Baseball Victoria, Author at Baseball Victoria

Geelong 10, Doncaster 6

Six runs on just four hits were not enough for the Dragons on this day. The knocks—Rhys Aldenhoven, Travis Cutt, Michael Mazzocato and Ben Utting each had one—were scattered singles throughout the game.

Mazzocato and Utting each finished with two runs batted in.

The victory keeps the Baycats (15-9-1) three games behind top-of-the-ladder Essendon; Doncaster (6-16-2) is last in their conference.

Cheltenham 3, Newport 1

Though the visiting Rams opened the scoring—a single run in the top of the first—it was all Rustlers on Sunday. Cheltenham parried the original volley by tallying single runs in the third, fourth and fifth frames to provide the winning margin.

With the win, the Rustlers (14-8-1) remained in second place in their conference, 4.5 games behind top-side Melbourne.

The loss keeps the Rams (8-16-0) fifth in their conference, a game behind the Pirates from Preston.

Melbourne 11, Preston 0

An all-around dominant effort buoyed the Demons in their 11-0 mercy-rule shortened whitewashing of the Pirates. Melbourne scored their runs in the second (three), third (four) and fifth (four) innings.

Now 19-4-2 on the season, the Demons occupy the top spot in their conference by a wide margin. The Pirates, 9-15-1, are in fourth, a half-game behind Sandringham.

Springvale 12, Sunshine 11

The game of the week took place in Springvale on Sunday as the Eagles and Lions contested a back-and-forth affair that wasn’t settled into the last of the ninth.

Sunshine got the scoring started in the top of the first with a single run. In the bottom of the second, Springvale scored four in the second and three in the third to take a commanding 7-1 advantage.

Undaunted, Sunshine flipped the script by themselves scoring four in the fourth and three in the third to go ahead by a run. In the bottom of the sixth, the Lions scored once and then added three insurance markers in the seventh to lead 11-8.

The Eagles, though, had one more comeback in them and they rallied for three runs in the eighth to tie the contest at 11, necessitating the Lions’ last inning heroics.

The win ups Springvale’s record to 11-14 on the season while Sunshine falls to 7-16.

Blackburn 2, Sandringham 1

In a closely fought pitchers’ duel, the Orioles eked past the host Royals, 2-1. Sandringham grabbed the lead in the third with a single run and then held Blackburn off the board until the top of the seventh when the Orioles tied the game at one.

A run for the away side and a scoreless bottom of the night provided Blackburn with the win.

For the victors, five different players—Steven Bookluck, David Dicker, Jacob Evans, Jarryd Rogers and Andrew Whiteford—recorded hits with Bookluck doubling and Evans providing the lone run batted in. Bookluck and Rogers scored the two Orioles runs.

With the win, Blackburn is now 14-11 on the season while Sandringham drops to 10-15-1.

Essendon 7, Waverley 1

Runs early and often propelled the Bombers to a relatively easy win over the Wildcats on Sunday. Essendon tallied two in the top of the first and then two more in both the sixth and eighth innings to provide a comfortable cushion. They added one more marker in the ninth as insurance.

Waverley’s lone score came in the bottom of the first frame.

At the bat, Jack Giles and Brett Tamburrino fuelled the Bombers with two hits each. Liam Bedford had Essendon’s lone extra base hit (a double) and Tim Sullivan knocked in two runs. Tamburrino scored three runs and Scott McIntyre crossed the plate twice in the win.

The victory keeps Essendon (18-6-1) atop their conference; Waverley (11-12-1) falls to one game below .500.

Mazzocato and Utting each finished with two runs batted in.

The victory keeps the Baycats (15-9-1) three games behind top-of-the-ladder Essendon; Doncaster (6-16-2) is last in their conference.

Cheltenham 3, Newport 1

With the win, the Rustlers (14-8-1) remained in second place in their conference, 4.5 games behind top-side Melbourne.

The loss keeps the Rams (8-16-0) fifth in their conference, a game behind the Pirates from Preston.

Melbourne 11, Preston 0

Now 19-4-2 on the season, the Demons occupy the top spot in their conference by a wide margin. The Pirates, 9-15-1, are in fourth, a half-game behind Sandringham.

Springvale 12, Sunshine 11

The game of the week took place in Springvale on Sunday as the Eagles and Lions contested a back-and-forth affair that wasn’t settled into the last of the ninth.

