PROPS to NEWMAN from U.Minnesota

[lakesbison]

Who's big-time again?

A visitor to the North Dakota State campus took note that a beautiful ballpark -- Newman Outdoor Field -- sits in the middle of the athletic complex. It seats 4,500 and houses both the Bison baseball team and Fargo-Moorhead's team in the Northern League. It opened in 1997 and cost $5.5 million.

"NDSU is new to Division I, so we've been up there the past two years to play," Gophers coach John Anderson said. "The ballpark gets your attention."

The disparity in athletic budgets is $53 million for Minnesota to $9 million for NDSU. So how does it make Anderson feel, looking at this park while Siebert Field is collapsing on itself?

"Not good," he said.

http://www.startribune.com/508/story/761967.html


With our football offices, Dome and Newman... we are a class Division 1 athletic complex!!!

[roadwarrior]

They have struggled for years trying to get some $$$$ to build a new baseball stadium at the U. Now the focus of any fundraising is for the new football stadium.

[bisonaudit]

You'd think they'd be able to find an alum like Dave Winfield for instance to kick in some money and do some marketing and fundraising.

The story implied that the baseball program was being prevented from raising funds by either the athletic department or the University until the football stadium was fully funded which strikes me as stupid. I could understand them not wanting competing public campaigns to raise funds but you'd hope that they are able to speak with targeted donors with specific interest in the baseball program at least.

[sambini]

They have some good baseball alums Paul Molitor............

[Wacker_in_the_Hall]

Dave Winfield, Terry Steinbach, Dan Wilson......$$$$$$$$$

[Jeffdaryl3rd]

The Gopher baseball program supposedly had enough money raised to build a new stadium five years ago, but then the university put a moratorium on new building. I'm not sure what the stadium status is right now, but the baseball program is going to continue to play most of its games in the Metrodome until they get a new on-campus stadium.

[lakesbison]

its pathetic that AMERICAS PASTIME.. and a program that has about 20-25 pro's cant get a freakin stadium.

but some gay boathouse for a rowing team can !!!!!

[STC_TFA]

Thats title nine .........

[Jeffdaryl3rd]

To give you an idea of the type of committee that the Gophers have to deal with to get a new stadium, five or so years ago when the baseball program was pushing for a new stadium, one of the committee members supposedly asked something along the lines of "we just built the softball team a new stadium, why can't you just share that?" The Gophers are the only school to ever produce 2 members of the 3,000 hit club and they need to get a new stadium.

[bisonaudit]

To give you an idea of the type of committee that the Gophers have to deal with to get a new stadium, five or so years ago when the baseball program was pushing for a new stadium, one of the committee members supposedly asked something along the lines of "we just built the softball team a new stadium, why can't you just share that?" *The Gophers are the only school to ever produce 2 members of the 3,000 hit club and they need to get a new stadium.

What a disaster.

[STC_TFA]

What a bunch of bull.

[Bryan]

That quote was given to Coach Anderson by Tonya Moten Brown, basically second in charge of the University when Yudof was President. Thank God she followed him to Texas.

As someone who calls John Anderson a friend, I know how much this issue drives him crazy and how frustrating it is to deal with the University. He absolutely loves NDSU's stadium and has used to in presentations to show other schools commitment to baseball. He did have commitments for the money a couple years ago but the University higher ups told him he couldn't build it, then they put a stop on all buildings and the AD promised him when it was lifted he would be priority #1 and what happenned, they decided to build the damn boathouse and said nobody can raise any money until the football stadium money is collected. They played most of the games in the dome last year, but that won't work this year so they are back to playing at Siebert for most of the games. When people say the stadium is falling apart, they aren't kidding. It's a joke that a program with 3 national Titles, 5 College World Series appearances, 30 NCAA Tournaments, and alums that include Dave Winfield, Paul Molitor, Terry Steinbach, Jerry Kindall, Greg Olson, Denny Neagle, Dan Wilson, Kerry Lightenberg, Jim Brower, and had five alums play in the Majors this year has to struggle so hard. If a womens program was forced to play in a stadium as run down as Siebert, we would be seeing lawsuits left and right. Another amazing part to this story is the previous administration told Anderson that even though the softball team had just built like a 10 million dollar stadium, that his ballpark couldn't have anything beyond what the softball park had or else the baseball program was responsible for funding improvements to softball stadium equal to whatever was built at the baseball park. Of course this was under the watch of the evil Chris Voeltz so I'm not sure if that would still be part of a new deal. NDSU is lucky that they have people in charge who have clue and that's one main reason why all there sports programs will be successful.

