The championship series in the Australian Baseball League between defending champion Perth Heat and the Melbourne Aces will be played this weekend. It is going to be played in a best-of-three format and the Heat will enter the matchup as the heavy favorite, dominating in the regular season and winning the first-round series against the Aces in four games. Melbourne reached the finals by defeating the Sydney Blue Sox in round two.
Game one on Friday will feature a matchup of former MLB pitchers with Virgil Vasquez (Perth) and Travis Blackley (Melbourne). One day later Warwick Saupold (Perth) will take on Nic Ungs (Melbourne). Melbourne’s offense includes former Major Leaguers Brad Harman and Justin Huber. Minnesota Twin Luke Hughes of the Heat will miss the series with a shoulder injury. Germany’s reliever Markus Solbach is in the Melbourne bullpen.
The ABL championship series will be broadcast to over 50 countries through Fox Sports, MLB Network, ESPN Star and Australia Network. There also will be a stream on the ABL Website with a 30-minute delay.
Schedule:
Friday, February 10:
4.05pm WST Perth Heat – Melbourne Aces
Saturday, February 11:
4.05pm WST Perth Heat – Melbourne Aces
Sunday, February 12:
4.05pm WST Perth Heat – Melbourne Aces*
*if necessary