The Eagles, though, had one more comeback in them and they rallied for three runs in the eighth to tie the contest at 11, necessitating the Lions’ last inning heroics.

The win ups Springvale’s record to 11-14 on the season while Sunshine falls to 7-16.

Blackburn 2, Sandringham 1

A run for the away side and a scoreless bottom of the night provided Blackburn with the win.

With the win, Blackburn is now 14-11 on the season while Sandringham drops to 10-15-1.

Essendon 7, Waverley 1

Waverley’s lone score came in the bottom of the first frame.

The victory keeps Essendon (18-6-1) atop their conference; Waverley (11-12-1) falls to one game below .500.

This is an exciting opportunity for all Under 12 players that would be interested in participating in a friendship series carnival with tournament style conditions. Children will engage in international competition from Japan alongside our own local players/teams in a round-robin style carnival this March. There will be ample game time with nine games played over three days. Every opportunity created to play baseball is a great opportunity so please ensure you register your interest for what will be a memorable and fun filled carnival.

NOTE: There are NO entry/playing fees. Individual or team participation welcome.

Dates: March 28 (Monday), 29 (Tuesday), 31 (Thursday)

Location: Upwey Ferntree Gully Baseball Ground (Kings Park, Willow Road, Upper Ferntree Gully, VIC, 3156)

Eligible age group for participation: Born years 2003 and 2004

Details:

Expressions of interest:

For those that are interested in participating in this experience please contact Yoshi via email or mobile (0400 752 338) or Dwain Richardson via email.

Further to this try outs for the 2016 U12 IBA-BOYS Japan Touring Team will be held in April 2016. Sixteen Australian players will be selected to participate in the 34th IBA-BOYS Interantional World championship in Tokyo, Japan in July 2016.

Dates are yet to be confirmed however all expressions of interest can be emailed to Yoshi.

SYDNEY, NSW – The Southern Thunder is returning to the World Baseball Classic, after a triumphant 12-5 win from the host squad over South Africa in a competitive final game at the qualifier on Sunday afternoon at Blue Sox Stadium in Sydney.

Australia heads back to Major League Baseball’s international tournament after leaving the event three years ago winless, and the squad will take to the field in 2017 at a venue to be determined at the end of next month.

“We deserve to be in the World Baseball Classic,” Team Australia manager Jon Deeble said. “I think we should be in the Premier 12 too, so this is great for the sport. The hard work these guys have put in, they earned it today to be able to say they are going to the World Baseball Classic.”

Trailing 4-3 heading into the bottom of the sixth inning, Australia fought back to tie the matchup in the frame before adding two runs in the seventh and breaking the game open with a six-run eighth inning. Former big leaguer Trent Oeltjen – who came out of retirement to wear the green-and-gold uniform again – led the Aussie offence with three hits, two runs scored and two driven in.

“It’s fantastic for the program [to have the players want to represent their country],” Deeble said. “You can see Oeltjen is a hero here. Guys like him, we’ve got to keep them playing, and [Peter] Moylan was just saying to me how much he enjoys it, so we need to get more of those.”

Added Oeltjen: “It is amazing to be in another World Baseball Classic. We did what we came here to do and we will be in it next year, so that is very exciting…it is massive, not only for us but for the younger generation of kids. For baseball in Australia, it is huge.”

South Africa took its first lead of the game in the top of the opening frame when Pittsburgh Pirates prospect Gift Ngoepe led off the matchup with a home run. The 26-year-old shortstop was the only man to do any damage against Aussie hurler Travis Blackley until the sixth, when catcher Kyle Botha sent a three-run shot out of the yard.

“If it was a bad pitch, I would understand,” Blackley said. “But I made my pitch where I wanted, he just came out cheating on it I guess and got it. To give up the lead like that, I was not happy. I knew the boys in the bullpen were going to shut them down and we had the bats, so I wasn’t too upset about it, just had to go get the next out and see what happened.”

The big-league southpaw went 5 2/3 innings and allowed four runs on six hits with two walks and four strikeouts. He was followed by nine-year major-league veteran Moylan for 1 1/3 scoreless frames before Ryan Searle came in for the final two innings, sealing the deal with a perfect ninth.