[Jeffdaryl3rd]

I'll make no qualms about the fact that I personally dislike Anderson, Fornasiere, and basically everyone in charge of the Gophers baseball program and that I do get a little enjoyment out of watching them twist in the wind, but it is an absolute black-eye on the university that they have to play in Siebert. *There are some new faces in their athletic department thankfully and hopefully that leads to them getting a stadium done. *For heavens sake, Penn State and Iowa have nicer baseball stadiums, and they are dreadful baseball schools.

[valpotx]

That quote was given to Coach Anderson by Tonya Moten Brown, basically second in charge of the University when Yudof was President. Thank God she followed him to Texas.

As someone who calls John Anderson a friend, I know how much this issue drives him crazy and how frustrating it is to deal with the University. He absolutely loves NDSU's stadium and has used to in presentations to show other schools commitment to baseball. He did have commitments for the money a couple years ago but the University higher ups told him he couldn't build it, then they put a stop on all buildings and the AD promised him when it was lifted he would be priority #1 and what happenned, they decided to build the damn boathouse and said nobody can raise any money until the football stadium money is collected. They played most of the games in the dome last year, but that won't work this year so they are back to playing at Siebert for most of the games. When people say the stadium is falling apart, they aren't kidding. It's a joke that a program with 3 national Titles, 5 College World Series appearances, 30 NCAA Tournaments, and alums that include Dave Winfield, Paul Molitor, Terry Steinbach, Jerry Kindall, Greg Olson, Denny Neagle, Dan Wilson, Kerry Lightenberg, Jim Brower, and had five alums play in the Majors this year has to struggle so hard. If a womens program was forced to play in a stadium as run down as Siebert, we would be seeing lawsuits left and right. Another amazing part to this story is the previous administration told Anderson that even though the softball team had just built like a 10 million dollar stadium, that his ballpark couldn't have anything beyond what the softball park had or else the baseball program was responsible for funding improvements to softball stadium equal to whatever was built at the baseball park. Of course this was under the watch of the evil Chris Voeltz so I'm not sure if that would still be part of a new deal. *NDSU is lucky that they have people in charge who have clue and that's one main reason why all there sports programs will be successful.

Most of those were a LONG time ago though. It has been quite awhile since MN has been to the series, as my dad points out quite a bit (he played on one of those teams to get to CWS). It has been awhile since a Midwestern team has won it all too.

[Jeffdaryl3rd]

Regardless of how long ago it was that they went to the CWS or how long it has been since Molitor and Winfield played there, Minnesota is still a school with some baseball tradition that is an annual competitor in the Big 10 conference. As such, the school needs to figure out a way to get a new stadium built for this program.

[valpotx]

Regardless of how long ago it was that they went to the CWS or how long it has been since Molitor and Winfield played there, Minnesota is still a school with some baseball tradition that is an annual competitor in the Big 10 conference. *As such, the school needs to figure out a way to get a new stadium built for this program.

You are correct, they do compete for the Big 10 conference each year, and in that, they should have a decent stadium (I enjoyed playing against them at the Metrodome myself, when I played at Valpo).

That said, it doesn't mean as much to be Big 10 in baseball, as if it were football or basketball. The Big 10 is pretty low on the baseball totem pole, as they typically only get their conference tournament winner in, must like the Mid-Con does for all sports (and ORU can take any Big 10 team in baseball). Baseball is not a priority in the Big 10/Midwest, so they generally do not have the best stadiums. I don't know your knowledge level of D-1 baseball, but these statements are not meant to agitate you. It is more meant to show you that baseball is not a priority for the area at this level (I can say so having played college ball in the Midwest), so less is put into the stadiums. I must admit though that your stadium looks nice, which makes sense given that the FM Redhawks are a solid Independent team that shares the facility (Valpo is working on upgrading our field with a shared stadium as well).

