The Road to Omaha : Hits, Hopes, and History at the College World Series

A Baseball America Top Ten Baseball Book for 2009

"The Road to Omaha doesn't just tell you the story. It puts you in the batter's box, a 95-mph fastball coming your way. One warning: You'll sweat while you read."

—Jeff Pearlman, author of Boys Will Be Boys: The Glory Days and Party Nights of the Dallas Cowboys Dynasty

"A fascinating look inside one of the best, and most underplayed, tournament in sports. . . . It made me wonder why I've only been to Omaha once." —Tim Kurkjian, ESPN analyst and author of Is This a Great Game, or What?

Every summer, college baseball teams from around the nation come to Omaha, Nebraska, to play pure run-manufacturing baseball in a series that's part college bowl game, part county fair. In the spirit of 3 Nights in August and The Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty, veteran sports writer Ryan McGee goes behind the scenes, into the stands, and onto the field to reveal an exciting yet personal look at one of the hottest sports championships in the country—the College World Series.

The book uses the greatest upset in CWS history to provide an in-depth look at the strategies and style of college baseball, as well as a portrait of the people behind and around the Series—players, coaches, and fans who keep that feeling of good-old-days innocence alive. McGee offers a rare glimpse into the kind of baseball our grandfathers knew, a snapshot of the one of the last remaining vestiges of pure Americana: a hometown, baseball, and the people who shape it and are shaped by it in turn.

“Ryan McGee made me feel like I was there in the sunshine at Rosenblatt Stadium. But by the time I was done, I wondered: Why haven't I been here before? This is great!” —Richard Ben Cramer, author of Joe DiMaggio: The Hero’s Life

“The on-field action was gripping--Fresno State became the lowest seed ever to win--but Omaha goes deeper, delivering insights into how the college game is played and why the CWS and Nebraskan culture intertwine.” —Sports Illustrated

“For less than the price of dinner at one of Omaha's famed steakhouses you can submerge yourself in the festival-like atmosphere of the CWS. . . . Each chapter weaves the history and pomp into a days' action at Rosenblatt Stadium.” —BaseballAmerica.com