Why doesn't the University of Wisconsin (madison) have a college baseball team?
108997
It’s hard to walk through campus these days without thinking of summer. Bascom Hill has become a sea of sunbathers, T-shirts have emerged from their North Face shells and Frisbees fill the streets. It’s inescapable. And with the signs of summer comes another inescapable thought — baseball.\n\nThe Madness of March has run its course, the football team is back on the field for spring workouts, and fans around the country shift their attention from the arena to the ballpark. It’s baseball season.\n\nThe Big Ten is currently four games into its conference schedule, with Illinois and Minnesota tied atop the standings. College baseball is in full swing from Penn State to Iowa, with one notable exception. The University of Wisconsin is the only Big Ten school that does not field a varsity baseball team.\n\nThis is nothing new. Baseball has been relegated to the club ranks at UW for years, and for years campus sports editors have taken up the cause. The Athletic Department is well aware of the situation.\n\nThe powers that be are not on some kind of anti-baseball crusade. They don’t hate baseball or apple pie, and they did not disband the program to promote a hidden softball agenda. Their hands are tied by Title IX, an outdated piece of legislation that has claimed men’s soccer programs throughout the NCAA and all but outlawed men’s volleyball in the Midwest. Barry Alvarez and company undoubtedly want to bring baseball to Madison, but they must navigate through a myriad of economic obstacles to make it happen.\n\nWisconsin is one of just six Big Ten schools to field a men’s hockey team and one of eight to field a men’s soccer team. Only five Big Ten universities offer both. To introduce a varsity baseball program while maintaining both hockey and soccer and keeping funding at its current level for major programs like football and basketball, the Athletic Department will have to get creative.\n\nThe move carries economic and political implications which cannot be overlooked. Changing the athletic budget is no small matter, and Alvarez must not do so without considering the impact it will have on everyone involved. Title IX complicates the situation, forcing universities to abide by an artificial financial standard rather than allocating funding freely to fit the needs of its teams.\n\nEstablishing a baseball team will require adept manipulation of funding and a measure of compromise. To start a baseball team, Wisconsin must either scale back funding for existing men’s programs or increase funding for women’s programs.\n\nThe move may involve either adding women’s teams or cutting men’s teams. The drawbacks of both are clear. The former will increase the total budget of the Athletic Department, and the money must come from somewhere. The latter will end a men’s sports program, which is a drawback in itself.\n\nTitle IX has placed the Athletic Department in a difficult position. There is no easy solution here. But it can be done.\n\nEvery other school in the Big Ten has found a way to support a baseball team without running afoul of Title IX. Five have managed to do so without sacrificing hockey or soccer. Each school has taken a different approach, but one way or another they have all worked it out.\n\nPurdue, Illinois and Northwestern opted to streamline their athletic departments. While all three found room for baseball, the universities each support fewer than 20 teams. None of the three schools fields a men’s hockey team, and only Northwestern offers men’s soccer.\n\nOhio State and Penn State took the opposite approach. These schools decided to expand their operations to accommodate Title IX, pumping extra funds into the women’s programs to allow them a proportional increase in men’s funding. The remaining six Big Ten schools fall within these two extremes.\n\nOhio State boasts the Big Ten’s most bloated athletic department, with 36 teams (17 men’s teams, 19 women’s). In order to make the nu
440721
Like the Ohiostatekid said there is freshman, junior varsity, and varsity. Most schools are lucky if they can find enough talent to fill up one varsity team so it would be pointless to have two.
491002
No, essentially because of their weak starting pitching staff. Brandon Webb is superb, but currently their other 4 have been extremely inconsistent. Their offense is solid and they now have a decent bullpen. However, IMHO, they will need, at least, one more reliable starter. I'm a big fan, but believe they'll finish 2nd in the weakest division in MLB.
445653
One of the main reasons could be that the Cubs haven't been in the World Series since 1945, and they haven't won a Championship since 1908.  Plus the fact that the Cubs have only won 2 World Series compared to the Cardinals 9.  It's been almost 100 years since the Cubs have even seen a Championship (well 98 years to be exact), while the Cardinals last one was in 1982.  Not to mention the Cards were just in the Series in 2004 and have a lot greater chance of returning than the Cubs.  Does anybody else think this whole "curse" is real, or just some lame ass excuse to be a piss poor team?  I'm thinking it's more the second one than the first.  Every year at least 1, 2, or even 3 of their star players gets hurt, come on they just get scared and don't want to look like fools so they get hurt on purpose to save face.  Our new stadium could be another reason.  They need a new stadium, but who's going to support a losing team and reward them for being a bunch of losers?  Especially now with the White Sox just winning a Championship, the Cubs are going to be in that dump they call Wrigley Field forever.I think they're also jealous of the fact that the Cardinals have the best fans in the WORLD!  Maybe they should go and find a witch doctor to help take away their so called "curse".  Probably still woulcn't help, especially when they have to deal with a Championship caliber team such as the Cards.  I have a great idea: Why don't we set up a petition for the Cubs organization to get sent down to the minor leagues!
