It’s official: A Major League Baseball game is coming to Omaha.
The Kansas City Royals and Detroit Tigers will play a regular-season game at TD Ameritrade Park on June 13, a day before the 2019 College World Series opening ceremonies.
Officials, including MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, announced the game at a 2 p.m. press conference in Omaha.
The game will be the first Major League game held in Nebraska. It will be televised nationally on ESPN.
The game came together through an agreement among MLB, the NCAA, Minor League Baseball, the Omaha Storm Chasers and the Metropolitan Entertainment and Convention Authority, the nonprofit that operates the city-owned ballpark.
“We look forward to partnering with the NCAA and all the various parties who have worked hard to put this game together,” Manfred said in a press release. “This represents another significant step in our efforts to showcase the solidarity that links each level of our great game.”
Kevin Uhlich, senior vice president of business operations for the Royals, said his organization is “ecstatic” to participate in the historic game.
“So many of the athletes who have worn Royals uniforms have come through this great community either while starring for their college team or as a member of our organization,” he said. “It’s only fitting that the Royals be a part of the first Major League game ever hosted by the city of Omaha.”
Al Avila, executive vice president and GM of the Tigers, said his team looks forward to showcasing Major League talent “on amateur baseball’s biggest stage.”
Similar regular-season games have been played in Fort Bragg, North Carolina, in 2016 and Williamsport, Pennsylvania, in 2017. Geico will sponsor the Omaha event.