“Our guys really battle,” the Aussie skipper said. “We had some great at-bats, 17 hits tonight. Even when we got down, we had the ability to come back and the pitching was great. Moylan really helps in the middle for us, which we haven’t had in the past, and Searle does a great job closing out games. So all in all, our pitching was very good for the whole tournament.”

Australia tied the game for the first time in the bottom of the first, Oeltjen driving in a run with his third of four doubles over three games in the tournament, and both teams remained in the deadlock to the bottom of the fifth.

“[South Africa is] a really good team and they just keep going,” Deeble said. “They struggled and they work hard and they’re a niggly team, you never beat them. I knew this from the start that this wasn’t going to be an easy competition.

“People said it would be a walk in the park and I said, ‘This is going to be tough.’ They proved that. 12-5, they sort of lacked a bit of depth in their bullpen but a couple more arms in the bullpen and it might be a one-run game.”

Not having played together since the last qualifying tournament four years ago, the South African squad faced a tough challenge against the other three teams in Sydney, but battled right to the end against the more experienced Aussies.

“It is difficult to play at this level if you’re not exposed to this level on a regular basis,” South Africa manager Alan Phillips said. “Make no bones about it, that is a professional staff over there. They have quality pitchers and their position players are outstanding. Australia has a habit of producing decent sportsmen.”

Added Blackley: “They played well up and above themselves today to start, they really came out on fire and they really dug their heels in and gave us a bit of a ride, but we were able to get through it in the end.”

Back-to-back home runs from second baseman Brad Harman and catcher Allan de San Miguel – freshly signed to a minor-league contract with the Kansas City Royals – gave the Aussies a temporary lead in the fifth frame. Seven of Australia’s starting nine had multi-hit contests.

The advancement for the qualifier favourites will help to continue the progression of the program on the international scene.

“It’s big for Baseball Australia,” Blackley said. “We had a bit of an unlucky run last time around, and the boys came out swinging today in this tournament and we got it done…On paper we clearly had the top team. We just had to go out here and take care of business and that’s what the boys were able to do, so we’re moving on.”

The advancement for the qualifier favourites will help to continue the progression of the program on the international scene.

Australian Wallaby great, George Gregan will throw the ceremonial first pitch at Sunday's Final of the World Baseball Classic Qualifier (WBCQ) at Blue Sox Stadium.

Gregan, the all-time games record-holder for the Wallabies, will take position on the mound and hope to throw a strike to Team Australia catcher and Minnesota Twins affiliate Allan De San Miguel to start the Finals proceedings.

The Southern Thunder have shown great form during the Qualifier and will go into Sunday's Final undefeated, with wins over the Philippines (11-1) and South Africa (4-1). With the home side boasting a roster of superstars that includes 26 of the 28 man squad affiliated with Major League clubs and all having played at the Minor level or higher, the atmosphere around camp couldn't be higher.

Australia will take on the winner of tonight’s match up between South Africa and New Zealand at Blacktown, with the first pitch being thrown at 6.30pm. Tickets for tonight's game are still available and can be purchased at southernthunder.baseball.com.au

Sunday’s Final will commence at 2pm, with Gregan set to throw the first pitch at 1.50pm. Limited tickets still remain for Sunday’s final, and its suggested you pre purchase rather than trying to buy them at the gate. Head to southernthunder.baseball.com.au to secure your seat.

The winner of Sunday night’s final will qualify for the World Baseball Classic scheduled for March 2017. Get behind your Team Australia

SYDNEY, New South Wales – With two quick wins to open the World Baseball Classic Qualifier in Sydney, hosts, Team Australia will head straight to the final game on Sunday, solidifying their spot with a 4-1 win over South Africa on Friday night at Blue Sox Stadium.

The Aussie arms led the way for the home squad, backed by an early offensive charge with their hitters plating three runs in the opening frame, and adding an insurance run in the sixth inning. Minnesota Twins farmhands Logan Wade and James Beresford each drove in a run for the Southern Thunder, with former big leaguer Trent Oeltjen adding an RBI of his own.

“We had some really good at-bats, we had four [hits] in a row, and I thought we swung the bat well,” Australian manager Jon Deeble said. “They contained us, but we had some real hard hits too that they made some plays on.

“They made some great plays tonight too and they’re a good club. And again, this is not going to be easy to win this, it’s going to be tough. Hopefully it comes down to pitching and we’ve got all our guys ready.”

