AA 16U Oceania Baseball Championships

Baseball New Zealand is pleased to announce the 'AA' 16U Oceania Championships will be held in Auckland from January 25-28, 2011.

Hosted by the Howick Pakuranga Baseball Club, the best 16-and-Under baseball talent from New Zealand, Australia, and Guam will converge on the park to compete in a triple round robin series for the title of Oceania Champion, and the opportunity to represent the region in the IBAF World Championships in Lagos de Moreno, Mexico, from 20th - 30th of August.

This will be the largest ever showcase of baseball in New Zealand, and feature a number of the world's best players in this age group, many of whom will go on to sign professional contracts with Major League teams in the States. Get down to the park to see them in action.

Throwing out the first pitch on January 25th will be New York Yankee centre fielder Curtis Granderson, who will be visiting New Zealand to promote the game of baseball, and will be holding baseball clinics and signing autographs for fans on the 25th. What a great opportunity to meet one of the game's best players!

And all for free! Get on down to the park on the 25th of January to grab your photo with the Yankee's star outfielder, as well as a number of New Zealand sporting stars and celebrities.

The New Zealand team is lead by Head Coach Aaron Campbell, one of the nation’s first athletes to play and coach at an American university, and who recently trained with Major League Baseball’s Chicago Cubs.

He is joined on the coaching staff by his brother and Hitting Coach, Scott Campbell, currently a second baseman in the Toronto Blue Jays organisation, along with former Taiwanese professional and Los Angeles Dodger minor leaguer player Fielding Coach Cola Yeh, and Pitching Coach Matt Mills. Possibly the strongest group ever chosen to lead New Zealand’s young baseball players

“The combined baseball experience, at the highest levels globally, is unrivalled by past teams we’ve put together,” said Baseball New Zealand president David Ballinger. “We’ve got one current professional player, a former professional player, a great pitching coach—led by a guy who recently trained with the Cubs and who we believe is one of the best coaches in the entire region. Our 'AA' team is in good hands with this coaching staff.”

New Zealand’s first game will also be the tournament’s opening game and will take place at 10 am on 25 January, with the days games televised on SKY Sports.

New Zealand will take on the national team from Guam in this opening round game, followed by a game against Australia’s top 16-year-old ballplayers at around 1:30pm.

All games in the 'AA' Oceania Championships will be played at Lloyd Elsmore Park on Howick-Pakuranga Baseball Club’s baseball field number one.

Visit the official site for further details

Event listed by Baseball New Zealand

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