News

It’s been nearly nine months since the last pitch was thrown in the Australian Baseball League.

A lot has happened since the Adelaide Giants lifted the Claxton Shield on January 25. Players have changed teams, international partnerships have been announced, new managers have arrived and a fresh crop of Australians are returning from college.

With the 2026-27 ABL season opening on November 19, here are some of the biggest stories you might have missed during the off-season.

With less than four weeks to go, I’m sure there is more to come.

Australians return from college

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One of my favourite parts of the ABL is watching young Australians get their first crack at professional-level baseball.

This season, there’s a growing list of Australians returning home after playing college baseball in the United States. Some have put up enormous numbers, some have signed professional contracts and others are looking to make their mark in the ABL.

I wrote about ten of them in an article here. 

Giants land former MLB pitcher and Helms Award winner Alexander Wells

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This is the big free agent signing of the off-season, isn’t it?

Former Major Leaguer and Team Australia pitcher Alexander Wells has moved with his family to South Australia and will suit up for the defending champion Adelaide Giants.

Wells spent the last two seasons with the Sydney Blue Sox.

In his first ABL season in 2024-25, the left-hander dominated the competition, going 6-1 with a league-leading 1.55 ERA on his way to winning the Helms Award as the ABL’s Most Valuable Player. He followed that up with a 3.42 ERA across 50 innings in 2025-26, the fifth-best ERA in the league.

He was named to the 2026 World Baseball Classic roster.

Wells was handed the ball for Australia’s opening game against Chinese Taipei and delivered three shutout innings, allowing just one hit and striking out six hitters. He finished his outing by striking out the final five batters he faced.

Wells is one of just 41 Australians to have reached Major League Baseball, having last pitched for the Baltimore Orioles in 2022.

Perth lands one of Cincinnati’s top prospects

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This feels particularly timely, especially with former Perth Heat player Junior Caminero featuring in the World Series.

Could Cincinnati Reds prospect Liberts Aponte be another future Major Leaguer to come through Perth?

The Venezuelan shortstop is ranked as the Reds’ No. 7 prospect by MLB Pipeline and was described as one of the best shortstops in the 2025 international signing class.

Aponte made his professional debut at just 17 years old. In 2026, he hit .351 with 11 extra-base hits and 18 RBI across 33 games in the Dominican Summer League.

He’ll be just 19 years old when the ABL season begins.

International partnerships bring MLB and Japanese talent to Australia

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I love watching players from different countries express themselves through baseball.

Each ABL team has a partnership with a professional team around the world. It’s one of the best parts of the league. It benefits players, raises the standard of competition, helps with financial costs and assists Team Australia on the world stage.

Since professional baseball began in Australia in 1989, more than 170 players have gone on to reach Major League Baseball after playing in the country, with many others progressing to professional leagues in Japan and Korea. Names like Junior Caminero and Ronald Acuna have graced our league.

This season, clubs have announced players or arrangements involving the following organisations, with more to come in the coming days. Keep your eyes peeled. Let’s start with what has been publicly confimed:

– Chiba Lotte Marines (Adelaide Giants)
– Yomiuri Giants (Adelaide Giants)
– Tokyo Yakult Swallows (Sydney Blue Sox)

– Texas Rangers (Adelaide Giants)
– Philadelphia Phillies (Adelaide Giants)
– Kansas City Royals (Brisbane Bandits)
– Cincinnati Reds (Perth Heat)
– Tampa Bay Rays (Perth Heat)
– Houston Astros (Sydney Blue Sox)
– Texas Rangers (Sydney Blue Sox)

– NC Dinos (Sydney Blue Sox)

When you add it all up, that’s teams from Korea, Japan and the USA confirmed sending teams to Australia!

Here are some headlines within the…er…headlines?

Blue Sox expand international partnerships

The Sydney Blue Sox will welcome players from three major leagues – Korea, Japan and Major League Baseball!

The Houston Astros, NC Dinos and Tokyo Yakult Swallows will send players to Sydney this season.

Players are not yet announced.

Brisbane has three Kansas City Royals prospects heading its way.

The Bandits have announced outfielders Henry Ramos and Roni Cabrera, along with Hiro Wyatt, from the Royals organisation.

Ramos hit .258 with seven home runs, 41 RBI and 20 stolen bases across 99 minor league games in 2026. Cabrera brings a similar combination of speed and power, having recorded nine home runs, 45 RBI and 21 stolen bases in 104 games.

Reports: Five Japanese players heading to Adelaide

The Chiba Lotte Marines have announced infielders Atsuki Tomosugi and Kyuto Ueda, both 25, for the upcoming season. The pair have substantial NPB experience, with Tomosugi appearing in more than 390 top-flight games and Ueda hitting eight home runs in 2026.