Added South African manager Alan Phillips: “We feel we can play defence, we feel we’ve got pitchers who can manage the job on the hill with the defence behind them. As the tournament progresses, I’ve got no doubt the hitting will start coming through, the quality at-bats will start appearing more and more.”

Detroit Tigers prospect Warwick Saupold got the start for Team Australia and allowed one run – after a fly ball to the outfield was lost in the lights – on three hits with a walk and a strikeout over three innings of work. South African catcher Kyle Botha drove in his squad’s only run of the affair.

Saupold was followed on the mound by five-year Major Leaguer Ryan Rowland-Smith, Twins farmhand Todd Van Steensel and Australian Baseball League saves record-holder Ryan Searle. Rowland-Smith faced one batter over the minimum through three frames, Van Steensel threw two perfect innings, and Searle struck out the side to close out the game in the ninth.

“We build our team on pitching and defence,” Deeble said. “Our programs in Australia are about pitching and defence and that came to the floor tonight. Warwick was on a pitch count so we had to get him out of there but Ryan Rowland-Smith threw the ball as good as I’ve ever seen him throw it and Van Steensel was outstanding too, and then Searle, who’s had a good ABL [season], he continued his good work.”

The veteran leaders on the field have made significant contributions off the field as well, helping the Australian squad from all angles in the short tournament.

“We’ve got a group of guys who played in the big leagues but they act as a group, they work together,” the host team’s skipper said. “[Peter] Moylan’s been fantastic in the clubhouse and keeping guys loose. Oeltjen’s got a smile on his face every day, he’s a good leader. Even [Brad] Harman’s not a loud guy, he shows a lot of leadership, and [Luke] Hughes has been a leader for a long time too. They bring this club together and help these young kids.”

Seeing the success of the program firsthand and its development since they got their starts with the national team, returning to the squad has Rowland-Smith and Oeltjen both excited for the future and looking forward to more of the young players they’re seeing for the first time.

“Absolutely, it’s a good mix now of the older and the younger guys coming through and we really now don’t have any weak spots in our lineup,” Oeltjen said. “It’s really 1 to 9 and everyone’s contributing. So we’re a force to [reckon with] now that our lineup’s finally come together and it’s fun to be a part of it.”

Added the left-handed hurler: “This is the first chance I’ve had to meet some of these guys, especially from a pitching standpoint. Obviously Trent’s probably a little bit different with the hitters but we’re just trying to keep the same culture we’ve had since we won the silver medal in the Olympics. So we’re trying to keep that culture and we’ve got such a good group of guys here. I keep saying it because it’s so true. Everyone’s on the same page and we’re having a really good time and it shows on the field.”

Carl Michaels took the hill for South Africa and allowed the three runs in the first inning on five hits, walking two and striking out none. The visitors used four relievers to keep the Aussies at bay through the rest of the matchup.

With the victory, Australia advances straight to the final game of the Qualifier, facing the winner of Saturday’s matchup between South Africa and New Zealand.

“We’re as ready as we’re going to be for tomorrow,” Phillips said. “It’s just a case of keeping the guys injury-free and keeping the arms fresh. We’ve got staff circled down for tomorrow already. Jared Elario is going to start for us tomorrow so we’re in a good spot at the moment. We feel good.”

To stay up to date with the latest Team Australia information follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. For player profiles and behind the scene photos head to our website.

The veteran leaders on the field have made significant contributions off the field as well, helping the Australian squad from all angles in the short tournament.

With the victory, Australia advances straight to the final game of the Qualifier, facing the winner of Saturday’s matchup between South Africa and New Zealand.

To stay up to date with the latest Team Australia information follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. For player profiles and behind the scene photos head to our website.

SYDNEY, NSW – Overcoming an early deficit and a slow start in their first game of the World Baseball Classic Qualifier, Team Australia’s Southern Thunder took down the Philippines 11-1 in seven innings on Thursday night at Blue Sox Stadium in Sydney.

Aussie shortstop and Minnesota Twins minor leaguer James Beresford led the offensive charge with four hits in the game, driving in three runs for the home side. Participating in his third WBCevent, the 27-year-old native of Victoria helped to back a solid six-inning start from Canberra’s Steve Kent. The left-handed Atlanta Braves farmhand allowed one run on four hits with a walk and seven strikeouts.