The warmer states tend to have the really nice baseball stadiums (here in TX, FL, CA, GA, etc), since we put more money into the programs, as you can get many more people to attend the events. Baseball is under football in popularity here in Texas, but above basketball (in relation to high school & college, as those are the true representation of a state's talent, not the professional ranks as some people in NY seem to think), so it only makes sense.

[Jeffdaryl3rd]

I played six games at Penn St's stadium this year with my minor league affiliate, and all I can say about that stadium is, wow. It is an absolutely beautiful new stadium, seats about 5,000 people. Now, a lot of that has to do with the fact that Penn St. shares the stadium with the State College Cardinals, but Penn St is consistently one of the worst teams in the Big 10 and they figured out a way to get it done. Teams in the Big 10 with better stadiums than Minnesota: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan St, Ohio St & Penn St. A reminder, Wisconsin doesn't sponsor varsity baseball, so that leaves Northwestern (whose stadium I don't know anything about other than what it says on the website, which leads me to believe it is probably better than Siebert) and Purdue, which is currently in the midst of a fundraiser to update Lambert Field. So what have we learned: the Gophers, a perrenial contender for the regular and postseason titles in the Big 10 probably has the worst field in the conference, and if it does not certainly will once Pudue refurbishes its own. Pathetic. End of story, somebody down there needs to make this happen. Also, don't compare the Mid-Con to the Big Ten in baseball. Oral Roberts would probably win the conference 2 of every 3 years if they played in the Big 10, but other than that the conference as a whole is pretty awful. Oakland, Valpo, Western Illinois would all finish last in the league every year and probably not come up with a win in legue play. Beyond these programs, I can't speak from experience, but these three teams are dreadful.

[valpotx]

I played six games at Penn St's stadium this year with my minor league affiliate, and all I can say about that stadium is, wow. *It is an absolutely beautiful new stadium, seats about 5,000 people. *Now, a lot of that has to do with the fact that Penn St. shares the stadium with the State College Cardinals, but Penn St is consistently one of the worst teams in the Big 10 and they figured out a way to get it done. *Teams in the Big 10 with better stadiums than Minnesota: Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan St, Ohio St & Penn St. *A reminder, Wisconsin doesn't sponsor varsity baseball, so that leaves Northwestern (whose stadium I don't know anything about other than what it says on the website, which leads me to believe it is probably better than Siebert) and Purdue, which is currently in the midst of a fundraiser to update Lambert Field. *So what have we learned: the Gophers, a perrenial contender for the regular and postseason titles in the Big 10 probably has the worst field in the conference, and if it does not certainly will once Pudue refurbishes its own. *Pathetic. *End of story, somebody down there needs to make this happen. *Also, don't compare the Mid-Con to the Big Ten in baseball. *Oral Roberts would probably win the conference 2 of every 3 years if they played in the Big 10, but other than that the conference as a whole is pretty awful. *Oakland, Valpo, Western Illinois would all finish last in the league every year and probably not come up with a win in legue play. *Beyond these programs, I can't speak from experience, but these three teams are dreadful.

We beat IU several times, as well as Purdue, & Northwestern when I played (they were not anything special in other words), so I wouldn't think we would be last in the conference for baseball; other sports, possibly. We even competed with Minnesota each time we played them, only losing by a few runs. Speaking of WIU, they have been in the top 25 for recruiting classes over the last few years.

[Jeffdaryl3rd]

NDSU in '06: 12-41. *Results against Minnesota: 5-4 L, 7-3 W. *Thinking Mid-Con baseball=Big 10 baseball, priceless. *By the way, if you are getting your recruiting rankings from Baseball America or related publication you can pretty much save it for someone who cares. *What was WIU's draw? *Come play at the second nicest HS field in Macomb? *I wouldn't put 1 cent worth of stock in most of baseball america's rankings, and I say this despite the fact that I snuck into one of them at the end of the year. *I don't know how I got sidetracked onto this topic, but the bottom line is that Minnesota is a competitive team in the big ten, so regardless of whether the Big 10 is a national power conference in baseball or not, they deserve a decent stadium.

