Regarding the post by "College Baseball Fan," who thinks UTEP should bring it back:
UTEP didn't drop baseball back in the late 1980s just because of Title IX. That was only one reason, and not the main reason.
I remember attending the press conference when the Athletic Department gave a whole list of reasons:
1. The baseball team had, by far, the worst grade-point average of all sports teams on campus. That's a problem at many universities that offer basebal. The problem is there are games almost every day in the spring semester.
2. Junior colleges had better programs, and junior colleges were convincing some of the better UTEP players to transfer down to their two-year level, then get drafted and go into the minor leagues. (UTEP didn't have a lot of good players, though). The JCs played more games than did UTEP and many in Texas, and the area, had much better facilities.
3. Nobody attended games, played far off campus at Dudley Field. UTEP has no place on campus to put a stadium.
4. Recall that after UTEP dropped baseball there was a push to start baseball at El Paso Community College. There's a good program going on there now, but nobody goes to the games at EPCC, either.
The two main reasons UTEP doesn't have baseball:
• Money: Do Miner fans want better football and basketball? Adding baseball will erode those efforts.
• The grade-point average thing, and the new graduation-rate thing: The NCAA is getting tough on that. And UTEP has a difficult-enough time with its football and men's basketball graduation rates.
If there's a glimmer of hope for "College Baseball Fan," and others, it's that Conference USA would love for UTEP to field a baseball team.
Nobody cares about baseball. Baseball is the most boring sport that doesn't require any athleticism whatsoever. I mean all you have to do to be a good baseball player is have good aim, know how to catch and take steroids.
What UTEP should bring back is men's soccer. Soccer requires much more athleticism than baseball. We would be pretty good since we are right next to a country that lives soccer. And maybe some of those people at the liberal arts building can actually do something besides smoke a pack of cigarettes a day!
Posted by: jack jack | June 26, 2008 at 03:34 PM
Someone slap Jack Jack on the back of the head! He has the odasity to call baseball boring and then reference the most boring of all sports. All you have to do in soccer is run and kick a stupid ball.
I don't care if Jewtep has baseball but I'd love to see real baseball at Cohen stadium again someday . Have you seen that pathetic franchise in the NE? What a joke! A better question would be why doesn't El Paso have a triple A baseball team.
Posted by: viktims | June 26, 2008 at 05:17 PM
odasity??? I know as bloggers we have an unwritten rule to not criticize casual misspellings and errors in grammar but come on...
UTEP is the poorest school this side of the border. How could it support a baseball team?
Posted by: Toasted Whitebred | June 26, 2008 at 05:32 PM
Hey viktims,
Soccer is much more than kicking a ball. It requires coordination, ball control and team tactics. What kind of athleticism or tactics are involved in baseball? "UMMM I think I'm going to throw a curved ball, scratch my nose twice and spit!!" Seriously where is the excitement in watching someone hit a ball and someone else catch it?
That my friend is OVERRATED!
The only thing that I enjoy watching in baseball is the fights involving the whole team...now that is exciting.
Anybody can play baseball. That's why there's over 1500 picks and 50 rounds of the MLB draft...every year! Pathetic. As if there aren't enough overpaid baseball players already!
The only way I can get someone to make me go to a baseball game is if there are good food or beer specials!
Posted by: jack jack | June 26, 2008 at 06:36 PM
Congrats to Fresno State and the WAC on their College World Series Championship. Glad to see our old foe and conference doing well.
Posted by: Caldwell | June 26, 2008 at 07:02 PM
Joe,
Why are the ball players of today being punished for the faults of others 20 to 25 years ago. Today's players are better, smarter, and more focused on the game. El Paso each year looses 30 to 35 baseball players to out of town D-1, D-2, Jr Colleges, and private colleges. There are excellent players in El Paso; look at countless Franklin, Socorro, Coronado, Bel-Air, Hanks, Eastwood, Riverside players out there now. Again, the main excuse is money. Let's start campaign to bring the sport back to UTEP. It will be supported!
