Baseball Victoria has closed off applications and will begin the interview process in the coming week, however in the meantime, Ray will assume the role which has been vacated by Chris Mayne.
Off the back of the announcement that the 2018 Women's & Youth Girls National Championships would be hosted in Geelong, Baseball Victoria is happy to announce trial dates for the girls wishing to try out for the teams that will represent Victoria at these Championships.
OPEN WOMEN'S TRIALS
Pitchers & Catchers
December 13, 6.30PM - 8.30PM
Newport Baseball Club
Positional Players
December 16, 9.00AM - 11.00AM
Springvale or Essendon Baseball Club (TBC)
YOUTH WOMEN'S TRIALS
December 9, 9.00AM - 11.00AM
Springvale Baseball Club
December 16, 9.00AM - 11.00AM
Springvale or Doncaster Baseball Club (TBC)
YOUTH WOMEN'S TRIALS
December 9, 9.00AM - 11.00AM
Springvale Baseball Club
December 16, 9.00AM - 11.00AM
Springvale or Doncaster Baseball Club (TBC)
Baseball Australia is excited to announce that Team Australia will play a series of games against a full-strength Japanese National team in March 2018.
Team Australia will play the Japanese national team in at the Nagoya Dome in Nagoya on 3 March, and at the Kyocera Dome in Osaka on 4 March 2018.
These games are a concerted effort from Baseball Australia to ensure Team Australia has ample opportunity to prepare for one of the most important periods of international competition in our history.
Following the announcement of an annual series of games against Cuba, these games against Japan will serve as preparation for the next three years of international competitions, including the 2019 Premier12, 2020 Olympic Qualification and the 2021 World Baseball Classic.
Team Australia will play against Japan in the baseball mad cities of Nagoya and Osaka at the beginning of March, nearly a year to the day since Australia finished in a record high 9th place at the 2017 World Baseball Classic.
Baseball Australia CEO Cam Vale sees this as an opportunity to give Australia’s best baseballers continued exposure on the international stage.
“We must continue to build significant relationships that ensure Team Australia has as many opportunities as possible to play on the international stage,” Vale said.
“To have consistent opportunities to play against teams like Japan ensure that Team Australia brand continues to grow as this will be a key focus in our strategic direction.”
“This announcement comes following the ABL’s impending expansion, and with our presence in Asia growing stronger each day, we’re excited to play Japan on their home soil.”
“We are honoured that an organisation such as NPB has invited us to compete in these games in 2018, and we look forward to a continued close partnership with them in the future.”
Team Australia has made significant advances on the official WBSC Rankings presented by ENEOS, with a rise from 12th in early 2016 to a record high 7th following the U18 World Cup in September 2017.
General Manager of Team Australia Baseball Glenn Williams is excited to see Team Australia get more regular gametime.
“It’s an exciting opportunity for our team to return to Japan and take on the number 1 ranked team in the world,” Williams said.
“It’s a fun place to play, we always get treated really well in Japan and it will be another great experience for our team as we work towards Olympic qualification.”
Baseball Australia are excited to announce their continued partnership with School Sport Australia
When the agreement was signed, SSA President Graeme Jennings noted “School Sport Australia is extremely pleased to maintain our partnership with Baseball Australia for the promotion of baseball in Australian schools."
"The sport has a long and proud history in Australian school sport so I am sure the partnership will allow both organisations to continue to provide outstanding opportunities for Australian students and teachers”.
Baseball Australia CEO Cam Vale is also pleased to continue the partnership with School Sport Australia.
“School Sport Australia has been a wonderful supporter of baseball in this country,” Vale said.
“To have such an important ally in Australian schools is vital to the development of baseball in Australia and we look forward to continuing our strong relationship with SSA”.
We are almost 12 months in to our 2016-2018 Emeralds program aiming to provide ongoing player and coach performance and pathway development opportunities designed to provide the greatest number of Australian female baseballers with this best opportunities to reach their peak performance.
