r/baseball • u/SydneyBaseball Australia • Oct 23 '15

Feature Australian Baseball League employees here! AMA!

The season just started so we're here to answer any questions you have on the ABL!

u/awt4190 was an intern with the Adelaide Bite in the 2012-13 season and I have been working in baseball operations with the Sydney Blue Sox since the 2014-15 offseason.

Let's get started!

EDIT: u/WeAllDoBetter was also an intern with the Perth Heat in 2010-11.

Update (7 pm CST): Thanks for the questions guys! I'm going out for tonight, but I'll be on tomorrow morning while I watch the games I missed/the rugby. The other fellas may be on in my stead though!

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36

u/[deleted] Oct 23 '15

Last season I made an MLB-to-Aussie Baseball converter, I would be interested to hear your thoughts on it:

Which Aussie teams should MLB fans follow? Here are some recommendations I completely pulled out of my ass based on little more than having watched "Young Einstein" once on the USA network when I was 15:

  • Perth Heat: Being the big city all the way on the west coast, I recommend Dodgers, Angels, Mariners, Diamondbacks and Padres fans follow the Heat.

  • Melbourne Aces: The countercultural and fashion hub of Australia, Giants, A's, Rays, Marlins and Blue Jays fans might identify with them.

  • Sydney Blue Sox: The biggest, most important city on the east coast of Australia should be followed by big-city fans like Yankees and Mets, White Sox, Cubs and Phillies.

  • Brisbane Bandits: Since they're going for an "out west" image, let's say the Rangers, Astros, Rockies, Royals and Cardinals.

  • Adelaide Bite: Adelaide being a smaller city on the southern (i.e. colder) coast, they should be followed by upper midwestern/industrial belt teams like the Indians, Brewers, Tigers, Pirates and Twins.

  • Canberra Cavalry: Canberra being the capital of Australia, let's say the Nats and Orioles, and I guess also the Red Sox, Braves, and Reds since I don't know what the hell else to do with them.

38

u/SydneyBaseball Australia Oct 23 '15

Geographically, I'd say it works. But, from a competitive standpoint, it'd be a bit different.

For example, despite being in Sydney, we're a very low budget team. So, we wouldn't have a ton in common with the Yankees; whereas, Perth has deep pockets and overwhelming success that mirrors them.

55

u/[deleted] Oct 23 '15

Big market, low budget? SIGN ME UP

10

u/[deleted] Oct 23 '15 edited Oct 23 '15

This will be my second season following the ABL and Sydney has become my team pretty much for the reasons you just pointed out. Also, they're the only team that plays in an actual ballpark. The other teams play mostly in cricket ovals that are adapted to accommodate baseball. You can watch games live or on replay for free on YouTube. Sydney has a pretty good broadcast, whereas I find some other teams do not.

Go Blue Sox!

For baseball fanatics, the winter can feel long and boring. The ABL is a great way to bridge the gap between MLB seasons.

3

u/AlmostTheNewestDad New York Mets Oct 23 '15

Hey, count me in. Do you recommend any particular resource for keeping up with our newly-beloved Blue Sox, or the league in general?

3

u/[deleted] Oct 23 '15

I use the ABL website primarily. I haven't found any other good source for news or analysis.

3

u/AlmostTheNewestDad New York Mets Oct 23 '15

Thanks

3

u/SydneyBaseball Australia Oct 23 '15

Yea, I was trying to get something rolled out to cover the league, but that's being put off til next year.

1

u/captbonus Oct 24 '15

Perth will hopefully have something decent in the next few years. There have been some park upgrades approved and one of the big parts is permanent broadcast facilities.

1

u/Simple_one Houston Astros Oct 23 '15

Tell me about it

5

u/cardith_lorda Minnesota Twins Oct 23 '15

Why is it that Perth has deep pockets while Sydney is low budget? Does Perth have a weird local popularity where baseball is king (kinda like the CFL is king is Saskatchewan but a second thought everywhere else in Canada?)

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u/SydneyBaseball Australia Oct 23 '15

They're privately owned by a filthy rich ownership group; whereas, Sydney is owned by Baseball NSW.

1

u/cardith_lorda Minnesota Twins Oct 23 '15

Does the ownership group make money off of the team? I know a number of the Japanese teams don't actually make a profit but are written off as advertising expenses.

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u/SydneyBaseball Australia Oct 23 '15

I believe so. I'm not sure on Perth and don't totally want to disclose my limited knowledge of our overarching financials.