Grand Slam!!!

So for those you living in a box, or perhaps not interested in college baseball – you missed one of the best grand slams in the College World Series last night.

TCU baseball has proved yet again that it deserves to be at the College World Series. A lot of announcers and perhaps local spectators are wondering – who is this team out of the Mountain West Conference? And how did it even get here? Well, for starters, TCU beat the University of Texas during the Super Regionals. TWICE. In Austin….So, yeah.

Anyway, the Horned Frogs have been putting up quite a fight at this year’s College World Series and it’s been wonderful to watch. As you can see here, TCU made an impressive first time debut in Omaha, becoming one of the few teams to win its first- appearance game.

Now, back to last night. I’m at a elegant, chic Italian restaurant for one of my friend’s birthdays. We’re slowly leaving the restaurant and of course walk through the bar on our way out. Matt Curry steps up to the plate with bases loaded in the top of the 8th inning. THE BAR IS SILENT…

First pitch…ball one.
We breathe a sigh of relief.

Second pitch…swings – foul ball.
Again, we remember to breathe.

Third pitch…swing and a miss.
We cringe and then begin quietly praying.

Fourth pitch…dirt ball.
We start screaming at the TV, while still standing in the elegant restaurant’s bar. People begin leaving their tables to crowd in the bar.

Fifth pitch…high and outside.
We are all freaking out and are constantly looking away, then looking back, then looking away. All while quietly praying.

Final pitch…the whole bar literally does not breathe for a full two seconds.
And then…GRAND SLAM!!!! http://espn.go.com/blog/sportscenter/post/_/id/61741/sportscenters-top-plays-50

Rosenblatt’s Last Year At Bat

Hey all! My name is Paige, and I plan to graduate from TCU in May 2011 with a degree in journalism and psychology.

My 21st trip to Rosenblatt Stadium will be a bittersweet one. Like every year since I was a child, I’ll sit in the same spot. The entire stadium and I will belt out “Take Me Out to the Ballgame” with the accompaniment of Lambert Bartak, baseball’s favorite 91-year-old organist. I’ll pound down an embarrassing number of funnel cakes with freshly squeezed lemonade, the kind you can’t get anywhere else but at Rosenblatt.

This year, however, something unprecedented will take place at the historical stadium. I’ll be cheering on my Horned Frogs in their first and last appearance at Rosenblatt. TCU could not have picked a better year to make its College World Series debut as it will be the last year before the greatest show on dirt moves to a bigger and “better” stadium. Omaha’s Henry Doorly Zoo has purchased the land and will demolish the stadium to expand its parking lot.

As other championships and sports ditched tradition in pursuit of money over the years, the “Blatt” managed to keep the true spirit and heart of baseball alive. Whereas other championships move around in an effort to make more money, the CWS has stayed at its home on the hill for the past 61 years.

Although Omaha will continue to provide the atmosphere and heartland hospitality that no other city could, it doesn’t change the fact that one of the longest-standing traditions in American sports has finally sold out. Whereas Rosenblatt was named to honor a former ballplayer and Omaha mayor, the new stadium, TD Ameritrade Park, dons the name of the big-buck corporation that could shell out the most money. It will be bigger, shinier and more modern; three things that Rosenblatt had prided itself on avoiding. The decision to switch was one that was not taken lightly, but in the end, the city opted for the new stadium to guarantee an extended NCAA CWS contract.

Baseball players, coaches and fans across the country have expressed sadness over Rosenblatt’s last year, but most of them agree that it hasn’t been the stadium alone that made the CWS what it is. It’s Omaha and its people. The new stadium will take a little getting used to, but Omaha will continue to provide the experience that has become synonymous with the tournament.

LSU coach Skip Bertman might have put it best when he said he couldn’t imagine the CWS being any place else.

“I don’t think you can do this in New York or Los Angeles,” he said. “It has to be in a big city but not too big, and you have to have people with a lot of warmth. Everybody loves everybody here. It’s a lovefest for two weeks.”

Enjoy the lovefest, Frog fans. It’s unlike anything you’ll find anywhere else.