The intended outcomes of this program include:
· Greater player depth at elite and sub-elite level
· Improved standard of games at national, state and club level
· Multiple opportunities for coaches to observe player performance against quality opposition
· Exceed previous best performance at World Cups
· Quality engaged coaching and support staff for the Emeralds
· Consistent philosophy throughout the women’s program
· Quality communication and messaging of program progress and outcomes
In the last 12 months we have run the hugely successful first Futures program, the 2016 All Star Game, Diamonds in the Rough, a High Performance Camp in Japan, and most recently created an Emeralds Pitching Squad.
Following our review of the 2017 Futures program we are running the program again for 2018.
The benefits of the program as identified by participants included:
· Insight into the “inner workings” of the Emeralds
· Opportunity to interact with and receive feedback from current Emeralds players through mentoring (and the ongoing relationships that have been built)
· Access to sport specific nutritional and fitness information
· Being opened up to the mental side of baseball
· Gaining knowledge that wouldn’t otherwise be exposed to
With more than 70 participants in 2017, the feedback was outstanding with participants noting their highlights as:
· Mentors
· Tasks (and feedback)
· Group chat
· Allocating groups based on position
· General resources/articles and tips
· Team App for communication
· Advice and support
While 2017 was open to all applicants, the 2018 program will be a selection process, based on responses to the application, and a focus on players who are eligible for 2018 and 2020 World Cups. This will make the program more manageable administratively and ensure participants get the most out of the program. Similar to last year participants will be expected to commit to undertaking tasks, participating in chat forums and responding to questions within set time frames.
Applications are invited by clicking on the link below, and expressions of interest will close on 30 November 2017, with the program to kick off mid December.
APPLY FOR EMERALDS FUTURES PROGRAM HERE
Baseball Australia is changing the Australian Baseball League (ABL) to stay ahead of the game, as baseball continues to grow.
Ahead of the launch of its eighth season, the Australian Baseball League (ABL) is embarking on an ambitious and innovative growth strategy to capitalise on continuous increases in participation; and the excitement of baseball returning to the Olympic Games in Tokyo 2020.
Buoyed by record levels of interest from players, leagues and businesses across Australia, the United States, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan, the ABL today announces the next phase of its long-term strategy for the future of the national league.
KEY POINTS
· The ABL is set to expand from a six-team competition to an eight-team competition in 2018/19, in the first phase of expansion.
· Independent Licenses will be offered to operate and control the six foundation ABL Clubs under a low-cost model; designed to engage diverse interest and investment.
· The ABL will increase focus on new markets in Regional Australia and Asia as primary targets for expansion teams.
· The league will continue to embrace best practice digital content and broadcast solutions to increase Australasian exposure.
· The ABL will maintain and grow its unparalleled partnerships with the World’s most prestigious professional leagues in the USA (MLB), Japan (NPB), Korea (KBO) and Taiwan (CPBL).
· Building on the unprecedented investment by Major League Baseball to help relaunch the ABL in 2010, and together with strong interest from NPB (Nippon Professional Baseball - Japan), KBO (Korea Baseball Organisation) and CPBL (Chinese Professional Baseball League - Taiwan)
Baseball Australia is pleased to confirm the following strategic initiatives being announced today;
Expanding the ABL
Baseball Australia is excited to announce plans to expand the number of teams in the Australian Baseball League (ABL) for the 2018/19 ABL season.
Entering its eighth season, and second under full ownership of Baseball Australia, the league has seen more than 840 players from 20 different countries represented on ABL rosters; and helped young Australians chase their dreams of playing at the highest level internationally.
This includes over 500 players with professional experience for international teams and 53 who have played at the sports highest level - the Major Leagues. In addition, the ABL’s relationship with Asia’s premier baseball leagues continue to thrive, with another 56 players having experience in the CPBL, KBO and NPB.
The primary aim of expanding the ABL is to benefit baseball in Australia through increased playing opportunities, more exposure, and greater commercial opportunity to reinvest back into grassroots.
