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First Pac-12 Conference baseball tournament is headed for the desert

Don Smalley
·2 min read

It’s been a busy time for the media relations person over at Pac-12 headquarters. Yesterday the conference announced The Alliance with the Big 10 and the ACC, and now, just 24 hours later, the Pac-12 has announced that its first-ever conference baseball tournament.

The inaugural tournament is set for May 25-29, 2022, and will be played at Scottsdale Stadium in Arizona.

According to new commissioner George Kliavkoff, who just began his new role less than two months ago, the baseball tournament will be a must-see event for fans as well as players and coaches. In a press release, the commish said the following:

The Pac-12 Baseball Tournament is a marquee event that will serve to enhance the exposure of the Conference’s baseball programs with competitive, late-season matchups prior to NCAA Tournament selections. It will also provide student-athletes with a first-class experience and the opportunity to compete for a championship in a premier destination for the sport on the West Coast.

The tournament itself will be an eight-team affair with the bottom three teams missing out. The Pac-12 has just 11 teams as Colorado doesn’t have a baseball program.

The double-elimination tournament will be spread over five days at the spring training home of the San Francisco Giants. The Pac-12’s initial agreement with the City of Scottsdale runs through 2024. The Giants are also the parent club of the Eugene Emeralds, who play inside PK Park.

A television partner for the tournament was not announced, but as busy as Kliavkoff has been in recent days, expect something to be said soon concerning TV.

Scottsdale Stadium has a capacity of over 12,000 and plays home to San Francisco’s Cactus League minor league rookie teams.

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