Derek Jeter has played 15 seasons for the New York Yankees and earns more than $A25 million a year but would he fancy playing short-stop for a summer in Sydney?
Probably not, but the new Australian Baseball League to launch in November is aiming to one day lure ageing Major League stars down under to give baseball unprecedented exposure in a cricket-loving country.
The new league will be bankrolled by Major League Baseball and the Australian Baseball Federation, and it’s the first time the MLB has made such an active investment in an overseas competition.
Much like the A-League has enticed football greats like Dwight Yorke and Robbie Fowler, the ABL is hoping the attractive lifestyle and a calendar which will coincide with the MLB’s off-season will encourage players of the ilk of Jeter, Manny Ramirez, Alex Rodriguez and Albert Pujols to play in Australia when they reach their twilight.
“The fact is more and more major league players are prolonging their careers in the major leagues,” ABL Baseball Operations Manager Ben Foster said.
“It’s not uncommon now for players to keep playing well into their 30s and into their 40s and still compete at the major league level.
“When you’re talking about a league where even if you make the absolute minimum wage, you’re talking about something that far outstrips what we could ever imagine offering them.
“But by the same token we have the added appeal of lifestyle and there’s a lot of conversations you have with professional players and coaches amongst the industry, saying `I’d love to come to Australia, I’ve never been there.’
“So there’s that drawcard where people would come more for a different landscape rather than any financial value.”
The former ABL ended up on the scrapheap in 1999 amid mounting debts, and although it seems like an unlikely `field of dreams’, the Baseball Federation of Australia believe they have the model in place to build a successful league.
The inaugural teams will be based in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth and Canberra and will be centrally owned by the competition itself, as opposed to private ownership.
If things go well teams will be added in Newcastle and on the Gold Coast, but generating enough money to achieve their goals will again be the fledgling league’s biggest challenge.
The ABL’s immediate plan is to get the 88 Australians playing in the majors and minors in the US – including the likes of Grant Balfour and Ryan Rowland-Smith – as well players of other nationalities in the US minor leagues and Asia to come and strengthen the local competition.
“We would be open to those arrangements because it’s a win-win,” said Foster.
“We will be targeting as many US professional players or Australians who are based in the US participating … we would be keen to pursue that.”
“We’re fairly realistic on where we will be starting out and we’re not expecting to emerge onto the scene and compete directly with the major sports.
“It’ll be a step-by-step process, but we’ve got some definite plans of growth in the league and we’re supremely confident in the type of product we can produce.”
Frank
Guest
There were a number of US players that played in the old ABL (1989-1998) that went on to play with MLB organisations - Shea Hillenbrand East Coast Cougars / Boston Red Sox being one. Most ABL Clubs had 3-4 US players, usually AA League standard in their ranks. As a long serving baseball person I regret to say that i do not see the new proposal succeeding. Most of the earlier ABL teams finished well in the red and at a time when there was a reasonably powerful base of support from juniors in particular. These numbers have been decimated in the past decade and i see this translating to many fewer bums on seats. I also blame the lack of coverage of recent years' Claxton Shiled which was played in an ABL type format. The junior base has gone largely because of this lack of exposure. A`very sad situation for a great game played in this country for as many years as most other mainstream sports and a real appealing game for children, T ball being one of the very first to recognise the needs of smaller players with this variant.. And in speaking of the past Sydney teams don't forget the originals - Sydney Metros who played their only season based in the Sydney Football Stadium (1989).
Nicholas R.W. Henning
Guest
I agree, Australia's appetite for sport is wide ranging and we have seen the NBL suffer recently who enjoyed a boom during the 1990s. The truth is marginal sports like basketball, baseball, and soccer all have a battle to survive, but it is a battle which can result in sustainability. You're right TV money and the like can not support all the codes, this is why particular sports need to be conservative in their approach. I feel that the ABL’s approach is safely cautious.
Nicholas R.W. Henning
Guest
I would very much like to see the Sydney Blues too. The NSW Cricket made it difficult to keep the Blues name in the ABL, yet they did not oppose the NRL's NSW Blues with the same force. We see sporting codes in Australia shares team names across the codes, why should baseball be any different.
Nicholas R.W. Henning
Guest
I am interested to know why you feel the Big Bash is more superior to the ABL? And I would also like to know what you feel would be the most appropriate structure for professional baseball in Australia?
Nicholas R.W. Henning
Guest
I am interested to know on what grounds you feel the ABL will fail?
Nicholas R.W. Henning
Guest
The ABL is more than just an Aussie baseball league. It is a melting pot of baseball talent and during its past tenure it produced numerous high quality baseball players. MLB is supporting the league which is a significant means of assistance. Given the failed Israeli League MLB has an opportunity to invest in a foreign venture which is wanted, and produces excellent resources. The potential success of the league is multi-layered. Specifically, young players have an additional goal to work towards, fans can follow a baseball league, and Australia can continue to export baseball talent. The financial success of the league and media exposure are certainly areas which have weaknesses. But in my opinion no sport in Australia is completely safe from declining interest. International cricket in 2009 / 2010 experienced a surprising down turn and the A-League has suffered with attendances at games. It is true that Australia has a jam-packed sporting calendar and all codes have to work hard to survive and succeed. I am optimistic that baseball has a place in Australia, but we all have to do our bit by attending games and participating in various ways to keep the Aussie baseball heart ticking. Nicholas R.W. Henning - Australian Baseball Author
You What!?
Guest
It will fail.
Working Class Rugger
Guest
This will be no more than a development League . With the growth of the Big Bash which will be its closet comparable competition it will be the lesser product. This coming from someone who grew up playing Baseball.
The Link
Guest
Bring back the Sydney Blues and the Parramatta Patriots
Emperor Penguin
Guest
Interesting, but the Australian sporting landscape is pretty saturated as it is now. With Cricket, Netball, Basketball, A League and now Baseball all competing, surely the tv money simply isn't there to keep all these leagues viable. Clubs or entire leagues will fold.