Its T minus 5 days and counting until the Australian
Baseball League kicks in to action with the Sydney Blue Sox squaring off
against the Canberra Cavalry at the Rooty Hill RSL (Vegas of the West).
Understandably baseball fans are excited. With this in mind the Defensive
Specialist has gone in to overdrive, and will endeavour to bring something to
the dish as often as possible this week as he prepares to take his premium seat
directly behind home plate. Once the games begin, you can rest assured that the
Defensive Specialist will be on hand to bring the people the most comprehensive
breakdowns this league will ever see. If that sounds like a rather grand
statement, you have to understand the atmosphere the Defensive Specialist is
working in. The anticipation in the baseball community is palpable and growing
as the season approaches. This past week rosters were released and if you
thought the hyperbole was already coming on thick and strong, you should see it
now! It’s forgivable that people are excited and perhaps overstepping the mark
(hell, the Defensive Specialist has been known to occasionally overblow
information in the heat of the moment!) but some of the stuff floating around
on the Internet has been a little tough to swallow.
From ABL Chairman Mark Peters on the Sydney Blue Sox:
‘‘The best Australian team ever put on the field.
It would rival some of our national teams.''
SCREEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEECH!!
That was the Defensive Specialist ripping on the hand
break in a desperate effort to slow down the runaway train. We know the season
is close Mark, and we know you’ve been involved intimately but you really do
need to control your rushes of blood. What got Peters so hot under the collar?
Well it was the Blue Sox roster that contained big league names like Oeltjen,
Rowland-Smith and Thomas.
Here’s the rest of the article:
Before we get back to Peter’s grand
statement that will be sure to have previous Championship ABL teams rolling in
their insolvency, lets discuss rosters quickly. Probably the most interesting
thing about the rosters is that they don’t appear to be set. What does that
mean? Well you can name 35 guys before the season starts and add or subtract as
many people as you please throughout the season. So for example if your team
can’t hit their way out of a wet paper bag, you can dial up any number of
hitters from all corners of the globe and slide them into the line-up to
provide an instant offensive spark. While the Defensive Specialist is not 100%,
it’s safe to assume that teams can’t do this in the middle of a series.
Another advantage of the flexible roster is
that it allows teams to compensate for those professional players who are on
pitch restrictions or who are called away to play in other leagues around the
world. Obviously the ABL wants teams to be competitive and therefore there
needs to be flexibility when rosters are depleted of key players.
It also appears to be the case that teams
have no limit on imported players. While franchises have affiliations with
professional teams, they can also tap in to international players who happen to
be in Australia playing local baseball. The biggest challenge in this scenario
is working with local clubs, who in many instances have bankrolled the player
and obviously don’t want to lose their services to the ABL.
Getting back to Mark Peters big call, the
Defensive Specialist thinks he may have shot his load a little prematurely.
Sure Oeltjen, Rowland-Smith and Thomas are big additions to any roster, but
lets be realistic, do we really expect to see them on the field for any great
stretch? Oeljtjen is likely to play the season but Thomas and Rowland-Smith
surely will not touch a baseball until the other side of Christmas and even
then any appearance will be limited as they prepare for spring training. Other
key additions include Dae Sung Koo (a 41 year old Korean with a sub .500 record
for his professional career), Scott Campbell (a Toronto Blue Jay professional
from New Zealand) and Brad Tippett and David Welch (both Australian pro’s who
didn’t play in the Claxton Shield last season). Other than that, you have pretty
much the same squad from last year that while very solid, will never be
mistaken for the greatest Australia has ever seen.
If Oeltjen is available all season, he is a
massive cog in the lineup and really makes it go. Koo will likely gobble up
innings and the addition of the Aussie pros solidifies the rotation. The
Defensive Specialist still rates the Blue Sox as the odds on favourites for the
first ABL championship, but lets try to keep things in perspective (for a week or
two anyway!) – you hearing the Defensive Specialist Mark?
More roster thoughts to follow this week and
if you happen to have any photos of the new uniforms please send them in ASAP
as the Defensive Specialist is wearing his tuxedo and patent leather shoes and
getting ready for a detailed evaluation of each teams outfits.
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