Where Knapp St. goes from North South to east west on that sharp right hand corner used to be a track up there also. Baseball was lightly attended to say the least.
I know, I know, but seriously… Bring Back Baseball
- Thread starter AppleCornCy
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I am thinking it's way more likely that Iowa eventually comes to terms with reality and axes their program than Iowa State ever brings theirs back
Depends on when in the 90s. Mid-90s were probably the lowpoint for baseball. Post-strike it was really hurting. Got a big boost from the McGuire and Sosa roid homer chase, but dropped again in the early 2000s. To the point they were close to contracting the league and killing the Twins and maybe more teams.
It’s in the best shape it has been in a long time.
TV numbers were really good in 2024 and 2025. Attendance has been up. Even the World Baseball Classic pulled good numbers. US-Venezuela got almost 11 million viewers. It’s never going to be as popular as the glory days but having double digit TV growth has it on a trajectory that’s better than most.
Rule changes have been great. Games move way faster. Big stars that are international have helped as well.
The problem with college baseball is its played in the spring. As long it continues to be played in the spring. Instead of the summer, you'll see more northern schools dropping it.
Are there any college sports that are competing mostly during the summer? I know most athletes stick around and take summer school, but that was usually for workouts and such.
Not to my knowledge. Baseball/Softball conclude the sports calendar as I believe track is done just before them.
I wouldn’t be shocked to see the season get adjusted a bit. Just about every college baseball game is televised or streaming these days. Adjusting the season by a month or so would give broadcast partners nearly year round college content. If the Big Ten wants to throw some money around and make it happen, it’ll have a good chance of happening.
Agree. I think it's on the clock after Heller retires.
The SEC wants it earlier if anything. No chance it moves back into the summer because ESPN isn't moving the CWS. Fits a dead spot in their programming calendar.
MLB is not moving their draft back and if they don’t move their draft they sure as hell don’t want any potential investments playing for anyone but them.
I gladly will be considering he absolutely is the best thing to ever happen to this university despite his goofy videos.
Iowa is a perfect example of why we should never bring back baseball.
Once Iowa State and UNI got rid of their programs, there were people on this very board saying Iowa was poised to take a leap as the only major program in the state.
Now with that advantage and playing in a bad conference they still aren’t any good and I’m sure they will have a much bigger budget than we ever would.
It’s not impossible to bring back baseball, it would just be stupid.
Once Iowa State and UNI got rid of their programs, there were people on this very board saying Iowa was poised to take a leap as the only major program in the state.
Now with that advantage and playing in a bad conference they still aren’t any good and I’m sure they will have a much bigger budget than we ever would.
It’s not impossible to bring back baseball, it would just be stupid.
It will be okay, Bruce. Your (woeful) legacy will never be forgotten.
A big problem is working with the draft though.
You have the conclusion of the season, the MLB combine and the draft all occurring in the span of 2-3 weeks right now. Not to mention where baseball is big they’d rather keep it in the spring.
Shifting the season isn’t going to make the Northern schools competitive. It’s about overcoming a century of inertia where weather and practice mattered. Everybody does a majority of offseason stuff in indoor facilities, and a lot of their work indoors even in season. I don’t mean just at the college level. I mean at the club ball level where the talent is produced. It’s an advantage to have nice weather, but it’s down to a pretty marginal difference. Outfield defense is really the only thing kids can’t do indoors.
Iowa & Minnesota both have baseball and they’ve had some flashes of success, but they will never compete with southern schools. Baseball is a warm weather sport.
Iowa Cubs are probably enough to scratch the itch of baseball fans in central Iowa.
Iowa Cubs are probably enough to scratch the itch of baseball fans in central Iowa.
The last few baseball games I went to in 2000/2001 there were probably 25 people there TOTAL, including visitors and parents. TOTAL. I walked over because I was living in Towers at the time, couldn't believe there was no one there. Went to another game later, same thing. There were 10x more people going to ISU CLUB hockey games than baseball. It just blows my mind that this keeps coming up.
Iowa State has a club team. if you miss baseball so much just watch the club team. The club hockey team was always packed when i was in school. People even tailgated the hockey games. I like hockey much more than baseball and I can tell you i think it would be a stupid idea to use up resources for a D1 hockey team even when we are one of the top club teams each year.
There are multiple facilities just around Ankeny where there are full infields for winter/cold practice. It’s literally just outfield.
Hockey has existing infrastructure as well. Ames has a rink. Des Moines has an AHL level facility at Wells Fargo. You can play it regardless of weather. There’s a hotbed of talent in neighboring states.