Meanwhile, the Yomiuri Giants confirmed three more players on October 21. They are 22-year-old infielder Kota Hirayama, 23-year-old pitcher Yuki Hanada and 24-year-old catcher Tatsuya Sakamoto.

Hirayama brings first-team NPB experience, having played 40 games in 2026, while Hanada recorded a 1.99 ERA in Japan’s minor leagues. All five players are expected to be with Adelaide until December 21.

Perth has eight MLB-affiliated players

The Heat have announced that both the Cincinnati Reds and Tampa Bay Rays will send four players to Western Australia this season.

One to watch is Rays outfielder Slater de Brun, listed as Tampa Bay’s No. 14 prospect by MLB Pipeline in Perth’s announcement. De Brun hit .284 in 2026 and stole 23 bases in just 35 games across Rookie and Single-A baseball.

The Rays’ relationship with Perth has been particularly productive over the years, with players including Junior Caminero and Cristopher Sánchez going on to reach the Major Leagues.

Want to follow the latest roster announcements?

Keep an eye on each team’s official signing tracker as we get closer to opening day:

• Sydney Blue Sox
• Brisbane Bandits
• Adelaide Giants
• Perth Heat

Return of Kyle Glogoski

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Super excited for this one. King Kyle is back.

Glogoski was a member of Australia’s 2023 World Baseball Classic squad and last appeared in the ABL during the 2024-25 season. He’s signed with the Sydney Blue Sox.

The right-hander reached as high as Triple-A in the Philadelphia Phillies organisation in 2021, an impressive achievement for a pitcher who came through the New Zealand baseball system.

New management, ballpark changes in Adelaide

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In September, it was announced that Black Pearl Sports Group (BPSG) took over the day-to-day operations and management of the Adelaide Giants, partnering alongside the Pelligra Group.

They also announced a significant investment in fan experience, including new grandstands.

Read about it here.

Three new managers

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Here’s another interesting storyline.

Three of the ABL’s four clubs will have new managers in 2026-27.

That’s a lot of new faces in the dugouts for a four-team competition.

Perth Heat: Lance Rymel

The Heat have appointed Lance Rymel as manager.

Rymel brings more than a decade of coaching experience in professional baseball, including his work in the Chicago Cubs organisation.

Adelaide Giants: Landon Lassiter

The defending champions have turned to Landon Lassiter. Lassiter is a development coach in the Texas Rangers organisation, having spent the 2026 season with the High-A Hub City Spartanburgers.

Sydney Blue Sox: Mike Roberts

Sydney have gone with experience, appointing American coach Mike Roberts.

Roberts brings a lengthy background in college baseball and coaching to a Blue Sox club that has made a point of bringing home Australian talent this off-season.

How to watch the ABL in 2026-27

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The ABL season begins on November 19, with four teams competing across a 39-game regular season.

The top two teams will advance to the best-of-three ABL Championship Series from January 29-31, hosted by the minor premiers.

If you can’t make it to the ballpark, there are a few ways to follow the action.

In Australia

– Watch through an ABL Access Pass on Baseball+.
– Watch through an existing MLB.TV subscription.

In Japan and Taiwan

– Watch through Baseball+.
– DAZN is also listed on the ABL’s international viewing page, although a new 2026-27 agreement has not yet been separately announced.

Around the world

– Watch through an ABL Access Pass on Baseball+.
– Existing MLB.TV subscribers can also access ABL broadcasts.

All 78 regular-season games and the playoffs will be available on Baseball+, with one selected game each week available free to viewers around the world.

There’s a good chance you’ve never seen some of these guys play baseball.

Or maybe you have. But I would wager the player you remember from an Australian junior championship might look a whole lot different now…

Every November, the Australian Baseball League brings home players who have spent years developing their game overseas, often largely out of sight of Australian baseball fans.

Some return with professional contracts, others with impressive college numbers, and a few with something to prove.

This year’s group is particularly interesting.

Among the crop, there’s a catcher who homered at the College World Series, an infielder who hit two grand slams in one game, a 7’2 giant from Country NSW, and a Pittsburgh Pirates prospect coming off his first professional season.

Here are 10 of the young Australians I’m particularly looking forward to watching this summer in their first full ABL seasons.

Action starts November 19.

Brent Iredale | INF | Sydney Blue Sox

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Of all the Australian players returning to the ABL this summer, Brent Iredale might arrive with the highest profile.

The Sydney infielder is already a pro, and just had a really solid season in the Pittsburgh Pirates’ minor leagues.

Iredale was selected by the Pirates in the seventh round of the 2025 MLB Draft after an impressive college career that took him from New Mexico Junior College to the University of Arkansas.

In college, he was known for his power. At New Mexico in 2024, Iredale hit 25 home runs before transferring to Arkansas, one of the biggest college baseball programs in the United States.

