Nothing to do with safety or risk management but I want to plug it here anyway. I’ll be at the first game in Brisbane on Thursday 11th Nov at RNA Showgrounds where the Bandits are vs Perth Heat. Just talking to the Bandits Management Team and they have organised a big night of entertainment for the opening game. As our US readers would know, baseball is an excellent sport to both participate in and spectate at. My sons toured the US and China when they were 12 years old and would not have had that opportunity in any other traditional Australian Sports. Qld Govt has kicked in $300k to prepare the RNA Showground for the series.
More info: BRISBANE BANDITS
The new Australian Baseball League, a landmark initiative of Major League Baseball (MLB), the Australian Baseball Federation (ABF) and the Australian Sports Commission was officially launched today ahead of the Season Opener on November 6.
The six new ABL teams Adelaide Bite, Brisbane Bandits, Canberra Cavalry, Melbourne Aces, Perth Heat, and Sydney Blue Sox, introduced their 35-man playing roster and unveiled their uniforms for the first time.
The Australian Baseball League will feature Australia’s best homegrown talent, including professionals plying their trade in the major and minor leagues of North America and Asia, and a number of high profile imports.
Australian players have long been competing at the highest professional and amateur levels around the world but a lack of domestic competition prevented them from being able to showcase their skills in front of a home crowd.
The ABL season, in which each team will play 40 games, will run throughout the southern summer, from November to January. The season complements the northern hemisphere baseball season, which begins in March.
The establishment of the ABL is the latest success in the long-term partnership between MLB and the ABF. The Major League Baseball Australian Academy Program began in 2001 to provide world-class coaching, training and development opportunities for elite young players and has led to a 40% increase in the number of Australians playing professional and college baseball.
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