Commentary by Tracy McCue, Sumner Newscow — There is no doubt the Wellington Heat has put out a good product during their first season at Sellers Park.

The games were entertaining. After years of covering high school baseball, I was amazed how quick the game of NBC baseball is played. The National Baseball Congress World Series in Wichita starting this weekend most certainly has my attention and that can’t be said for the past 21 years I’ve lived in south-central Kansas.

The Heat has brought a spark to the community this summer, a positive thing that Wellington could rally around. The season opener on May 31 was one of the greatest nights I can remember spending at Sellers Park at Hibbs-Hooten Field.

I’m impressed with how involved the Wellington Heat players have been in the community, especially during the Kansas Wheat Festival. From what I have heard, the players have acted as gentlemen with the exception of a few glitches that come with being a typical 19 to 21 year old male.

So far so good.

So don’t mistake what I’m about to say as an anti Wellington Heat rant. 

Wellington team owner/coach Rick Twyman told me Wednesday he is committed to one more year at Sellers Park, but nothing beyond that time frame. The City of Wellington is looking for a long-term commitment. Sources have told me, the city wants the Heat to commit either from eight to 10 years.

OK, I understand what Twyman is saying. He has put a lot of work into Sellers Park and it looks nice. His team is a quality product and represents the community well. But he also wants to keep his options open in case there is a town more suitable for his team or if he wants one close to his home in Arizona.

Nevertheless, the city is right in asking the Heat for a longer term commitment. There has been a significant investment to having the Heat here this summer both financially and logistically.

I’m not seeing how spending another summer of baseball for a team that might or might not stay is going to help anybody.

I know I’m going to get torched by the pro-Heat crowd for saying this, but the most negative aspect I see with the team’s presence is what has happened with the Wellington Babe Ruth baseball program. It has been basically uprooted this past season and has been moved to Ninth Street Park for a bulk of its games. There was no 13-year-old prep team for Wellington because of a lack of fields. It’s been a scheduling mess. Babe Ruth umpires have been moved from their homes inside the Sellers Park locker room to the storage shed.

Hibbs-Hooten Field, which I think is probably Wellington’s crowning jewel, is not as available to the youth players, who look forward to playing on the big field when they turn 13.

With that said, Ninth Street Park now comes into play. Once a vacant lot, several Wellington volunteers have done a great job building up the ball field to the north with new dugouts, a scoreboard, bleachers, batting cages and the works.

But Ninth Street Park was never built to be a replacement for Sellers. It was built as an addition. The main reason for its construction was to hold junior varsity high school games when the varsity field was occupied. Outside Hibbs Hooten, there were no other full size “baseball” fields in the community.

But with the Heat here, Ninth Street is in need of becoming a full-service complex with concession stands, lights, bathrooms, available parking, and other amenities I have forgotten to mention.

That’s a significant financial undertaking and time commitment.

If the Wellington leadership is going to invest in these things, whether it be through tax money or volunteerism, then I don’t think it is unreasonable for the city to ask the Heat to work with them on long-term solutions. If we know the Heat are staying, then we know the perimeters in front of us.

It would be a shame for the city to follow through with these investments at 9th Street only to see the team pull out of town a year later.

Now one may argue that these are improvements the community should be investing in anyway. Ninth Street needs lights, concessions, bathrooms, regardless of whether the Heat are here or not.

I don’t argue with that point.

But let’s look at the overall picture. Sellers Park, as a whole, has some issues. Eventually, the junior high building situation will need to be addressed, which will ultimately mean the football locker room situation will become a major issue.

The football stadium could use another bathroom/concession stand much like Ninth Street. Then there is parking.

What I’m saying is you throw all this money into Ninth Street, it won’t solve the football issues.

We need a community powwow when it comes to Sellers Park and get everyone on the same page here.

But first things first. Wellington civic leaders need to know if NBC baseball will be part of the future of this community. And that means getting a commitment from the Heat.

The City of Wellington is right in asking for a long term commitment. It’s a question the Heat should answer soon.