U18 Championship | Victoria vs A.C.T.
Blake Townsend, William Kline-Marantelli, and Liam Evans threw a combined shutout for Victoria as they defeated Australia Capital Territory 4-0 on the opening day of the U-18 Australia Youth Championships. Victoria opened the scoring in the second inning when Josh Meyer’s RBI ground out brought home Chris Burke to make it 1-0. In the third, Conor Myles doubled home Mohi Kahui to double the scoreline. Victoria would add to their advantage in the fourth inning when with runners on the corners, Josh Meyer again singled, this time scoring Ciaran Palmer. After four innings, it was 4-0 and Victoria never looked back. For ACT, Nick Hosie went 2-for-4 and Matt Gaughran and Trent Buchanan each had singles.
Click here for the FULL BOX SCORE - Victoria vs A.C.T.
U16 Championship | Victoria BLUE vs South Australia
In the U-16 division, Victoria Blue ran rampant over South Australia thanks to four SA errors. SA actually opened the score in the second inning when after back-to-back singles from Liam Bull and Jacob Scott, both runner advanced from a balk by starter Jack Higginbotham. Bull then scored on a throwing error by Dante Caruso to make it 1-0 SA. The Vics came storming back scoring a run in the third, fourth, three runs in the fifth and four runs in the sixth. Jarryd Wood had two RBIs and seven total players drove home at least one run for Victoria Blue. Mitchell Thomas came in relief of Chris Nielsen and finished the game off with three scoreless innings.
Click here for the FULL BOX SCORE - Victoria vs South Australia
Click here for the FULL BOX SCORE - Victoria vs Queensland
U18: South Australia 8-1 NSW Country
South Australia made the most of their opportunities as they defeated NSW Country in the opening game of the Australian Youth Championship.
Adelaide Bite pitcher and Australian U18 World Cup representative Ky Hampton gave SA a great start, striking out six and only giving up one unearned run in 6.2 innings of work.
Curtis Mead led all-comers with three hits on the day for SA, while catcher Mason Clavell finished with three RBI from his two hits.
Rhys Neuhold was one of NSW Country’s best, going 3-for-4. Mitch Ellison also chimed in with two hits and an RBI.
Country threatened in the eighth inning, but failed to capitalize on loaded bases, as SA reliever Tyson McKee worked his way out of a tough spot.
U18: Queensland 5-4 New South Wales
Despite a late rally from New South Wales, Queensland held on to claim a narrow win behind a strong start from Australian U18 World Cup team member Duane Johannsen.
Johannsen only allowed one hit through 5.1 innings of work for Queensland, striking out three and walking two.
Queensland’s offence was spread well across the board with Alex Skepton, Callum MacDonald, Daniel Shannon and Liam MacDonald all claiming two hits apiece.
NSW threatened Queensland in the seventh, as they combined walks with a sac fly RBI to score three runs.
Jaylin Rae drove in two of the four NSW runs, while Jack Lee threw well in relief (3.2IP, 2H, 1ER, 3K).
Jett Hasegawa kept his cool on the mound for Queensland, tossing a perfect final 1.2 innings to seal a narrow win.
U18: Victoria 4-0 ACT
Behind a fantastic start from Blake Townsend, Victoria claimed a strong win over the ACT in their opening game of the Australian Youth Championship.
Townsend, who led the Victorian U16 to a championship in 2017, struck out 10 and only allowed one hit in a dominant five inning start.
Victoria’s bullpen backed up Townsend well, with William Kline-Marantelli and Liam Evans combining to finish off the shutout of the ACT.
Nick Hosie claimed a pair of hits for the ACT, while Ryan Woodrow tossed 3.1 scoreless innings against a tough Victorian lineup.
Josh Meyer claimed two early RBI to set the tone for Victoria, as Conor Myles’ RBI double in the third gave Townsend some handy breathing room.
U16: Western Australia 12-2 ACT
Western Australia plated seven runs in the opening inning against the ACT and never looked back, running out 12-2 victors in the opening U16 game of the championship.
Ben Drew was an impossible out for the ACT pitchers on the day, as the first baseman wen 2-for-2 with a double, three RBI and a walk. Dylan Hopkins-Treloar drove in three runs of his own for WA as every single hitter reached base.
