Preview by Terry Whitaker, the ABL
Some of the world’s best baseball talent will take the field across Australia when the Major League Baseball (MLB) owned Australian Baseball League opens its 2014-15 season with the Adelaide Bite taking on the Brisbane Bandits on 30 October at 6:30pm AEST.
The ABL’s fifth season will feature Australian and international players representing 24 MLB clubs, including world-famous teams like the New York Yankees, Los Angeles Dodgers and Boston Red Sox, as well as players from Japan’s top baseball league, Nippon Professional Baseball.
Six clubs, the Sydney Blue Sox, Melbourne Aces, Canberra Cavalry, Perth Heat, Brisbane Bandits and Adelaide Bite will compete in a 48 game season that will conclude with best of three playoff series from 30 January to 1 February and the ABL Championship Series from 6 February to 8 February.
With nine former ABL players competing for MLB teams this past season, including John Holdzkom and Kevin Kiermaier, who have ascended to baseball stardom in the United States, the league will give Australian sports fans the chance to see future big leaguers on the rise.
Building on the momentum of the 2014 MLB Opening Series at the Sydney Cricket Ground and the millions of fans who attended the games and watched on television around the globe, the ABL is set to bring baseball to its widest audience ever in 2014/15.
ABL teams will host tens of thousands of fans from coast to coast, the ABL All-Star Game and Championship Series will be televised live in Australia on ESPN and to 40 countries worldwide and every game of the season streamed live on YouTube and iiNet.
SA Power Networks Adelaide Bite
2013/14 record: 21-25 (fifth place)
Manager: Brooke Knight (first full season; took over midway through 2013/14)
After finishing in fifth place each of the last two ABL seasons, the Adelaide Bite look to break their 34-year Claxton Shield drought with head coach Brooke Knight at the helm for his first full season. The Bite return a core group of veterans and welcome a host of talented imports in search of their first ABL Postseason berth since 2012.
Former Sydney Blue Sox outfielder and Team Australia mainstay Mitch Dening will play for the Bite this season along with Stefan Welch, a Boston Red Sox prospect fresh off an impressive season in Double-A, and returning veterans pitcher Darren Fidge and outfielder Tom Brice.
Former ABL Rookie of the Year Ben Lodge and MLB Australian Academy Program alumnus Corey Lyon anchor the Bite’s young group. They’ll help to assimilate MLB imports like San Diego Padres minor league catcher Rocky Gale and Los Angeles Dodgers prospects Kyle Hooper and Craig Stem on the mound and Aaron Miller and Brandon Dixon at the plate.
The Bite are scheduled to open the 2014/15 season at home on Thursday, 13 November when they host the defending champion Perth Heat at 7:00pm ACDT.
Brisbane Bandits, proudly presented by WellDog
2013/14 record: 18-28 (sixth)
Manager: Dave Nilsson (second season, also managed in 2010/11)
One of the most legendary names in Australian baseball history is back to lead the Bandits in 2014/15. Dave Nilsson, Australia’s first MLB All-Star and the Bandits’ first manager, has returned to try and lead them to the ABL playoffs for the first time.
Nilsson inherits a franchise on the rise with a strong pitching staff consisting of local products like Ryan Searle, Steven Chambers and club veterans Josh Roberts and Ryan Battaglia.
They will be joined by a talented group of Tampa Bay Rays imports and fan favourite C.J Beatty, who turned his strong 2012/13 ABL season into a contract with MLB’s Chicago White Sox.
The Bandits kick off the 2014/15 season on Thursday, 30 October at 6:30pm AEST, hosting the Adelaide Bite at AFA Stadium at Holloway Field.
Canberra Elite Cavalry
2013/14 record: 22-24 (third place, lost to Heat in ABLCS)
Manager: Michael Collins (third season)
Canberra shocked Asian Baseball fans by defeating Japan, Korea and Taiwan at the 2013 Asia Series but the Cavalry fell short of claiming back-to-back ABL titles when they lost to Perth.