1062082
I played college baseball at Eastern Conn. St.  University. My sophomore year (This was March of 2002), we were down by two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning with two on and two outs. They tried to intentionally walk our cleanup hitter, and he reached out and stroked a homer to right field for a walk off.  I know its not the majors or anything, but a great story nonetheless.
1043776
I don't think it is as disappointing as it is their experience showing.  They are all young.  Everything you described about the Brewers staff applies to the majority of all teams.  There are very few lights out starters/closers.  The Brewers have a great nucleus.  I see them being the American League version of the A's, developing the young talent with a few veterans around, but not able to hold on to them when free agency comes around.\n\nThey will be interesting to watch over the next few years.
147101
go to community college with a baseball team, try out. if ur any good they'll take you. then work ur way up though the ranks to the pros. two years there, then a four year college or maybe a minor team would give you a shot. talk to a local minor league team and try to get a try out, or find out when the pros are having a combine. u need to get exposure. my brother plays community college ball and the KC Royals have talked to him about minor league. give it a shot.
1178392
Do you have any supporting info? Like a career field?\nThere's only one hit in a yahoo search, and that's a 2003 baseball roster.\nSorry.
1104637
Remember that Japan won the World Baseball Classic.  And that was with only two MLB players on the team (Ichiro and Akinori Otsuka).  Several players on that team could probably do well in the major leagues.  In fact, the starting pitcher in that game, Daisuke Matsuzaka, wants to pitch in MLB but he has to wait until he's a free agent because his Japanese team won't let him out of his contract.  I think he has to wait until 2008 to come over.\n\nAnd to answer an earlier question: The "fat toad" was pitcher Hideki Irabu, who actually did ok but succumbed to the New York media pressure.
558940
To tell you the truth, they need a lot of help so it is not likely that they will be in the near term. But on the plus side for them, they have assembled a  very good young pitching staff, which is a must for any team that wants to contend on a tight budget to have (Think of the A's when they had the big 3 of Mulder, Hudson, and Zito). They need to make better decisions on player evaluations, but I think that they do have a shot...
109311
I would like to see one in Monterrey, Mexico.  Here is why MLB would like it as well as the fans.\n1.  Population of 3 million.\n2.  Lots of corporate sponsors\n3.  Large baseball following\n4.  Good year round climate\n5.  Another city to vacation to\n6.  See the attached links.
1042702
Yes. I love minor league and independent baseball. I tried out for a team in the independent Frontier League when the league first started in 1992, or was it 1993? Anyway, needless to say, I was cut in the first round of cuts (couldn't hit the slider.)\n\nI worked in Chillicothe, Ohio where one of the original Frontier League teams still play and rarely missed a game when I was there. These guys don't get paid much. (something like $100 a week) but they're still chasing that dream. These teams aren't affiliated with a major league franchise.\n\nAnother team close to where I live is in Charleston, W.Va. It's the Class A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. The West Virginia Power plays in the South Atlantic League\n\nFor the most part at minor league game, five dollars will get you in the gate. Two dollars will get you a beer and another dollar will get you a hot dog. For less than ten dollars you can have a cold beer, a dog and watch the greatest game on earth (sorry World Cup fans) being played by guys who still play for the love and not the money.
47042
Baseball is the slowest sport around, yet millions go to games every year.\nShouldn't NASCAR be put on the list, too?
618167
The vast majority are drafted out of college.  More and more teams are drafting high school players (especially pitchers), but some teams refuse to draft high school players because it's too risky.  Natural talent is obvious but maturity is still a big question.
938800
They got screwed because a maximum of 2 teams from each conference can make a BCS bowl.  As Ohio State and Michigan get the BCS bowls, Wisconsin had to settle for the Capitol One bowl, which they won last year.
394205
yes!\n\nwhy does the WS home field matter from an all star game???\n\nASGs are known for as only an exhibition....\n\nWas there really a need for the Tampa Devil Rays???\n\nthey'll always be a team that'll either move or never have any true talent b/c of mgt there doesn't believe in spending money for a team...\n\nthe barry bonds fiasco...  \n\nhow was he the commish and owner of the brewers at the same time???\n\nno WS in '94\n\ntoo many answers for such a dumbass...
545964
probably becuase that's where future players are grown. Or becuase many minor league teams were in small farming communities.