Posted by: Big Dog | June 26, 2008 at 09:37 PM
Big Dog,
We can barely get people to come to the Sun Bowl and Don Haskins Center.
What makes you think El Pasoans would want to watch the most boring sport on earth?
Posted by: jack jack | June 26, 2008 at 10:07 PM
Big up's to Fresno St. and the WAC!!
Hard to believe but, NMSU beat Fresno St. three times this year.
The Aggies should turn it into a positive and it should help in our recruiting efforts!
Posted by: Who's your Mumme | June 27, 2008 at 05:04 AM
audacity=odasity.....my bad LOL....should have used spell checker b4 hitting post.
Hey Jack Jack....let me see you stand in the box and hit a 90 mph fastball. Chances are you couldn't hit it with a boat oar. Let alone anything with some movement.
The reason the big boys get paid so much is because they're a rarity. Not everyone can do it. Unlike your watered down sport.
The best thing about soccer is when the fans start fighting each other. Or when the players throw urine and battery's at each other.
I will agree with you. The only reason to go to a Diablo game is the cheap food and beer. As I stated before, the product on the field stinks. That's not good baseball.
But as bad as it is, there are a lot more folks in the stands at a Diablo game than at a Patriots game.
Posted by: viktims | June 27, 2008 at 07:10 AM
Thanks for the information Joe. I graduated from UTEP in May and I have lived in EP all my life. I am 44 years old and have been a UTEP fan all my life. I just think the time is right for UTEP to think about baseball. They could use Cohen Stadium to play games and they could build a practice facility by the women's softball fields. I don't think the players would miss anymore classes than the basketball players I had in a couple of my classes. I'm sure there are enough kids that would walk on to the program to field a team. The mentality and tutoring student athletes get now is different than the last time UTEP talked about reviving the program. As in women's sports, the more teams the more national notoriety UTEP would have.
Posted by: college baseball fan | June 27, 2008 at 11:28 AM
Hey viktims,
You want to get personal with the trash talking? I can direct alot of personal comments towards you but I'm not because that's not what I do or who I am; I have class.
The reason nobody goes to the Diablo or Patriots games is because they are mediocre teams. El Paso doesn't celebrate mediocrity.
In case you didn't read it on my earlier post, the only reason I suggested that UTEP should have a soccer team instead of a baseball team is because it would be more successful.
I've seen more people at the women's soccer games than the women's softball games. Soccer is a popular "Mexican" sport (not saying it originated there just saying that Mexicans live and breath soccer)...now with UTEP's majority population being Mexican and with El Paso being majority Mexican as well....and with Mexico right across the border, I don't see how UTEP soccer wouldn't be a success. Not only in ticket sales but in recruiting as well.
Posted by: jack jack | June 27, 2008 at 11:30 AM
College baseball is a great sport and if UTEP had a team, that would just add to the NMSU/UTEP rivalry and spice up the Blogs in the spring/early summer.
Regarding the money issue, my understanding is that a program does not have to bring in a lot of money to sustain itself. When I would attend NMSU games, the crowd was relatively small and consisted mostly of students who got in for free. Money is always an issue with low budget schools like NMSU and UTEP, but unless the program will unnecessarily drain UTEP's revenue, that should not prevent the creation of a team.
The best thing about college baseball is the parity. In no other sport could Fresno State knock off teams like Rice, UNC, Georgia, and Arizona State. What FSU did is the equivalent of NMSU beating UCLA, Kansas, Duke and UNC. That's incredible.
If for nothing else true sports fans can at least appreciate that college baseball provides a unique opportunity for the underdog to come out on top. NMSU played ASU my senior year and I believe we swept them. Talent wise, that should have never happened.
