Baseball Australia is proud to announce the attendees for the inaugural Australian MLB Invitational that will take place in Lismore, NSW from 26 August to 2 September.
| First Name | Last Name | State |
| Joshua | Anthony | QLD |
| Cooper | Bake-Smith | NSW |
| Jacob | Bald | VIC |
| Jude | Barker | SA |
| Jack | Bennetts | NSW |
| Nicholas | Bertucci | QLD |
| Dylan | Bojarski | WA |
| Robbie | Brennan | SA |
| Dustin | Brown | WA |
| Jake | Burns | NSW |
| Clayton | Campbell | NSW |
| Nicholas | Chappell | NSW |
| Connor | Chehab | WA |
| Max | Chipper | WA |
| Daniel | Choi | WA |
| Mathew | Clements | NSW |
| Charlie | Collins | VIC |
| Cooper | Davidson-Peacock | SA |
| Jaime | Fox | NSW |
| Riley | Franklin | WA |
| Harry | Garrett | VIC |
| Caleb | Goodwin | WA |
| Brodie | Heeps | SA |
| Elijah | Hewett | WA |
| Jordan | Hodges | SA |
| Blake | Holding | VIC |
| Nathan | Howarth | NSW |
| Trenell | Hutchins | VIC |
| Tiaan | Janse van Rensburg | ACT |
| Tye | Kazmierowski | WA |
| Jasper | King | QLD |
| Ian | Lee | QLD |
| Solomon | Maguire | NSW |
| Cain | McClelland | NSW |
| Matthew | Meleka | QLD |
| Kazhimi Setiaputra | Naim | VIC |
| James | Napier | NSW |
| Jimmy | Nati | NSW |
| Roan | North | NSW |
| Jordan | Norvall | WA |
| Patrik | Paramonov | ACT |
| Jaycob | Pascuzzi | VIC |
| Alex | Pellow | NSW |
| Pharell | Peni | VIC |
| Aidan | Prokopec | SA |
| Alessandro | Ranieri | NSW |
| Aiden | Rasmussen | QLD |
| Cooper | Rickard | VIC |
| Lachlan | Roberts | QLD |
| Keeley | Ronalds-Greatbatch | VIC |
| Thomas | Ross | WA |
| Connor | Schibeci | VIC |
| Tyson | Schunke | SA |
| Mcleod | Sell | VIC |
| Nathan | Smith | VIC |
| Maddux | Stivey | WA |
| Declan | Summerford | QLD |
| Mitchell | Thomas | VIC |
| Finn | Weichard | VIC |
| Matthew | West | VIC |
| Michael | West | WA |
| Toby | White | NSW |
| Lachlan | Wilson | QLD |
| Riley | Yeatman | SA |
The Australian MLB Invitational is designed to allow the best 13 and 14 year old players in the country to play competitive games under the guise of both local and international coaches on home soil, and will be heavily subsidised by MLB to maximise player attendance.
MLB Front Office Staff will be in attendance at the invitational, which is to be structured akin to the MLB Australian Academy Program (U15-U17), a longstanding program that has produced Major Leaguers like Brad Harman, Luke Hughes and Liam Hendriks.
Baseball Australia’s Head of High Performance Glenn Williams is excited to continue the already strong relationship with MLB.
“MLB’s support in Australia has been long standing, and the fact we get a chance to put in a program in place for another age group of athletes is excellent,” Williams said.
“The MLBAAP has produced some of the best baseball players to leave our shores. The fact we get to see and work with players at age 13 and 14 will no doubt help accelerate the development of the next generation of Australian stars.”
Players will be placed into teams which will be announced at a later date.
Hills are only one win away from the Junior League World Series International Championship after a 10-6 victory over South Czech Republic at the Junior League World Series.
Hills raced to a four run lead after one inning after a two-RBI single from Liam McCallum and an RBI double from Sam McGoldrick.
McCallum and Alex Ranieri finished with two hits apiece, while Brock Tonna scored twice to go with his hit.
Ranieri and Jack Grey both battled admirably on the mound, consistently putting up scoreless innings. Two big rallies from South Czech Republic kept Hills on their toes, however the Australian team showed some trademark fight, scoring the last four runs of the game to seal a place against Latin America in the next round.
Brent Iredale made history as the first Australian to hit a home run at both the Little League, and the Junior League World Series.
Hills will face Latin America on Friday 18 August at 6am AEST for a place in the International Championship Game at the Junior League World Series.
Behind a complete game shutout from Clayton Campbell, Hills claimed the Australia Region's first win at a Junior League World Series, defeating Puerto Rico 4-0.
Campbell struck out seven and only allowed one hit in a masterful performance on the mound, as his offence backed him up in a solid team display.
