MLB's presence in Omaha could lead to more games being played or the Draft being held in the cityNCAA
MLB is "bringing a game" to Omaha in '19, as the Tigers and Royals will play at TD Ameritrade Park "one night before the opening ceremony" for the College World Series, according to Tony Boone of the OMAHA WORLD-HERALD. For now, it is a "one-time event." But MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred "expressed interest in an MLB lead-up to the CWS becoming a regular occurrence and also briefly discussed the much-talked-about idea" of taking the MLB Draft there. Manfred "made it clear that any MLB presence in Omaha would only be to build baseball." Triple-A PCL Omaha Storm Chasers GM Martie Cordaro said that season-ticket holders "will be offered packages with the MLB game included." CWS season-ticket holders "will likely have the same for an event almost certain to become a tough ticket." The Royals "have a 50-year relationship with Omaha as their top minor league affiliate." Royals Senior VP/Baseball Operations & GM Dayton Moore said that the team is "sacrificing one [of] their home dates to play" there (OMAHA WORLD-HERALD, 6/22).
GROWING THE GAME: In K.C., Blair Kerkhoff notes the idea for an MLB game in Omaha "came up about a year ago, and the Royals wanted in." The '19 schedule "isn’t out, but the Royals and Tigers know this game will be the finale of a three-game series and the Royals will play at Minnesota the next day." Royals Senior VP/Business Operations Kevin Uhlich said that financial details of taking a game away from Kauffman Stadium "haven’t been finalized." The game "will be the latest that takes regular-season games away from home parks and presents baseball in other areas." Later this summer, a Phillies-Mets game "will be the second played at a minor-league stadium" -- BB&T Ballpark at Historic Bowman Field in Williamsport, Pa., the site of the Little League World Series. The Braves and Marlins in '16 "played a regular-season game at Fort Bragg, N.C." The Red Sox and Yankees in June '19 "will play a two-game series in London." Manfred said, “We hope by playing here we bring even more attention to this game and strengthen our relationship with the NCAA and college baseball as a whole" (K.C. STAR, 6/22).
MORE TO COME: In Omaha, Tom Shatel writes the Omaha game "isn't even the best part" of the announcement -- the best part is the "idea of a partnership, or cooperative, between MLB and the NCAA." There could be "more games in Omaha" and there is the possibility of "moving the MLB draft to Omaha." MLB could fund a "full scholarship for all college baseball teams, keeping great athletes in the sport and making college baseball -- and the CWS -- better." Manfred said that there "would be more MLB games for the CWS" (OMAHA WORLD-HERALD, 6/22).