“Kent was outstanding tonight,” Aussie manager Jon Deeble said. “That first inning he really battled, and he started changing speeds in the third or fourth inning. He was dominant today and Beresford really swung the bat well, as did Logan Wade [who doubled twice in the matchup]. We had some hard hits…it was a good all-around effort.”

The underdog Philippines squad took a lead in the opening frame of the matchup, with third baseman Brady Conlan driving in the team’s only run of the game in the first, bringing Twins farmhand – and Beresford’s teammate for the last three seasons – Eric Farris around after he led off the game with an infield single for the visitors.

“That was a really tough ballclub,” Deeble said. “The score did not indicate how good they are. They’ve got some good arms and an athletic infield. It is going to be a tough tournament and tomorrow is another day.”

Team Australia came back with a run in the bottom half of the first, went ahead with one in the second and added two in the fifth, before ending the game with a seven-run seventh and sealing the deal with a 10-run lead and international game-ending rules taking effect.

“It was a tough way to end it because we played a pretty solid game,” Philippines skipper Tim Hulett said. “We made some mistakes early but they didn’t fold because of them, and we were in the ballgame. [Visiting starter J.R.] Bunda did a fantastic job. He was a little bit of an unknown for us but…he was really competing well.”

Added Beresford: “Don’t let that score fool you. They’ve actually got some guys on that team who can really play. We blew it open a little bit at the end but we’re not looking at that as a 10-run win. It was kind of a three or four-run game for most of the game.”

Philippines righty Bunda went 2 1/3 innings before leaving the game after straining his throwing elbow. The right-hander allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits, walking two and striking out one. The visiting squad followed with five different relievers, including big-league southpaw Clay Rapada, whose WBC Qualifier appearance marks the end of his playing career.

“It was nice to come out here; the experience to me is priceless,” Rapada said. “Our nation has it tough coming out here, not being in season. I was impressed with how our guys battled…I gave them what I had tonight. I have to tip my cap to these guys; they’ve got a good squad.”

Australian first baseman Stefan Welch had three RBI in the matchup, and former big leaguer Trent Oeltjen drove in two of his own. Veteran major league hurler Peter Moylan threw the seventh inning and struck out the side.

“Team Australia is a very good team,” Hulett said. “There were no weaknesses in the lineup. There was not one guy where you felt like, okay, we can get by this guy. They all swung the bat well, they played the game the right way, it was very impressive.”

With the win, the Southern Thunder will match up against South Africa on Friday night, following the battle between winless squads New Zealand and the Philippines during the day.

“It’s always hard to come out in these competition games; the first game is really important,” Beresford said. “All the boys knew that from the get-go and we put some good at-bats together to start, and obviously Steve Kent had an outstanding game, which got us off to a good start. Now we prepare for tomorrow and hopefully put another good performance up there.”

To keep up to date with the latest Southern Thunder information make sure you follow Team Australia on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Story and Photo Credit to Alexis Brudnicki

Baseball Victoria is happy to announce the 2016 State Winter Championship dates and venues.

We are looking forward to working with each association and making each tournament a huge success.

Official release is below. If you have any further questions feel free to contact the office on (03) 9645 8000.

With Team Australia’s first game of the World Baseball Classic Qualifier just hours away, a call to arms has been issued from the team to the Australian Baseball community and newcomers, to come out to Blacktown and paint the town green and gold.

The Southern Thunder will line up against the Philippines on Diamond 1 at Blacktown International Sportspark at 7.30pm (local time) tonight as tournament favourites, boasting 26 of the 28 man roster having played in the Minor Leagues or higher.

“We have already proven that when we are at our best, we can match it with any given side in the world on any day” Team Australia Manager Jon Deeble said. “We know we can win, but we know we’ll have to be at our best to do it.”

Tournaments on home soil are few and far between for Team Australia, so to have the Qualifiers in our own backyard gives Aussie Fans the chance to catch the best of the best baseball talent in our country.

So let’s meet your Team Australia

PITCHERS
Travis Blackley
Peter Moylan
Ryan Rowland-Smith
Ryan Searle
Matt Williams
Justin Erasmus
Sam Gibbons
Wayne Lundgren
Todd Van Steensel
Josh Tols
Matt Timms
Steven Kent
Steven Chambers
Warwick Saupold