Baseball Australia CEO, Cam Vale, said today’s announcement is the next phase in a long-term strategy for the ABL that has always included additional teams from Australia, and the surrounding region.
"Expanding the league has always been a part of the plan,” Cam Vale said.
“However, with so much interest shown over these last six months; we have re-set the strategy to meet the continually increasing demand in the market for the expansion of the league.”
“Particularly in new markets, there is a strong focus on regional Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan; where we are gaining a lot of interest to include new teams and sponsors." Vale said.
Licensing the six foundation ABL teams
The ABL’s plans to add two new teams for the 2018/2019 season are only part of the story however; as the league will adopt a licensing model for its six foundation teams - in line with the business practices of the majority of professional sports leagues around the World.
This will provide a rare opportunity to own a team in a league which has significant relationships with Major League Baseball (MLB), and numerous international partners; including Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB - Japan), Japan Amateur Baseball Association (JABA), the Industrial Leagues of Japan, Korean Baseball Organisation (KBO), and the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL - Taiwan).
By adopting a low-cost and high exposure license model for the six foundation teams, the ABL is opening its doors to a variety of potential investors. Beyond traditional ownership models, the league will solicit qualified investors that could be as diverse as private companies, universities, conglomerated industries, international baseball teams or other Australian professional sporting clubs seeking a footprint into Asia.
License terms and conditions will be announced in December, and will initially offer zero capital payment. Instead, Baseball Australia is prioritising franchise owners that can show strong business plans and acumen that capitalise on a largely decentralised revenue model; with the majority of the income generating opportunities given to the ABL teams.
Asian Focus
Baseball Australia CEO Cam Vale sees these opportunities as a groundbreaking step for Baseball in Australia.
"There has never been an opportunity of this magnitude in Australian sport before, as baseball has the potential to reach millions of consumers across Asia.” said Vale.
“Baseball is the number one sport in Japan, South Korea, and Taiwan, when it comes to attendance, participation and broadcast ratings.”
"While we are playing between November and February these baseball rich countries are seeking out more baseball games to watch; and further opportunities to develop their players.”
“We share a time zone and natural broadcast footprint with our northern neighbours, and as such the ABL is perfectly positioned to be the premier Winter league in Asia.”
Vale said Australia has always had significant ties to Asian baseball, consolidated when in March 2017 Chinese Taipei's World Baseball Classic (WBC) team participated in a series of exhibition games here in Australia which were viewed by millions.
"Broadcast delivery will be all important in the expansion process," Vale said.
"We will design a schedule which encourages local and international broadcast opportunities; and we have already had significant interest following the announcement of the six highly regarded Asian marquee players to play this season.”
Regional Australia
In addition to a strong international flavour, Vale also said a parallel focus of the ABL’s expansion is bringing more baseball to regional Australia.
“Regional centres are often overlooked by major sporting codes," Vale said.
The ABL’s low-cost license model encourages regional cities and communities to state their case for inclusion as one of the highly valued opportunities for expansion by offering a significant return on investment through high-exposure both nationally and internationally.
“Australian national teams thrive on having talent drawn from as many areas around the country as possible, and we are keen to ensure that regional Australia has a major presence in the ABL.”
"The development and continual success of the ABL is critical for the success of baseball in Australia. We will take all interest seriously as we look to solidify the ABL as one of Australia's most engaged national sports leagues."
Next Steps
Baseball Australia will announce the license and expansion terms in the coming weeks with a full roll-out of the strategy to be realised over the coming months;
December 2017 - Public Release of basic License Terms
Jan/Feb 2018 - Stakeholder and Community consultation
April 2018 - Public Release of 2018/19 ABL Schedule and Teams
Both internal and external expressions of interest are welcomed and expected to come from both established and non-established stakeholder groups.
The Championships are being held in Sydney from 5 - 14 January, 2018 and are the pinnacle of youth baseball in Australia.
