Press Release Australian Baseball League
SYDNEY, NSW — Two rounds of the 2016/17 Australian Baseball League season are in the books, and a not-unexpected pattern has emerged: home is where the wins are.
In all but one of the series played so far this season, the home team has come away from the weekend with a 3-1 series win. The lone exception was last weekend’s Brisbane/Perth matchup out west, which ended a 2-2 split. Here’s a look at what went down in Round 2.
CANBERRA (4-4) def. SYDNEY (4-4)
The first rendition of this year’s Hume Highway Cup went in the favour of the home Cavalry, who rebounded from a series loss in Round 1 to take last weekend’s matchup 3-1.
David Kandilas had the hot bat in his first game against his former team, going 3-for-4 with a pair of home runs and four RBIs to lead Canberra to a 8-4 win in the series opener. The Blue Sox bounced back in Game 2, shutting out the Cavalry 10-0 in the second game. Starting pitcher Craig Anderson allowed three hits in his 5.0 innings on the mound, and former Blue Sox bat boy Shane Kelleher was the hero at the plate with a 3-for-5, four RBI performance that included his first home run. But strong pitching from Josh DeGraaf and a solid day at the plate by Boss Moanaroa shifted the series momentum back to the home side, with Canberra winning Game 3 by a 4-1 final score.
The series finale made history in more than one way. Not only was it the first ABL game held in Wollongong, NSW, but the two teams scored 32 combined runs, a new ABL single-game record. Canberra won the match 21-11, led by Toronto Blue Jays prospect Mike Reeves, who went 3-for-5 with five RBIs, a home run and two runs scored. Every hitter in the Cavalry lineup had a hit, and the two teams also slugged six home runs combined.
BRISBANE (5-3) split with PERTH (3-5)
The lone series split of the season occurred last weekend in Perth, where the Heat hosted the ladder-leading Bandits.
Brisbane took the first game 6-2, and Tampa Bay Rays prospect Kevin Padlo continued his strong season with a 2-for-4, four RBI day at the plate.
But the home Happy Heaters bounced back, taking the middle two games in dramatic fashion. Perth capitalised on a rare moment of weakness by the Bandits’ deep bullpen in Game 2, rallying for six runs in the bottom of the seventh inning en route to a 9-8 win. Young Detroit Tigers prospect Ulrich Bojarski went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and four RBIs, including a go-ahead triple in that forceful seventh inning. Playing in his first series of the 2016/17 ABL season, veteran Tim Kennelly delivered a walk-off single in the bottom of the seventh inning to give the Heat a 2-1 win in the first game of a doubleheader.
Brisbane rallied late in the finale, winning 11-7 and boosted by a late surge that saw seven runs scored in the final two innings. Leadoff hitter Aaron Whitefield did his job to a tee in the game, going 5-for-6 with an RBI and two runs scored, and the Bandits gained sole control of first place on the ladder after the weekend.
ADELAIDE (4-4) def. MELBOURNE (4-4)
Both the Bite and the Aces seemed headed in opposite directions at the beginning of the round, with Adelaide coming off a series loss in Sydney and Melbourne riding high after going 3-1 at home. But the Bite came out on top in Round 2, christening Adelaide Shores Baseball Complex with a 3-1 home series win.
Melbourne took the opener 2-1, led by a The first game of the teams’ Saturday doubleheader created some serious déja-vu for fans and staff alike, back to 7 November 2015, when a scheduled seven-inning contest between the two teams in Adelaide went 15 innings, resulting in the postponement of the second game of the doubleheader. This game only went 11 innings, and contrary to last year’s result, the Bite pulled off the win on a walk-off single off the bat of birthday batsman Bas Nooji.
Angus Roeger‘s two-run homer, the first official homer at Adelaide Shores Baseball Complex, provided all the offence the Bite needed in the nightcap. They cruised to a 2-0 win and the doubleheader sweep thanks also to a strong outing on the mound by starter Max McNabb, who struck out seven batters and allowed just two hits in 5.2 innings. Jordan Cowan and Stefan Welch drove in three runs apiece in Adelaide’s offensive outburst the series finale, leading the Bite to a 10-3 game win and 3-1 series win, their first series victory of the year.