The third inning was the difference, with Hills plating all four runs. Alex Ranieri claimed a pair of hits for Hills, with Sam McGoldrick driving in a pair of runs. Campbell also managed a hit himself, and was supported by Brent Iredale, whose RBI double broke the scoreless deadlock.
Campbell put an exclamation mark on a stunning performance, striking out the side to end the ballgame, and keep Hills in contention for the Junior League World Series.
Hills' next game takes place at 1am AEST on Thursday 17 August, where they'll match up with South Czech Republic.
At the completion of the 2016/17 season, Baseball Victoria undertook a review which would focus on the processes and role of our Charters.
The purpose of the review was work with each Charter to evaluate how the current system was operating and to assist in finding efficiencies that would benefit the players, committees and overall sustainability of the sport.
The Charter system which has been operational within Victoria for a number of years, serves the purpose of offering baseball programs to young people of all backgrounds and of all skill levels.
The Charter system aligns with Little League International which is currently in operation in more than 75 countries. There are six Charters in operation around Victoria that run programs which range from t-ball to elite pathway programs and competitions with Charters responsible for a record 129 teams of junior baseballers during the 2016/17 season.
Baseball Victoria recognises the importance of the Charter program as a way of both attracting new people to the sport, keeping young people engaged in the sport and offering opportunities for development and progression.
Following the completion of the review, Baseball Victoria’s Board of Directors have agreed on the creation of a new committee that will act as a central contact point to support the development of junior baseball and assist Charters in achieving their strategic goals of Gain, Train, Retain and Sustain.
The key responsibilities of the committee are to:
• Ensure alignment with the overarching philosophy of junior baseball
• Ensure consistency in the delivery of Charter programs across Victoria
• Provide a central point of contact for key stakeholders
• Help coordinate junior baseball activities via each Charter Committee
• Help identify junior coaching and umpiring needs and opportunities within each Charter
The committee currently consists of key stakeholders from Baseball in Victoria, as well as one representative from each Charter.
The committee's first meeting took place on Monday 14 August and has already begun work on a number of key initiatives. With this group firmly entrenched within Baseball Victoria structure and a key part of our player development pathway, the committee aims to assist in giving Charters the capacity to continue to flourish in the community.
Hills came up against the defending champions at the Junior League World Series, and eventually fell 11-0 against one of the tournament favourites, Shing-Ming from Chinese Taipei.
Liam McCallum's two out single in the opening inning was Hills' only hit of the ballgame, with McCallum again reaching base thanks to a walk in the fourth.
McCallum and Andrew Martin both battled hard on the mound for Hills, but the firepower of Shing-Ming was too much, as they scored in every inning to keep the Australian Junior League Champions at bay.
Sam McGoldrick made a nice play in right field to cut down an advancing Shing-Ming runner attempting to go from first to third, however the Shing-Ming offence kept rolling and restricted Australia's offensive production.
Australia's next game at the Junior League World Series takes place at 3am AEST on Wednesday 16 August.
Baseball Australia are proud to announce the dates for the 2018 U16/U18 Australian Youth Championships.
2018 Australian Youth Championships
Venue: Blacktown International Sportspark, Blacktown, NSW
Dates: Friday 5 January - Sunday 14 January 2018
Host Partners: Baseball NSW
A full event schedule for the 2018 Australian Youth Championships will be published in the coming months.
U16 Australian Youth Championship Homepage
U18 Australian Youth Championship Homepage
Baseball Australia has today announced the players and coaching staff that will represent Australia at the upcoming U18 Baseball World Cup in Thunder Bay, Canada.
Baseball Australia’s Head of High Performance Glenn Williams said the coaching staff were challenged during the selection process.
"This has been one of the most difficult teams to select in recent memory, which is a credit to the hard work that the players and state based staff have put in leading into the MLBAAP,” Williams said.
“We have been fortunate to have had ample opportunities to see players throughout a variety of programs to gather the information needed to finalise this team.”
“We feel we have a very versatile club which will have the advantage of playing eight quality lead up games in Canada prior to the World Cup. I’m excited to see how they fare throughout the entirety of the program and have no doubt they will give it everything they have.”
Long-time Team Australia coaching members Steve Fish, Graeme Lloyd and Damian Shanahan will this year be joined with two men coaching an Australian team for the first time.
David Kandilas has been a long-time member of the Australian Men’s National team, including two appearances at the World Baseball Classic. More recently, Kandilas was a member of the 2017 MLB Australian Academy Program coaching staff, as well as beginning a Player/Game Development role for the ACT Baseball Association.