With all that said, I'm not sure resurrecting UTEP's baseball program would be as valuable to El Paso as placing the Diablos back under the wing of an MLB team. 25 cent hotdog nights at Dudley Field/Cohen Stadium is a trademark of El Paso life as much as Chicos Tacos. They need to get back to as an affiliated ball club and start sending players up to the majors, like they did with Gary Sheffield, John Jaha, etc.
Go WAC! Go FSU!
Posted by: SM | June 27, 2008 at 03:26 PM
I don't think I got personal Jack Jack. I was trying to make a point. To a true fan, baseball is not boring or easy. As you stated.
And great post SM.
Agree with everything you said!
We need real baseball at Cohen first!
Posted by: viktims | June 27, 2008 at 05:09 PM
Viktims,
Everybody is entitled to their own opinion, nothing wrong with that; but I just think you should use other methods to prove your point other than saying I couldn't hit anything with some movement.
Posted by: jack jack | June 27, 2008 at 08:20 PM
Jack Jack,
My apologies.
"Anything with movement" means, when the pitcher spins the ball. Slider, curve ball, sinker ball. They don't just throw every pitch straight ya know.
I personally don't know if you could get laid or not. Nor do I care.
Maybe you shouldn't comment on sports you know nothing about.
I know it takes skill to play soccer. And I've tried to watch it. I've been watching a little of the world cup thingy on TV lately. I have to tell you the truth. I'd rather watch grass grow.
After having it rammed down our throats for the last 10 years. Me and the American people agree.
Soccer Sucks!
Posted by: viktims | June 28, 2008 at 07:05 AM
I'm not a big baseball fan, but I do know many who are. I would welcome Miner baseball. With the Aggies and UNM just up the road, we'd certainly get some local fan interest.
Thumbs up to Fresno State. Great underdog story and excellent for the WAC.
Posted by: Maven | June 28, 2008 at 10:17 AM
Whether a person thinks soccer, baseball, basketball, or women's crew is the most boring thing to watch is besides the point. More sports being available to both sexes makes for a more vibrant and attractive university. As of now, UTEP has only 5 sports for men in comparison to SMU's 7 and UNM's 9. Money seems to be the biggest issue here.
Supporting revenue sports like football and basketball helps. I often read comments about how supposed fans will only support winners and sit home and sulk. All in the guise of not being willing to support mediocrity. These people fail to look beyond themselves toward the greater good of the university and the community.
In other words, don't stay home after the Miners blow a last minute lead to ECU and then expect us to pop out a baseball team and a stadium. Don't complain that Tony Barbee doesn't have a good personality and that's why you don't support the team.
Ask not what your univesity can do for you. Ask what you can do for your university. Any college or university has a symbiotic relationship with the community. We complain that UT Austin has so much money but it's the Texas Ex's that are giving back to their school. Their support is what makes the school what it is.
As much as we complain about Bob Stull, he does respond to public opinion. If we want soccer or baseball, we can do more than just blog about it. First and foremost, we need to support the atletic programs that we do have and good things will follow.
Posted by: CLEOFITZWITZ | June 28, 2008 at 10:36 AM
First Off, I know of only three mens programs, football, basketball, track and field, what are the other two?
Second, I dont think either baseball or soccer would be appealing.
I am a huge soccer fan, but cant imagine UTEP getting a real fan base...soccer fans in El Paso are already tied to mexican club teams and now that the team in Juarez is doing so well, there's really no reason for them to care about UTEP soccer.
Give the "extra" money to Coach Barbee because I think were headed in the right direction in Bball and he may not be around for too much longer...
Back to soccer, but totally off topic...Euro Cup 2008 has been one of the best tournaments Ive ever seen...those of you who think soccer is boring havnt been paying attention to this tournament. Thank God for this tournament, because otherwise we'd be stuck with BORING BASEBALL.
