Despite his team’s season ending nearly a month ago, baseball coach Joe Carbone’s duties are not finished.
As the chair of the NCAA Mideast Region All-American Committee, Carbone is one of eight college baseball coaches who travel to Omaha, Neb., annually to name the All-Americans and catch a few College World Series games.
After arriving in Omaha yesterday, Carbone and the rest of the committee quickly began the process of selecting the award recipients.
“We’ll go late into the evening (Thursday) and then finish things up sometime (Friday) afternoon,” Carbone said. “We’ll be back in there around eight (Friday) morning and go until we get things done.”
Carbone said the committee’s first task will be to name the first-, second- and third-team All-Americans. After that, the committee will begin to decide the player of the year and pitcher of the year.
After considering its options, the committee would sleep on the choices and make a final decision in this morning, Carbone said. Finally, the committee decides on the Gold Glove winners.
Once the committee’s work is done, they are finally able to watch some of the opening games of the tournament Saturday and Sunday.
“We’re going to catch the first two games for sure on Saturday, and my wife and I will be attending the opening ceremonies Friday night,” Carbone said.
While the committee normally consists of eight members, Carbone said they will be shorthanded this weekend and have only five members. They will be without Middle Tennessee State coach Steve Peterson, whose recent surgery forbids him from flying, as well as two coaches whose teams are in the World Series.
But just because his team is not in the series does not mean Carbone does not have a rooting interest.
“The first game is Vanderbilt versus North Carolina and my former graduate assistant, Tim Corbin, is coaching Vanderbilt, so we’re excited about seeing his team,” Carbone said.
Carbone said he will also be interested in watching Virginia because coach Brian O’Connor is a good friend of Carbone’s and also a member of the All-American Committee.
He added that a national championship is anyone’s game once the World Series begins.
“There’s eight great teams, it could be any one of them,” Carbone said. “I’m a little biased, but I would like to see Vanderbilt do well because Timmy’s done a great job and it’s the first time Vanderbilt has ever been in the College World Series.”
ms229908@ohio.edu
@ThePostSports
