savery on his team.

“I worried about how high he would be drafted because if he didn’t go high I world have felt I let him down in coaching him,” said Graham.

“I do think that once the draft was over there was relief felt by everyone,” Graham noted.

It may be time for MLB to move the draft to after the CWS just to give the players a chance to fully focus on their final games in college.

Meanwhile, the games go on and a joyful tradition continues in Omaha.

Old Town native Gary Thorne is an ESPN and ABC sportscaster.