College World Series notebook: Rosenblatt is Devils’ field of dreams

OMAHA, Neb. - Pat Murphy felt stress on Thursday — so many phone calls, so many guests arriving, and so much to prepare his Arizona State squad for. Somehow, it all melted away at the first sight of Rosenblatt Stadium.

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“(Director of baseball operations) Graham Rossini and I drove up the hill and saw the park, and I was like, 'Wow,’” Murphy said. “Graham said, 'This is what we work for.’”

So began the Sun Devils’ first full day in Omaha, a time for baseball fun and romanticism before the serious business of the College World Series begins on Saturday. ASU players worked out in an open-to-the-public practice at the stadium, then took part in an hour-long autograph session.

“As a baseball player, this is the best experience you will ever have in your life,” pitcher Josh Satow said. “It’s so much fun. The fans are great, the atmosphere is great. You can’t get that anywhere else.”

However, Murphy said that the trip from Tempe and the Omaha functions have left the team feeling a “little run down.” As a result, he is thankful that ASU opens play on Saturday. Rice, Louisville, North Carolina and Mississippi State open CWS play today.

RAPID RESPONSE

In a news conference with all the CWS coaches, Mississippi State’s Ron Polk took issue with parts of a state-of-college-baseball presentation earlier on Thursday.

A topic in the presentation was that the fall semester eligibility rate for baseball players lags behind other sports.

Polk, in his 34th season as a coach, replied: “Duh! How dumb of a statement is that? Our kids often get a 10- or 15-percent scholarship and have to pay the rest themselves. Meanwhile, football, basketball and (women’s) sports have full scholarships, and the players can go to summer school.

“You talk about the state of college baseball, but I know I have support of coaches, kids and parents when I say that what the NCAA does with college baseball is criminal.”

College baseball teams receive 11.7 scholarships a year to distribute to a roster that usually exceeds 30 players.

CATCHER CHOICE

Murphy said that Petey Paramore will likely start at catcher for ASU on Saturday, a somewhat surprising move considering that Kiel Roling has caught most of Mike Leake’s starts.

That means Roling will be the designated hitter; he and Roling have rotated between the two positions this season.

“We’ll play it by ear (on which of the two catches),” Murphy said. “But I have a good feeling about Paramore in the first game.”