Posted by: RJ | June 28, 2008 at 01:57 PM
I just want to say all sports are boring if you don’t like the sport. I need help to figure out how NMSU and NMU have baseball programs and we don’t. Everyone knows their programs are not profitable, very small fan base and yet they exist. Can we honestly say that they have better run universities? Bringing baseball back to UTEP would not be for the fans, it’s for the kids. UTEP has many kids on some form of scholarship that has nothing to do with sports and I’m sure it would be very boring to watch them as well. How many kids in El Paso play high school football, and how many actually get a scholar? How many play Basketball and get scholarships? How many play soccer, tennis, swimming etc…? Now if you look at baseball in El Paso, how many kids get scholarships to D1, D2 or even D3 schools? El Paso kids have a better chance at baseball scholarships than any other sport.
Posted by: Confused El Pasoan | June 28, 2008 at 04:03 PM
RJ, I too have been watching the Eurocup. I've been following the amazing run of the Turks, which was brought to an end by the Germans in the semis. Germany vs Spain in the Finals, should be a good game.
As for Fresno State winning the CWS, I couldn't be prouder of my alma-mater. I don't follow baseball but the perspective of what they've done is starting to sink in for many in Fresno and the SJ Valley.
As to adding Baseball and/or Soccer, in a perfect world it would be great to offer opportunity to these Academic-Athletes. UTEP would need to look at it carefully though; as they need to keep in mind the cost of education for all it's students. If they can do it and keep the cost down to all students, then it would be fair to do so. Keep in mind that simply being a winner is not a guarantee that it will make the sport self-sufficient; Track and Field being a good example of that. If there is a sport that UTEP is a National Power in, it would be Track and Field. Yet, there is not a big audience for it here in EP; that even on an Olympic year.
Confused El Pasoan, good post. On your question, I'm sure it has more to do with what each state gives in support to it's universities.
Posted by: Lowercase Ray | June 28, 2008 at 05:15 PM
Confused,
I don't think any UTEP athletic program comes close to breaking even. We aren't Oklahoma, Michigan or Nebraska. Athletics here, like at most schools, run in the red.
Can't say if NMSU or UNM are better run. I do know that of the last two NMSU presidents, one is now the president of Auburn and the other LSU. Whoever does their executive searches are hitting home runs, baseball pun intended. They also have a top notch AD who came from the Big 10. He was the guy that brought Theus to Las Cruces.
Posted by: Maven | June 28, 2008 at 08:03 PM
I see your point confused. UTEP needs baseball for El Paso and some fans might show up if they offered scholarships to local boys. I heard that alot of state funding is going to students who live in Mexico and not El Paso. I am seeing more and more license plates from Mexico. My information comes from a very reliable source who works at UTEP. If you go to financial aid, you will see alot of students from Mexico applying for grants and never repay them. We need to keep our boys home with any kind of scholarships possible. Bring baseball back!!!
Posted by: Chunki | June 28, 2008 at 11:26 PM
JACK JACK.... Youre an IDIOT! You obviously have no clue or in this case any true baseball experience when it comes to "America's Pastime". The point that youre trying to make about baseball players not having any atheltic ability has to be one of the most ignorant comments I've ever heard! I take serious offense in more ways than one. To prove it I'll shoot holes in your dim-witted comment! #1 The speed of the game of baseball is absolutely deceiving and near impossible to judge unless you are on the field! First, basebrunning is an art..stealing, rounding correctly and knowing what to do takes practice...not any moron or track star can run the bases. Try taking a hot shot right at you on defense...or trying to hit a 90MPH fastball not to mention a sharp bitting slider! I'm sure you would piss your umbro panties!! #2 Its a highly skilled sport. .(Moreso than your futbol)..you have to be sharp in all aspects of your game, including youre mental game. Reaction time is critical! #3 You obviously "Bit the Chile" when it came to playing baseball growing up, which tells me that you had horrible hand-eye coordination and lack of upper extremity motor skills! Hence you turned to soccer...since youre feet probably served you better...as is this case with your HUGE FOOT in the MOUTH COMMENT. Buy a clue. You Fool!