Matthew Teague, Sam Batton and Luke Brown all claimed hits for the ACT, with Brown driving in the lone earned run.
U16: Queensland 5-4 Victoria White
Victoria White jumped out to an early lead, but Queensland had the final say, walking off in the bottom of the seventh to claim a one run victory.
Kai-Noa Wynyard scored the final run of the ballgame after his QLD teammate Tim Preston drew a two-out, bases loaded walk in the seventh.
Vic White scored four runs in the opening frame, capped off by a double from Sadi Nergiz that scored two runs.
Queensland reliever Brock Wollin was immense in keeping his team in the ballgame, conceding only two hits in three shutout innings.
Leadoff hitter Riki Ward finished with a pair of hits and an RBI for Queensland.
U16: New South Wales 7-1 New South Wales Country
New South Wales and New South Wales Country both played some solid baseball all day, but some late runs saw New South Wales claim a 7-1 win over their Country counterparts.
Blake Cavill and Jake Burns both claimed 2RBI singles in the seventh and final frame to put the result beyond doubt.
Clayton Campbell and Travis Bazzana finished with a pair of hits each for New South Wales, while for Country, left fielder Luke Jacobs went 2-for-3 in the leadoff spot.
Dylan Clarke began his AYC campaign off in strong fashion, tossing four shutout innings for New South Wales. Ryan Hudson and Ben Ridgewell battled manfully all game for Country, but eventually the bats of NSW broke the game open.
U16: Victoria 10-3 South Australia
South Australia scored first, but Victoria came home far stronger, recording a 10-3 win in the final game of the day.
Both teams were forced into some defence in the early stages, with starting pitchers Chris Nielsen and Jack Higginbotham battling manfully.
Mitchell Thomas had a solid relief outing for Victoria. Despite walking six, Thomas’s defence worked behind him well, as he tossed three scoreless innings to end the ballgame.
Reece Longstaff finished with a pair of hits for Victoria, while Jarryd Wood also chimed in with two RBI.
Jacob Scott’s two base hits were highlights for SA, while 13-year-old Riley Yeatman did not yield an earned run in 1.2 innings of relief.
Please note that the office's of Baseball Victoria will be closed from Friday 22 December and re-open on Tuesday 2 January.
Most staff will be on leave during this time, however will all be intermittently checking in on their emails during the break. If you need to get in contact with staff members during this time, please try their emails and/or mobile numbers.
Justin Huber, justin.huber@baseballvictoria.com.au
Jeff Paull, jeff.paull@baseballvictoria.com.au
Joel Mackenzie, joel.mackenzie@baseballvictoria.com.au
Samantha Creed, samantha.creed@baseballvictoria.com.au
Kelsey Quinn, kelsey.quinn@baseballvictoria.com.au
Les Flower, leslie.flower@baseballvictoria.com.au
We'd also like to take this opportunity to wish the entire baseball playing community a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Kids, this is the time of year you can make it up to Mum and Dad for all the training sessions and baseball games they've driven you to and supported you at all season long.
Stay safe and we will see you all again in 2018.
Baseball Victoria would like to welcome our newest staff member in Kelsey Quinn who steps into the role of Competition Coordinator.
Born and raised in Frederick Maryland, Kelsey grew up playing baseball, basketball and soccer and would go on to play collegiate soccer at Villanova University where she’d complete her undergraduate degree in Communications and Criminal Justice.
Kelsey arrived in Australia in 2014 and originally came out to play soccer for Heidelberg United. Since then, she's gone on to play and hold coaching roles with Geelong Galaxy and Melbourne City FC.
Off the field Kelsey has completed a Master’s degree in Sport Management and Leadership at Virginia Commonwealth University and more recently, graduated from Latrobe University in latter part of 2017 with an MBA.
Professionally she’s held roles as Program Coordinator with Impact Soccer here in Australia and with Elite Tournaments back home in the USA, coordinating large scale soccer tournaments for all age levels and abilities.
While starting in the final week of 2017 has meant a little bit of a trial by fire, she will resume in the new year in a full-time capacity and can be contact via the Baseball Victoria office number, or via email on Kelsey.quinn@baseballvictoria.com.au
In preparation for the next major event cycle for International Baseball, Baseball Australia has undertaken a review of its High Performance structure and has initiated the following strategic changes to drive successful outcomes for Team Australia:
General Manager Team Australia
Creation of a restructured and elevated senior position of General Manager Team Australia with responsibility for the following:
- Providing leadership in the areas of player development, player evaluation and player personnel across the entire national team program.
