Omaha’s Kyle Peterson reflects on lifelong baseball journey

OMAHA, Neb. —

Kyle Peterson, an Omaha native, has spent nearly five decades immersed in baseball, from playing as a child to pitching in the College World Series and broadcasting games for ESPN.

“My mom tells the story to me that for whatever reason it’s what I always wanted to do,” Peterson said.

Baseball has always been a part of Peterson’s life.

“My dad played at Midland down in Fremont,” he said. “We always had baseball on at the time, which seems so foreign now.”

Growing up, the Peterson family seemed to always have a ball game on at home.

“I became a Braves fan, and the Braves stunk. But that’s what my dad and I would do,” Peterson said.

For Peterson, the College World Series was the pinnacle of baseball, right in his hometown.

“For us, that was our major leagues,” he said.

He recalled waiting by the buses to catch a glimpse of the players before they entered the stadium.

“When teams got eliminated, you’d wait by the bus to see if you could get a hat,” Peterson said.

Rosenblatt Stadium was a special place for Peterson, who first pitched there while attending Creighton Prep.

“We played there in high school for a couple straight years, three straight years,” he said. “It was the ultimate goal for any of those kids here growing up.”

Peterson’s baseball journey took him to Stanford, where he pitched in the College World Series for the Cardinals in 1995 and 1997.

“When the bus pops above the hill, the whole thing goes silent because they could see it. They had never seen it before,” Peterson said.

After a professional career, Peterson transitioned to broadcasting and has been calling games for ESPN for over two decades.

“What I thought was going to be two games has turned into whatever it is—20-some years. Along the way, I’ve got to do a series every year for the last 23 or 24 years,” he said.

Peterson said he appreciates the unique perspective he has from the broadcast booth.

“It slows everything down for a minute from that vantage point, just because it’s such a rare way to look at the game,” he said.

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