Tyler Anderson is a former Perth Heat representative that has had international experience at the 2011 Asia Series. Anderson has also spent time playing in the college system in the US, and is currently an Assistant Coach at St. Louis University, in Missouri. Anderson has been involved in a mentorship role for Australian athletes looking to play College baseball in the USA.
Australia’s performances in Thunder Bay have been excellent, with a silver medal at the 2010 World Junior Baseball Championship, which included a memorable 2-1 win over Cuba in the Semi-Final.
Team Australia - U18 World Cup
Jake Amos – NSW
Nic Anderson-Vine – NSW
Jordan Barnett – VIC
Josh Bedggood – QLD
Jackson Boyd - VIC
Brodie Cooper-Vassalakis – ACT
Jarryd Dale – VIC
Mitchell Edwards – ACT
Dermot Fritsch – QLD
Jake Green – ACT
Alex Hall – WA
Ky Hampton – SA
Liam Holm - NSW
Duane Johannsen – QLD
Jack O’Loughlin – SA
Lochlan Southee – WA
Jess Williams – WA
Rixon Wingrove – NSW
Jett Wright – WA
Jamie Young – VIC
Coaching and Support Staff
Steve Fish – Manager
Graeme Lloyd – Pitching Coach
Damian Shanahan – Assistant Coach
David Kandilas – Assistant Coach
Tyler Anderson – Assistant Coach
Greg Castle - Physiotherapist
Neil Barrowcliff – Executive Officer
Team Australia - U18 World Cup
Jake Amos – NSW
Nic Anderson-Vine – NSW
Jordan Barnett – VIC
Josh Bedggood – QLD
Jackson Boyd - VIC
Brodie Cooper-Vassalakis – ACT
Jarryd Dale – VIC
Mitchell Edwards – ACT
Dermot Fritsch – QLD
Jake Green – ACT
Alex Hall – WA
Ky Hampton – SA
Liam Holm - NSW
Duane Johannsen – QLD
Jack O’Loughlin – SA
Lochlan Southee – WA
Jess Williams – WA
Rixon Wingrove – NSW
Jett Wright – WA
Jamie Young – VIC
Coaching and Support Staff
Steve Fish – Manager
Graeme Lloyd – Pitching Coach
Damian Shanahan – Assistant Coach
David Kandilas – Assistant Coach
Tyler Anderson – Assistant Coach
Greg Castle - Physiotherapist
Neil Barrowcliff – Executive Officer
To stay up-to-date with the Australian U18 World Cup team’s progress, stay tuned to the Team Australia Baseball Facebook page, as well as baseball.com.au.
Season eight of the Australian Baseball League (ABL) promises to be the most hotly contested yet, with the Brisbane Bandits set to defend their back-to-back crown through an expanded ABL post-season.
With the top four teams at the end of the home and away season qualifying for the semi-finals, ABL fans will have more opportunities to cheer their team towards Boral Championship glory.
Baseball Australia CEO Cam Vale was delighted to confirm the 2017/18 Schedule, in what is an exciting time for baseball in Australia.
"Building on the success of last season, Baseball Australia are committed to continual improvement of the ABL, following the acquisition of the league in 2016," said Vale.
"Going back to a four-team playoff is a great win for our fans. We have been very much guided by our recent ABL Member survey, and 2017/18 promises to bring fans closer to the game than ever."
The season kicks off with defending back-to-back champions Brisbane Bandits hosting Canberra Cavalry on Thursday 16 November at Holloway Field, QLD.
The Hume Highway Cup will kick-off in Round 2 as the Canberra Cavalry host Sydney while in Round 3 Melbourne Aces will look to avenge their Boral ABL Championship Series defeat when they welcome the Bandits to town.
Perth Heat will reignite rivalries with Adelaide Bite in Round 4, in what promises to be a great series.
Some key points in the 2017/18 ABL Schedule are;
Each of the six ABL teams will play 40 games during the regular season.
Brisbane will attempt to make history with a first ABL Championship three-peat
The team's with the best four (4) overall records will qualify for the ABL Playoffs.
Teams will be seeded from #1 to #4 based on record
#1 Seed and #2 Seed awarded home semi-finals, and will host all three games in a best of three series.
The ABLCS will be a home and away split series with the Highest Seeded Winner awarded the choice to host either Game 1, OR Games 2 and 3.
ABLtv will continue to deliver Australian baseball fans live, free and on-demand, with a full streaming schedule to be released soon.
Once again, you can download your favourite team's schedule straight to your smartphone or computer thanks to ECAL.
To download your favourite team's schedule to your digital calendar, click here.
And while you are getting digital the Baseball Live App is the best place to keep up-to-date with all your ABL news, scores, standings, live broadcasts and much more heading into the 2017/18 ABL Season.