As per previous communications, the two Under 16 teams and Under 18 team will have their training programs integrated into the Melbourne Aces program and see the kids rubbing shoulders and training alongside Major Leaguer like Peter Moylan, Mark Hamburger and Matt Marksberry, all under the watchful eye of current Australian Head Coach Jon Deeble.
CLICK BELOW to view the Under 16 teams
CLICK BELOW to view the Under 18 teams
Baseball Victoria would like to with the three teams the best of luck at next year's Championships.
Stay tuned to the Baseball Victoria website and social media channels for all the results, scores and streaming details during the Championships.
Baseball Australia is proud to announce the 2018 Australian Women’s & Youth Women’s Championship will be held at the Geelong Baseball Centre.
Due to the renovations at Narrabundah Ballpark in Canberra, Baseball Australia requested expressions of interest from clubs/associations to host the 2018 Australian Women’s/Youth Women’s Championship.
The event will be hosted in partnership with the East Belmont Saints and the Guild All-Stars Lions with support from Baseball Victoria.
Baseball Australia’s Head of Little League and National Championships Mathew Sundstrom is excited to bring the flagship Australian Women’s baseball events to Geelong.
“To bring these events to another passionate baseball city is exciting for us,” Sundstrom said.
“We look forward to delivering another successful championship which showcases the best female baseballers in the country.”
Guild All-Stars Lions secretary Lee Harty is excited to co-host this event in 2018.
"As a club we can't wait to put on a show for teams travelling from all over Australia," Harty said.
"This is a prestigious event to host, and we'd like to thank Baseball Australia for the opportunity to showcase the best our region has to offer."
Guild All-Stars Lions secretary Lee Harty is excited to co-host this event in 2018.
"As a club we can't wait to put on a show for teams travelling from all over Australia," Harty said.
"This is a prestigious event to host, and we'd like to thank Baseball Australia for the opportunity to showcase the best our region has to offer."
Saints also issued a statement expressing their excitement towards co-hosting the Australian Women’s & Youth Women’s Championships.
“East Belmont Saints are excited to co-host the 2018 Women’s Nationals and we look forward to working with Baseball Australia and the competing teams to provide a great championship for all involved. These games give us the opportunity to promote women’s baseball and we welcome the visitors to our club and the city of Geelong.”
2018 Australian Youth Women’s Championship
2018 Australian Youth Women’s Championship
Friday 30th March – Monday 2nd April (Easter Long Weekend)
2018 Australian Women’s Championship
2018 Australian Women’s Championship
Friday 30th March – Friday 6th April
The fourth Australian of the modern era to have progressed to Major League Baseball, Mark Ettles has kindly agreed to be Australian Baseball Alumni patron for the 2017/18 year.
While his MLB career was relatively short-lived – just fourteen games at the pinnacle of the sport – Mark Ettles continued to play at a high level, spending quality mound time with Perth Heat in the original Australian Baseball League before representing his country at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
Accepting the Alumni's invitation to come on board as the patron, Mark Ettles made some fascinating observations about his own sporting journey, about opportunities for young players, about experience-based learning and about the future of Australian baseball.
Born in Western Australia, right-armed pitcher Mark Ettles completed his secondary schooling Down Under before spending four years at college in United States - where he was drafted by Detroit Tigers out of University of West Florida in 1989.
Released after two seasons in the Tigers Minor League system, he was signed by San Diego in 1991 and ultimately made his Major League debut with the Padres two years later. That achievement was followed by an Australian Baseball League stint with Perth Heat during the late nineties before representation for Australia as a 34-year old at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.
“The whole journey as a young player to my last game in the Sydney Olympics has left me with experiences I will never forget,” Mark Ettles told Australian Baseball Alumni just recently.
“The highlights of my career – Under 18 Australian team, College-NAIA World Series, professional ball, San Diego Padres, the Australian Olympic team - are all mighty memorable,” he said.