Posted by: Knowledgeable | June 28, 2008 at 11:39 PM
Soccer skills: run, kick the ball.
Baseball skills: each player must be able to throw, which is a skill far different from running the bases, which is, of course, a far different skill than catching the ball (catching grounders, line drives, fly balls, thrown balls). The skill of catching the ball is far different from the skill of batting a pitched ball. That last skill has been called by many who know the most difficult thing to do in all of sports. One can make MILLIONS for being able to do it successfully three times out of ten!
Posted by: Baseball fan | June 29, 2008 at 05:42 AM
I HAVE A COUPLE THINGS TO SAY I AM A SOCORRO '03 GRAD...IN THOSE YEARS AT SOCORRO I SAW MORE BASEBALL GAMES THAN FOOTBALL AND SOCCER GAMES COMBINED TOGETHER AND I WAS IN THE MARCHING BAND AT SOCORRO AND NOW A MARCHING MINER. HAVE U GUYS NOTICED HOW MUCH BASEBALL TALENT EL PASO AND SURROUNDING AREAS HAVE. WHEN I WAS IN SCHOOL I SAW OMAR QUINTANILLA GO TO UT AUSTIN AND LOOK AT HIM NOW. JESSIE ESTRADA WENT TO SOME MINOR LEAGUE TEAM. JESUS "JUNO" RODRIGUEZ WENT TO SOME COMMUNITY COLLEGE AND IVE NEVER HEARD FROM HIM AGAIN. ALBERT MONTES, NICK ALVAREZ, JESSIE NAVARETE, & CARLOS YEE THESE ARE SOME PLAYERS FROM SOCORRO WHO WERE OUTSTANDING HIGH SCHOOL PLAYERS WHO YOU DON’T HEAR ABOUT ANYMORE. THE SCHOOL THAT LOCAL PLAYERS GO TO IS EITHER SUL ROSS OR HOBBS. NOW IMAGINE UTEP BRINGS BACK THE BASEBALL PROGRAM IT WOULD BE AN EL PASO ALLSTAR TEAM.
HAVE ANY OF YOU EVER GONE TO SEE A HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL GAME? FIRST OF ALL THOSE GAMES ARE PACKED NOT ONLY WITH FAMILY MEMEBERS BUT STUDENTS AND ALSO OLD AND NEW FANS, AND IM ONLY TALKING ABOUT SOCORRO BASEBALL. I REMEMBER GOING TO MONTWOOD VS SOCORRO BASEBALL GAME BACK IN 2003. IT WAS SO PACKED AT THAT GAME I HAD TO STAND ALONG THE FENCE IN THE OUTFIELD. THAT IS A BIG RIVALRY GAME. SOME OF YOU HAVE MENTIONED BATTLE OF I-10 NOW WHO WOUDLNT GO TO THAT. WE ALSO HAVE OTHER OUTSTANDING HIGH SCHOOL BASEBALL PROGRAMS FRANKLIN, MONTWOOD, BELAIR, EASTWOOD, RIVERSIDE AND OTHERS. NOW IF WE START GIVING SCHOLASHIPS TO LOCAL BALL PLAYERS THEY WOULD PROBABLY STAY AT HOME AND PLAY THERE HEARTS OUT BC THEIR REPRESENTING NOT ONLY THEMSELVES, UTEP, AND OF COURSE THE EPT. WE SHOULD OPEN MORE DOORS FOR THE YOUNGER GENERATION THAT WILL BE GRADUATEING IN THE NEXT COUPLE OF YEARS AND GIVE THEM A CHANCE NOT ONLY TO PLAY WHAT THEY LIKE TO PLAY AND ALSO TO GIVE THEM WHAT EVERYBODY NEEDS A COLLEGE DEGREE.
Posted by: JUICEY | June 29, 2008 at 08:09 AM