The Cavalry boast one of the league’s most intriguing players entering 2014/15. Toronto Blue Jays import Anthony Alford, a third-round MLB Draft pick of the Jays in 2012, is set to focus solely on baseball after playing both on the diamond and on the gridiron for a major university football team in recent years. Alford has only played in 25 career Minor League Baseball games but hopes to benefit from an increased workload in the capital.
Cavalry cult hero Jack Murphy is back for another ABL season behind the plate, and his team added four talented Australians from the league’s inaugural Australian Player Draft in August, including veteran pitcher Tristan Crawford (QLD), New York Yankees prospect Adam Silva (VIC), infielder Kieran Bradford (QLD), and first baseman Scott Hillier (QLD).
The Cavalry’s charge at home begins on Thursday, 6 November at 7:00pm AEDT, against the Blue Sox in this season’s first round of the Hume Highway Cup.
Jet Couriers Melbourne Aces
2013/14 record: 22-24 (fourth place)
Manager: Tommy Thompson (first season)
After narrowly missing out on the postseason in 2013/14, the Aces have retooled for the new fixture. Chicago White Sox coach Tommy Thompson is in as manager as Melbourne look to return to the ABL Championship Series for the first time since 2011/12.
The Aces take the field with arguably the deepest roster of Australian professional talent. Young pitching star Daniel McGrath, hitters Ryan Dale and Darryl George and former Major Leaguers Brad Harman and Justin Huber provide Melbourne’s foundation.
They will be backed by some talented imports from the New York Yankees, Chicago White Sox and Texas Rangers, including second-round MLB Draft pick Cody Buckel. Chace Numata, a Phillies prospect, will handle catching duties for a talented pitching staff.
Melbourne kicks off its season with a series against the Bandits beginning Friday, 7 November at 7:35pm AEDT at Melbourne Ballpark.
Alcohol. Think Again Perth Heat
2013/14 record: 32-14 (first place, won Claxton Shield)
Manager: Steve Fish (third season)
Perth, who have won three of the league’s four Claxton Shield premierships since the ABL’s inaugural season in 2010/11, return the core of their dynasty once more for 2014/15 and remain the team to beat this season.
Led by the Kennelly brothers, along with reliable veteran Allan de San Miguel and former Major Leaguer Luke Hughes, the Heat have a solid core of Australian baseball veterans. Starting pitcher Daniel Schmidt, with an ABL-best 25 win in his career, serves as the heart of Perth’s powerful pitching staff.
With valuable additions from talented imports in seasons past, the Heat hope 2014/15 will be no different. Colorado Rockies Minor League shortstop Joey Wong won the ABL’s Gold Glove award last season and returns to help lead the Heat’s sparkling defence. Starting pitcher Brian Baker, who saw action in the ABL Championship Series last season, joins Schmidt as part of Perth’s rotation.
The Heat begin their quest to defend their title on Friday, 31 October at 7:20pm AWST against the Blue Sox at Barbagallo Ballpark.
Sydney Blue Sox
2013/14 record: 23-23 (second place, lost to Cavalry in ABL Preliminary Final)
Manager: Jason Pospishil (third season)
Perennially one of the league’s most talented teams by Opening Day, Sydney are still seeking their first trip to the ABL Championship Series despite earning playoff trips in all four years of league play. Manager Jason Pospishil hopes a potent lineup and experienced pitching will be the key to a Claxton Shield campaign.
The Blue Sox will lean on a veteran starting pitching corps comprised of left-hander Craig Anderson and righties Vaughan Harris and Aaron Sookee. Sydney’s bullpen was terrific a season ago as right-hander Luke Wilkins pitched in 21 games and posted a 3-0 record and sparkling 0.28 ERA. Legendary closer Dae-Sung Koo converted 11 of his 12 save opportunities.
The Arizona Diamondbacks, Colorado Rockies, Detroit Tigers, and Minnesota Twins will be sending prospects to Sydney. Diamondbacks prospect Markus Solbach, who was the ABL’s first German player when he suited up for Melbourne in 2011/12, is back for another season Down Under.
Fans can catch the Blue Sox at home on Thursday, 13 November at 7:30pm AEDT against the Cavalry in the second round of the 2014/15 Hume Highway Cup.