Beavers On The Road: Baseball In Nashville, Day One
June 8, 2011
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – It has been less than two full days since NCAA Super Regional locales were announced, but honestly, it feels like a week. In reality, a super regional is the same as a normal series, but the amount of preparation that goes into the trip makes it seem far longer.
The day-and-a-half of preparation pretty much came full tilt and into reality Wednesday morning when the Beavers loaded a bus for Eugene where they boarded a charter plane via Sun Country Airlines. Oregon State was greeted by Stanford, which had originated the charter in San Jose, Calif., and flew to Nashville with the Beavers before continuing on to the Raleigh-Durham, N.C., area to play at North Carolina in Chapel Hill, N.C.
Ironically, should both teams advance to the College World Series, they would play each other first being that both clubs are on the right side of the bracket. Talk about what a familiar sight that would be: first a three-game series, then a charter ride and maybe Omaha. Who would have thought?
Charter planes obviously have the luxury of allowing teams to get where they are going in convenient fashion. Had the Beavers had to fly commercially, they would have had to make at least one stop as there are no direct flights from Portland to Nashville. That alone saves at least a one-hour layover, which when you’re traveling nearly across the entire country, surely makes a difference.
The other benefit, of course, is space, as there had to be no more than 80-90 passengers on the flight, enabling players to stretch out and not have any middle seats occupied. A small group sat in first class while the rest were seated behind row 14 as Stanford, since it had already been on the flight, was allocated the middle of the plane. Nevertheless, it didn’t matter where OSU players sat as they were pretty much conked out soon after takeoff. And if they weren’t, then chances are they were one of the guys still have to take a final and were most likely studying.
The flight took just less than four hours, getting the Beavers there at about 4:30 p.m. Nashville time (the city is in Central Time Zone). Everyone was able to take about an hour at the hotel, which is just a block from the stadium, before getting together for a 90-minute practice at a local NAIA school, Trevecca Nazarene. This certainly was key as the team needs to get ready for the heat and humidity that comes when you visit the South. That, and with a two-hour time difference, it helps to get everyone used to the time change.
Fortunately, since the Beavers play night games the first two days (a third, if necessary, hasn’t been officially decided), it won’t take too much adjustment. The games are slated for 7 and 8 p.m. in Nashville, which translates to 5 and 6 p.m. Pacific Time, so in reality, the Beavers will be starting at their normal start time on the West Coast.
One nice feature of the hotel the club is staying at is that OSU is literally a parking lot away from Hawkins Field, the site of this weekend’s games. For those fortunate enough to have a room facing away from the front of the hotel, it’s just a stone’s throw to Vanderbilt’s football stadium, which seats just under 40,000.
The team was allowed to have a few hours to themselves after getting back from practice, and most assuredly, most of the guys took off down the street to check out the area around Vanderbilt. There’s quite a few eateries and other places to relax at. One of the perks of travel is the ability to see different cities and experience what they have to offer.
Thursday will be a busy day for OSU as some players will be taking finals, a few will be meeting with ESPN and then practice will begin at 3:30 p.m. The team is allowed one hour, 15 minutes at Hawkins Field, where they’ll get used to the nooks and crannies of the park (when watching ESPNU and ESPN2 this weekend, check out the fence in left field. It’s unique).
With that, it’s time to sign off and enjoy some of Nashville myself.
Go Beavs!
Hank Hager
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