“Of them all, perhaps my most vivid recollection was the period from when I was called in to the team office and told I was headed for San Diego next morning. Then calling my parents and telling them the news before an interrupted night’s sleep. The next day walking in to Jack Murphy stadium as a player, and finally pitching in my first Major League game that night.”
“Striking out my first batter faced, and recording a 1-2-3 inning for the Padres is a very fond memory that I know will stay with me forever.”
“That entry to Major League baseball was a unique feeling and an experience that I would wish on every young ballplayer,” Ettles said. “It gave real meaning to what I had been doing in the sport since I started out as a kid.”
“The whole experience of becoming a ballplayer is teaching you – among many things - how to deal with your everyday life,” he continued. “To be able to take determination, concentration, passion, individuality and teamwork into all of your daily practices makes life somewhat easier – whatever you do. Being a ballplayer taught me how to create dreams, overcome obstacles, and see positive outcomes. Baseball taught me how to be humble in times of success and how to be determined and focused in challenging times.”
Appearing in fourteen games for San Diego during the 1993 MLB season, Ettles pitched eighteen innings for a win and an ERA of 6.50 before stints in the Padres Minor League system and with Somerset Patriots in the Independent Atlantic League. Although afflicted with injuries throughout his career, Ettles was nevertheless able to reach the highest level in professional baseball – an achievement he attributes to positive attitudes and strategies that he recommends to any person striving for success in baseball, in business or any other field of endeavour.
“Young players embarking into the world of baseball need to have a dream and need to have something to strive for,” he said. “Stay focussed on that dream, make short term goals, and have an unwavering desire and belief that you are the best in your chosen position. Prepare to be a sponge, take in all the information you can and select what is best for you to help realise your dream. Have a strong work ethic and always have something in the reserve tank to draw on when you need it.”
Fortunate enough to have played with and against some of the all-time greats of the Australian Baseball League in its nineties heyday, Ettles looks back on that era with real fondness.
“The early years of the ABL were exciting,” he said. “I loved playing for the Perth Heat and help build the aura of that new era for baseball in Australia. The fact that we had one of the only baseball designed grounds in Australia - at Parry Field - helped create a great atmosphere. We were always competing at the pointy end of the competition and with the initiation of the Asian Series, we felt that we were at the top of innovative baseball in Australia.”
“We were also drawing more spectators than Western Australian cricket at the time.”
“Being pushed out of Parry Field and shuffled around was a setback. There were issues across the league and negative feeling around baseball in the rest of the country really set in,” he said. “Fortunately, much of the excitement is back with the new league and the standard of Australian baseball seems to have really improved - so we will hopefully see only positive results in the near future.”
Participation at the 2000 Sydney Olympics was the crowning baseball highlight for Mark Ettles after what he modestly describes as “a motley career filled with injuries”. Although his own performance at the Sydney tournament was solid enough, Ettles shared the feelings of many who were disappointed with the Australian team effort of just two wins from seven games after the euphoria of our Intercontinental Cup success in Sydney just the previous year.
“I felt greatly honoured to be picked as a player for Sydney 2000,” Ettles said.
“As a team we felt we had a real opportunity to be in the medal rounds, although I was not content with the way I performed. While I cannot speak for the team, all in all we were not satisfied with our finish - which directly, in my opinion, led to a much stronger and more determined performance at the Athens Olympics.”
“At the time of the Sydney Olympics, baseball in Australia was in a transition stage,” he reflected. “Many young players were being exposed to the professionalism of American baseball and the leadership staff were also beginning to understand what needed to be done to compete as a premium baseball nation.”
“Even now, Australian baseball and Australian players are still evolving and morphing into what the American culture has built over many years,” he said. “We are great athletes and we have a wonderful ability to adapt to situations. This is shown time and again as we have more and more players entering the professional system and competing competently with young Americans who are born into a baseball culture and lifestyle.”
Current Australian Manager Jon Deeble – who had taken the reins of the national senior team prior to the 2000 Olympics – remembers Mark Ettles as “a great teammate and a really funny guy”.
