When UK Athletics Director Mitch Barnhart said he wanted to spend money on the construction of a new baseball stadium, it seemed almost like a leap of faith.
After all, it was not as if the baseball program owns a championship tradition or a strong base of fan support. It has won just one Southeastern Conference title in recent memory (2006) and has never been to a College World Series. For years it was known as the northern-most member of the SEC, a league full of schools more geographically suited for an outdoor sport that starts play in February.