College baseball’s elite coming to play in Las Vegas

The baseball teams at Arizona State and Vanderbilt have produced seven College World Series championships, 27 CWS appearances and more major league talent than you can shake a Louisville Slugger at.

It would cost hundreds of dollars to fly to Omaha, Nebraska, to view either one in its natural habitat.

But at 11 a.m. next Sunday, you can watch the Sun Devils and Commodores throw the ball around the College of Southern Nevada diamond in Henderson for just $5.

“In basketball terms, Vanderbilt is like Duke and ASU is sort of like North Carolina,” CSN coach Nick Garritano said of making the Coyotes’ well-manicured field available to the college baseball powerhouses for a fall exhibition game.

This was mostly Vanderbilt’s idea. The Commodores, who seldom play out West, wanted to schedule a respected opponent for one of its two fall exhibitions while also providing players and fans with a fun getaway.

Local baseball fans can purchase tickets online. Garritano said this will be the biggest accumulation of talent to set foot on Morse Field since two-time National League MVP Bryce Harper’s CSN debut after leaving Las Vegas High.

“It’s not a very big place, and my hope is that it is packed,” Garritano said. “I remember going to watch Harper’s first game out there, and it was standing room only. We’re excited to be able to do this.”

It has been awhile since Arizona State last won a College World Series (1981), but the Sun Devils’ all-time roster — Sal Bando, Barry Bonds, Reggie Jackson, Bob Horner, Rick Monday, Dustin Pedroia, Bump Wills and Las Vegans Marty Barrett and Kevin Higgins, to name only a few — reads like a veritable who’s who of baseball.

More recently, Vanderbilt, which won the 2014 and 2019 CWS titles, has produced MLB stars such as Walker Buehler, Joey Cora, Sonny Gray, David Price, Tony Kemp, Dansby Swanson and Mike Yastrzemski.

In other words, fans who arrive at the CSN diamond early might want to bring an autograph book and a felt-tipped pen.

Around the horn

— The last time UNLV began a football season 4-1, the Rebels finished 6-6 and failed to receive a bowl game invitation. That was in 2003, when UNLV defeated Wisconsin but a winning record was required to advance to the postseason.

The Rebels stood 4-1 before being outscored 82-14 in losses to San Diego State and Air Force and losing 44-21 at Notre Dame on Saturday to plummet back to reality at 4-4.

— Former UNLV star Christian Wood came off the bench to score 16 consecutive points to close out the third quarter in the Dallas Mavericks’ NBA opening night loss to Phoenix — only to wind up with a seat on the bench next to Mavs coach Jason Kidd during crunch time as the Suns battled back from a 22-point deficit.

“I’m just happy to be part of this team,” said Wood, who was acquired in a trade with Houston during the offseason and took the high road about being removed from the game despite having the hot hand.

— The Golden Knights’ new alternate hockey jerseys have received positive reviews, although some on social media have said Rod “He Hate Me” Smart and the defunct Las Vegas Outlaws of the XFL had dibs on the color scheme.

The sweaters feature a glow-in-the-dark medieval font (although I’m told the ladies’ version doesn’t glow). My take: If you spend around $250 for an official Reverse Retro NHL jersey, you probably don’t want to be confused for a bellhop at the Excalibur, especially if your jersey doesn’t light up.

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— “I apologize. This thing has over 1,000 views and 750 might be me” — Former Lights FC coach and U.S. men’s national soccer team star Eric Wynalda, commenting on a Twitter video showing his daughter, Tatum, scoring a goal for Pepperdine this week after weaving her way through Brigham Young defenders.

Contact Ron Kantowski at rkantowski@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0352. Follow @ronkantowski on Twitter.