[valpotx]

NDSU in '06: 12-41. *Results against Minnesota: 5-4 L, 7-3 W. *Thinking Mid-Con baseball=Big 10 baseball, priceless. *By the way, if you are getting your recruiting rankings from Baseball America or related publication you can pretty much save it for someone who cares. *What was WIU's draw? *Come play at the second nicest HS field in Macomb? *I wouldn't put 1 cent worth of stock in most of baseball america's rankings, and I say this despite the fact that I snuck into one of them at the end of the year. *I don't know how I got sidetracked onto this topic, but the bottom line is that Minnesota is a competitive team in the big ten, so regardless of whether the Big 10 is a national power conference in baseball or not, they deserve a decent stadium.

I don't know what school you went to/when, or what Mid-Con teams you played before, but as I found out, many Midwest (including Big 10 mid/upper-quality to lower-quality) teams are very similar, where any team can win on any day. *Case in point: we beat Notre Dame my FR year of baseball (with a FR pitcher against a normal starter for them), when they were #1 in the nation mid-season. *

We may "suck" now, but you have to realize my perspective comes from when I was playing, and when we weren't towards the low end of the RPI rankings like we have been the last 2 seasons (middle of RPI in D-1 from 1999-2000 to 2002-2003). *Before you call a program "dreadful," please make sure you have facts to back that up, not just basing it on 1-2 years.

I don't disagree that MN needs a new stadium, all I was saying is that baseball does not seem like a priority in the Midwest, so it may be hard.

P.S. I like Baseball America, as before my SR year in HS, I was listed in there as well (before my Tommy John was needed).

[sambini]

Maybe they should work with the St.Paul Saints? Thats what they did in Lincoln.

[Jeffdaryl3rd]

They might be able to swing some sort of deal with the Saints, but I'm not going to put money on it. *The Saints draw pretty well (at least they have in the past, haven't kept up with them in a while) and I think it would take a pretty sweet deal to convince them to spend money on a new park. *Something along the lines of "if it ain't broke don't fix it." *The main sticking point with such a deal, in my opinion, would be that the Gophers probably want to put the stadium on campus and probably on the Minneapolis campus, and I'm not sure the Saints want to become the Minneapolis or Twin Cities Saints. *Could happen, but I'm guessing not.
Also, Baseball America is vastly over rated. Can't say this enough times. Case in point: #4 Prospect in New-York Penn League, Max Sapp. .229, 1 HR, 37K, 38 H. I rest my case.

[Bryan]

The Saints are in the process of trying to get a new stadium and at one time we're very aggressive in trying to work out a deal with Minnesota but the bottom line was the Saints wanted it by the Fairgrounds and MN had no interest in moving baseball off campus. Most of the college teams that have partnered with minor league teams have done so because of economics, that really isn't the issue at MN, it's dealing with the Title 9 administrative garbage.

[sambini]

Thanks for the insight Bryan. Its just sad the U can't get this worked out.

[Jeffdaryl3rd]

Well, I guess I was incorrect about the Saints not spending money on a stadium, but like I said before, one of the main draws for the Saints in the Twin Cities is not being in Minneapolis, which puts them fundamentally at odds to a Gophers/Saints stadium.

[Bryan]

Jeffrey, the Saints still do draw extremely well, but Midway Stadium and the metal bleachers and the two bathrooms are way overdue to be replaced. Of course you we're right that the Saints don't want to pay for it and they want the city of St, Paul to pay for most of it, but the last couple years they we're competing with the Twins, Vikings, and Gopher Football for Stadiums so they never really got a chance at the capital. One idea is to tear down the current stadium and rebuild on the exact same land but they would need another venue to play in for at least a year.

[Jeffdaryl3rd]

If they build Gopher football a new stadium it is an absolute joke. The Metrodome is an adequate if not eye-catching stadium and after the Vikings and Twins move out of it the state of Minnesota should sell the stadium to the unversity for $1 or something like that and then the University can upgrade it however they see fit. I know the Gophers want a stadium on campus, but there are a lot more pressing needs than spending the kind of money needed to build an on-campus stadium for the school's mediocre football program.

[roadwarrior]

The state passed the legislation to build the new Gopher football stadium last spring, so its pretty much a done deal. As long as the "U" raises their share of the cost.

[Jeffdaryl3rd]

Didn't realize the Gophers had gotten their stadium passed, but I still think that it is a stupid idea to build three separate stadiums. Just me though.