'Hard to imagine a better event'

OMAHA, Neb. -- It's not the same.

That's the prevailing sentiment here about the new home of the College World Series, TD Ameritrade Park Omaha.

But do not mistake that feeling as being predominantly negative or positive. It's a little of both, really.

This $131 million gem of a park, with all its state-of-the-art nuances, makes Rosenblatt Stadium look well beyond archaic. But, then, there's no charm and tradition of the middle-class neighborhood that brought sparkling color to the 'Blatt, which ended its 61-year run as host last summer.

"We're obviously sorry to see Rosenblatt go," said Steve Rosenblatt, son of former Omaha mayor Johnny Rosenblatt, who helped the city land the CWS in the late 1950s. "But when fans get here and see the new facility, they're going to fall in love.

"We're never getting over missing Rosenblatt, but we've got to understand that time moves on. They've created a great facility; we've got to embrace it."

The drive from Rosenblatt to TD Ameritrade is about 10 minutes up 10th street, through the downtown and Old Market areas. Dormant a year ago, the blocks surrounding TD Ameritrade -- residents call it NoDo, for North Downtown -- are bustling with bars, restaurants and tent vendors.

Rosenblatt staples such as Zesto and Greg Pivovar's Stadium View Sports Cards have found satellite homes in NoDo. It's as if there are elements of Rosenblatt still sprinkled through the new area.

"We're starting all over again," said Pivovar, who opened the original Stadium View two decades ago. "It's different."

One thing that will not change in the move is how the teams are treated. The CWS could be played in a municipal park, and the city would still shut down. Teams are welcomed and made to feel like family, just as they always were.

"The people make the players feel like rock stars," said Warren Morris, a former Louisiana State infielder whose 1996 game-winning home run is the most memorable moment in CWS history. "You're a major leaguer for those two weeks."

Fittingly, TD Ameritrade, with its suites and look, has the feel of an MLB park. If Rosenblatt was the college baseball equivalent of Wrigley Field in Chicago, TD Ameritrade is PNC Park in Pittsburgh.

The dimensions -- 335 to the corners, 375 to the alleys and 408 to center -- are the same as Rosenblatt, but the new park feels much bigger. The odds of another Morris moment are slim. Runs will be at a premium, already the case this season because of the new bats.

The sheer cost of the stadium -- at least for a venue that's signature event is a college baseball tournament -- is enough to turn heads.

"I know there are a lot of broken hearts that we're not going to be at Rosenblatt anymore," Cal coach David Esquer said. "But there are going to be a lot of memories made here at TD Ameritrade over the next 50 years.

"You spend this much on a stadium, I can guarantee you we'll be playing here at least that long."

Forget 50 years. Some city and NCAA officials have been worried in recent weeks that the first event would be interrupted by rising flood waters from the Missouri. Many areas -- some within a mile of the stadium -- are under water. Event planners believe the CWS will be OK, so long as there are no more heavy rains.

By this afternoon, after former President George W. Bush delivers the ceremonial first pitch, the story will again be baseball and not flooding or where the tournament is being played.

"I've never been a part of a Final Four. I've never been a part of a BCS bowl game," South Carolina coach Ray Tanner said. "But it is hard for me to imagine there is a better event than the College World Series in Omaha, Nebraska."