Saturday, Jun. 21, 2008

Worth the wait for Batesole

By BRYANT-JON ANTEOLA
The Fresno Bee

OMAHA, Neb. -- Fresno State coach Mike Batesole declined the invitation each time.

For 11 years, Batesole would receive a packet from the National Baseball Coaches Association to attend the College World Series.

He'd stare at the pass before throwing it away. Some years, Batesole wouldn't even open the envelope, already knowing what was inside and immediately chunk it.

T-shirts, caps, posters, other memorabilia from the CWS, Batesole stayed away from those, too.

Even smaller, freebie souvenirs went straight to the trash.

"Never touched anything," Batesole said. "I didn't want to get here until we earned it." As the first No. 4 regional seed to reach the CWS and with all seven victories against nationally ranked foes, Fresno State has more than earned its invitation to Rosenblatt Stadium.

The Bulldogs could go down as the greatest underdog in CWS history if they can complete their unexpected run they way they started.

Unseeded Fresno State (44-29), which will play No. 2 North Carolina at 4 p.m. today, is one win from reaching the championship series and three wins from hoisting a national crown.

It has taken Fresno State 17 years to return to Omaha.

It took Batesole, 44, his entire career.

"It's real now," said Batesole, who never had reached the CWS as a player, assistant or head coach until now. "It's everything you could ever imagine." Even with the Bulldogs in the winner's bracket of the double-elimination series, many are skeptical the Bulldogs and pull it off as the teams get better, the pressure greater and the stage grander.

"No one really expected this going in," Bulldogs closer Brandon Burke said. "None of us have ever been here before. You've got to think pitch-to-pitch and game-to-game.

"Some of these teams like Rice and North Carolina have been here the last couple of years and may have taken us lightly. But we just got there and play hard every game."

While Batesole often credits the leadership of his eight seniors for helping the Bulldogs stay focused and loose, their aggressive style has been Batesole's doing.

Nearing the end of his sixth year at Fresno State, Batesole has the Bulldogs at a level some thought could not be reached again after the fractured relationship between Batesole's predecessor, Bob Bennett, and the university.

Prior to his retirement in May 2002, Bennett recommended that the university hire longtime assistant Mike Rupcich as his successor.

Instead, then-athletic director Scott Johnson headed south to CSU Northridge and hired Batesol who had won 256 games and been to two NCAA Tournaments in seven seasons.