- Ensuring continued improvement in the availability and quality of player personnel for national teams.
- Assuming a strategic leadership position in identifying current and potential players for the national team and driving the creation of a professional Australian club team to permanently play in Asia.
- Developing strategies and appointing coaching and support staff for successful campaigns for all National Teams.
- Maintaining and creating programs and pathways for the development of elite junior players to achieve international professional success.
These responsibilities have historically been undertaken by a core group of committed High Performance personnel, led by Glenn Williams and Jon Deeble. The creation of the new full-time role of General Manager Team Australia is a direct progression from the work that has been undertaken by this group of people over many years.
Reflecting the importance of this newly created position, Baseball Australia is pleased to announce the appointment of Glenn Williams as General Manager Team Australia, reporting directly to Baseball Australia CEO Cam Vale.
Baseball Australia CEO, Cam Vale, commented:
“Glenn is a former MLB player with the Minnesota Twins and a 2004 Olympic Silver Medallist, and his elevation to this position reflects not only his work over the last 18 months with Baseball Australia and its key stakeholders but also his passionate and substantial contribution to Australian Baseball since he first started playing the game.”
“Glenn’s elevation to this key senior management position is critical within our High Performance structure for the important event cycle we have during the next three years.”
National Team Manager
Given the creation of the new role of General Manager Team Australia, the National Team Manager position has been restructured to be purely focused on successful outcomes for the senior National Team at the following major world baseball events from 2019-2021:
- Premier 12 (2019)
- Olympic qualification and Olympics (2020)
- World Baseball Classic (2021)
This restructured position will work closely with the General Manager Team Australia and the overall BA High Performance team moving forward.
The process for recruiting the restructured National Team Manager role will begin early in 2018 with an appointment expected around April 2018, with interim coaching appointments to be in place for the two-game series against World number one Japan on March 3 and 4.
The National Team Manager position as previously structured has been held by Jon Deeble since 2000.
Deeble’s 17-year tenure as National Coach is the longest in modern Australian sport. Deeble has led the team to two Olympics and four World Baseball Classics during his tenure as Team Australia National Coach.
Amongst a range of outstanding achievements, the pinnacle of Deeble’s tenure is Australia’s performance at the 2004 Athens Olympics, where Team Australia twice defeated World number one Japan to win the Silver Medal.
Baseball Australia President David Hynes commented as follows:
“I have known Jon Deeble for over 30 years and his commitment to the success of our sport both in Australia and internationally is without peer. He has always given more than he has received from the game and has worked tirelessly towards the ongoing betterment of Australian baseball.”
“This restructure is primarily occurring because Jon and his longstanding coaching and support staff have put Australian Baseball in a position where we are currently ranked seventh in the World – our highest ever ranking despite the financial, profile and athlete-access challenges faced by our sport.”
“Our new structure ensures that we can apply full-time resources through the General Manager Team Australia position to maximising the success of Team Australia in these key events in the coming years.”
“Baseball Australia will have ongoing discussions with Jon about future roles within our structure, including the restructured National Team Manager position, and he will be encouraged to apply for any and all roles advertised.”
Additional roles
As part of the High Performance restructure, it is expected that several new senior positions will be created in 2018 to:
- Drive the creation of an Australian professional club team to compete on a permanent basis in the Taiwanese professional league - the CPBL.
- Provide operational support position across our National Teams.
- Ensure leadership around the development of our pathways, competitions, coaching and umpiring in line with our development plans to be announced in the New Year.
With under a month until the 2018 Australian Youth Championship, Baseball Australia is proud to announce the rosters and schedule for the event.
Western Australia come into the tournament as defending U18 champions, with Victoria Blue aiming for back-to-back U16 crowns.
The Championship will be held at Blacktown International Sportspark between 5-14 January.
Stay tuned for rolling coverage across the Baseball Australia website, and the Baseball Live app.
Click here for the U16 Rosters.
Click here for the U18 Rosters.
Click here for Australian Youth Championship Schedule.