“I knew him as a really fierce competitor both in the Australian Baseball League and with the national squad,” Deeble told Australian Baseball Alumni.
“Although he was injured a fair bit along the way, he had a tremendous split finger fastball and he dominated in pro ball and at Australian national level.”
These days living in the south of France for much of the year and working as a captain of private motor yachts, Mark Ettles has retained an abiding interest in Major League baseball, in the fortunes of Australian Baseball League, in our national teams and the opportunities generated – and earned - by our emerging young players.
“I guess that baseball has been infused into my blood,” he said. “Even though I have limited direct contact with what is happening in Australia, I still get excited with the results that our local ballplayers are achieving. And of course I love to watch the MLB and see how far it has come and what amazing feats they are accomplishing these days.”
“The people I have met and the places I have seen through baseball will always be with me. Although living in France, I still have access to information on what Australians are achieving. It is a sport that is expanding globally and this will always invite new players from markets like Australia – which is producing so many promising players. The sport grows every day and this improves the management, which in turn improves the performance of players.”
His life experiences have taught Mark Ettles some invaluable lessons that he is keen to pass on to younger players as a mentor and an Alumni Patron who dedicated years to his baseball career while developing and refining his capacities to make the very best of his opportunities - even after his professional sporting career had come to an end.
“Life goes on,” he said, “and I have chosen a different path.”
“I have been an observer of baseball at home and overseas, but not with the same intensity as used to be the case – although I know that some things never change,” he said. “As with any sport or occupation or skill, the more you do it the better you are at it. When it becomes second nature and you don’t have to think about it and what you should do in a certain situation, you react differently and usually with a better outcome.”
“Therefore the more time you put into an activity, the better you will be at it. And if there are more facilities becoming available – like the Academy back home - where young players can go to practise, learn, listen, and absorb what it takes to become a professional in their chosen field, they will become better players and maybe their dreams will become their reality.”
“To start the process at a young age and pass through all the levels, then eventually you will have better ballplayers,” Ettles said. “I see in America that the kids are totally immersed in the culture of baseball. This ignites a small flame that eventually turns into a bushfire. In the Latino nations, it is a way out of the dangerous lives they lead. We have a good life in Australia with little need for change. But if you want to be among the best, if you want to compete against the best, then you have to be totally single-minded in what you want to achieve.”
“Above all, you have to fall in love with the game of baseball,” he said.
“I took what skills I had and the body I was blessed with and went to war with them,” Mark Ettles continued. “I was representing myself as a person, for my family, my local club, my state of Western Australia and my country. I am proud of what I achieved in the sport and I hope have served the good of all ballplayers with honour.”
“I spent only a limited time in the Major Leagues playing a game I put my heart, soul and life into,” he said. “The journey to that place of monuments – and legends - was a long, sweaty and painful ride. The joy at the end will not happen for everybody, but if you can walk away - like me - knowing that you gave everything, then you are likely to have set the base for a fulfilling and peaceful life.”
“The life skills I learnt from baseball allowed me to make the transition from the glamorous stuff as a Major League ballplayer to life after professional sport a relatively easy and comfortable one.”
“I am more than happy to accept the role of Patron for Australian Baseball Alumni,” he said. “It is an honour to be offered this position, and one that I would have never thought bestowed on me when I was a junior baseball player finding my way in the sport.”
Australia Baseball Alumni is delighted to have Mark Ettles as our Patron for the 2017/18 year. We thank him sincerely for his assistance with this story tracing his own baseball journey, one which we trust may serve as an inspiration for young players aspiring to achieve at the highest levels in their chosen sport.
The upcoming Australian Baseball Alumni membership year will run from 1 November 2017 until 31 October 2018. We urge all baseball-minded people, whatever their background in the sport, to renew or to take out Alumni membership – and to encourage others to do so.
Your membership will directly assist us in our endeavours to help promote the sport while providing guidance, mentoring and support for our emerging young Australian baseball players.