Devil Dish

 by Tim O'Donnell
 published on Thursday, April 10, 2008

Now that college basketball is over, how do I satisfy my college sports itch? I always think baseball will be the way to go, but before the College World Series, it seems like baseball is nonexistent on the national level.

I never see regular-season games advertised or even discussed, and I couldn't name one current player not on ASU's team. So why is college baseball so ignored when basketball and football are everywhere? It's not like baseball is an unpopular sport. It's America's pastime and MLB ratings were up for 21 teams last year.

My theory is college baseball players don't have as an immediate impact in the pros the way they do in football and basketball. No one watches the MLB Draft because the players being picked likely won't have a serious impact for some time. Not to mention it's only been televised twice.

It creates more excitement when people know that the players they are watching will at least play on TV the next year.

The MLB has minor leagues, but the NBA and NFL use college as their minor leagues. It's not impossible to get information about college baseball, but it is a lot harder.

timodonnell@asu.edu