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College World Series Notebook: NCAA sets up system to resell CWS tickets
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Published: June 18, 2009
Updated: 06/18/2009 12:40 am
■ For years, many fans have been willing to pay more than face value for College World Series tickets. Now the NCAA is getting in on the action.
The NCAA and Ticketmaster have created a system called TicketExchange, which competes with online resale sites such as StubHub, Craigslist, eBay and others.
CWS ticket chairman Herb Hames said that the system is a convenience for people who want to sell extra tickets at higher than face value. There is a link to TicketExchange through www.cwsomaha.com.
College athletics' governing body hopes to generate revenue from its involvement with TicketExchange.
"There's a secondary market out there, and I have no qualms about that revenue going toward college athletics," said Dennis Poppe, NCAA's vice president of football and baseball.
Sellers set a desired price, and if the tickets are sold, a check goes to the seller -- minus 10 percent. That 10 percent is shared by the NCAA and Ticketmaster. There are other administrative charges.
The TicketExchange computer system cancels out the original ticket and creates a new one that contains a bar code that the buyer prints.
Hames said that business is picking up on TicketExchange.
"Probably two weeks before the series," he said, "maybe 12 people were selling like 60 tickets. It has exploded this week."
About 2,200 tickets from more than 120 sellers had changed hands as of mid-week, Hames said.
"The NCAA was the one who spent all the money for the equipment and the system," Hames said. "They're going to be lucky to get back their cost. Over the years, they may turn a little profit, but not for the first couple of years."
■ Second baseman Travis Tucker of Texas talks to his glove.
At least that's what he said he did in Tuesday night's 10-6 win over Arizona State.
Tucker committed an error in the third inning when he allowed Johnny Ruettiger's routine grounder go through his legs. Tucker, who had made just five errors heading into the CWS, offered an alibi.
"You know," Tucker said, "I actually looked at my glove and was talking to it, like, ‘What are you doing?' It wasn't my fault. It was totally my glove's fault. I talked to it, settled it down a little bit."
■ Tucker also was involved in a strange play in the same inning. Arizona State's Matt Newman drew a walk, advancing Ruettiger, who then moved to third on Jared McDonald's sacrifice fly that scored Kole Calhoun.
With Zack MacPhee at bat, Newman took off for second, and Texas catcher Cameron Rupp threw to an uncovered second base, allowing Ruettiger to score.
Official scorer Lou Spry took quite some time before charging Tucker with an error. Spry later said he assumed with the right-handed MacPhee in the box, Tucker should have covered.
But after the game, Spry received word from the Texas coaches that Rupp was supposed to throw to third, which is why nobody covered second.
Thus, Rupp got the error.
Rupp also was called for catcher's interference in the Longhorns' 7-6 first-round win over Southern Mississippi. It was the first catcher's interference since May 30, 1981, when Greg Schulte of Michigan was awarded first on interference by Mississippi State's Terry Loe.
■ Arizona State pitcher Josh Spence is from Victoria, Australia, a state located in the southeast corner of the country.
When he answered questions from the media after he went seven innings in Arizona State's first-round win over North Carolina. His first comments put his Australian accent up front and center.
His teammates have been hearing it for much longer, though. Their nickname for him? "Mate."
■ With Arizona State's loss Tuesday night, LSU became the only team to remain unbeaten in NCAA Tournament play at 7-0. The Tigers got three days off with their 9-1 win over Arkansas.... Three sons of former CWS players were on the field for Tuesday's ASU-Texas game. The current players: Texas pitcher Chance Ruffin and shortstop Brandon Loy and Arizona State right fielder Matt Newman. Bruce Ruffin (1985) and Darren Loy (1983-84) played for Texas, and Randy Newman (1985) for Arizona State.... Texas has won seven straight CWS games, dating to its 2005 national-championship season.
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