Sport
Baseballers ready to take on the world
Tuesday 20 May, 2008 12:01am
THE Hills North baseball squad are hard at work preparing for their chance to shine on the world stage.
After defeating Cronulla in the Little League State Tournament at Easter, the team of players aged 12 and under will be vying to be national champions when they play in the championships in Queensland next month.
Hills Junior Baseball Association President Peter Schmidt said if the team wins in Queensland, they will be thrust in to the international tournaments.
"If they win in Queensland, they'll progress to Hong Kong as the Australian representatives in the Asia-Pacific division, and have a real chance of making the Little League World Series in America in August," he said.
"This is the first time that an Australian team has had that sort of opportunity.
"The US baseball scouts have always been able to identify talented individuals, but the Little League format promotes an entire team.
"In turn, this means that those extra few 'diamonds in the rough' get their 15 minutes of fame on the world stage."
Mr Schmidt said the Hills district had a proud tradition of players playing at an international level.
"Our local clubs have developed many elite players over the years, and right now there are about 20 of them making a living from the game in the USA, Japan, Taiwan and elsewhere," he said.