With Arkansas, he hit .286 with 14 home runs, 57 RBI and a .994 OPS across 65 games for the Razorbacks, helping them reach the College World Series in Omaha.

In his first full professional season in 2026, Iredale hit .250 with 16 home runs, 51 RBI and an .882 OPS across 80 minor league games. He was also promoted to High-A by the end of the season.

An encouraging start.

 

Iredale is also a product of Blacktown Workers Baseball Club.

John Lemm | C | Brisbane Bandits

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Imagine finishing your college career at the College World Series, signing a professional contract with the St. Louis Cardinals and then coming home to play for the Brisbane Bandits.

That’s been quite a year for John Lemm.

The Brisbane-developed catcher spent 2025 at Southern Illinois, where he smashed 19 home runs with 56 RBI before transferring to the University of Alabama for his final college season.

He didn’t slow down against SEC pitching – widely regarded as the best in the college system. Lemm hit another 10 home runs with 34 RBI for the Crimson Tide, helping Alabama reach the College World Series in Omaha.

Lemm has since signed with the St. Louis Cardinals organisation as an undrafted free agent.

Blake Cavill | INF | Sydney Blue Sox

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How do you hit two grand slams in the same game? Ask Blake Cavill.

On May 16, playing for Troy University against Louisiana-Monroe, the Australian infielder launched two grand slams in consecutive innings. He finished with nine RBI, tying a Sun Belt Conference single-game record.

That’s one way to get everyone’s attention.

However, Cavill’s college career is about much more than one extraordinary afternoon.

The Sydney product spent five years playing college baseball in the United States, beginning at Northwest Florida State before moving to Western Kentucky and eventually Troy University.

It was at Troy where he really found his stride. Across the 2025 and 2026 seasons, Cavill played 128 games and hit .293 with 25 home runs, 101 RBI, 117 walks and a .970 OPS.

Those are serious numbers, particularly the walks.

He also played an important role in Troy’s historic 2026 campaign. The Trojans reached the College World Series in Omaha for the first time in school history, even recording their first victory at the tournament.

Cavill has been an impact player wherever he’s gone, including during his junior baseball days in New South Wales, helping Cronulla reach multiple World Series events and playing for his country in junior WBSC World Cups.

Now he’s returning to Sydney, where he made three brief ABL appearances back in 2020.

Tyson Noel | LHP | Perth Heat

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At 6-foot-7, Tyson Noel shouldn’t be particularly difficult to spot when he takes the mound for Perth.

The left-hander is returning to Western Australia after four years of college baseball in the United States, where he pitched for Cochise College in Arizona and the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma.

Across 53 collegiate appearances, including 46 starts, Noel recorded 209 strikeouts.

His strongest statistical season came in 2024, his first year at Science and Arts of Oklahoma, when he pitched 76.2 innings, struck out 89 hitters and recorded six wins.

He’s a product of the Swans District Baseball Club in Western Australia and represented his state at both the Under-16 and Under-18 Australian Youth Championships. For years, he was one of the young players working his way through the local baseball system.

Noel’s story a nice reminder of why the ABL matters to Australian baseball.

Koskei Partington-Hopes | RHP | Perth Heat

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Koskei Partington-Hopes came awfully close to making his ABL debut last summer.

The Perth native joined the Heat ahead of their Round 9 home series against the Sydney Blue Sox in 2025-26. He was named on the roster for the final home series of the season but never made it onto the field.

He will be hoping his first ABL appearance comes in 2026-27.

Partington-Hopes has been developing his game with the Morley Eagles in Western Australia’s Harcher State League, where he’s contributed as both a pitcher and utility player.

Morley have claimed back-to-back State League championships, giving Partington-Hopes experience playing meaningful baseball in one of Australia’s strongest domestic club competitions.

His journey is a little different from some of the other Australians on this list. While many have spent recent seasons developing in American colleges, Partington-Hopes has been working his way through the Western Australian baseball system.

Darcy Barry | INF/OF | Adelaide Giants

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Note: this signing was announced before new management of BPSG, but is still listed on the Giants’ website. Consider this one a ‘potential.’

Darcy Barry’s baseball story could be coming full circle.

The former West Torrens and Henley and Grange junior grew up watching the Adelaide Bite and Giants, dreaming of one day playing for his hometown professional club.

He was one of South Australia’s most exciting junior players, representing his state at national championships and earning MVP honours at the 2019 Australian Under-16 Championships.

By 17, he was hitting .430 in South Australia’s Division I competition.

Barry’s game has changed considerably since then.

He left Australia in 2022 to pursue college baseball in the United States, beginning at North Iowa Area Community College. Barry hit just .175 during his final junior college season before moving to Dakota State University.

That’s where the power started to arrive. In 2025, Barry hit 12 home runs, drove in 39 runs and stole 24 bases in 49 games at Dakota State. He followed that with an impressive final college season at the University of Arkansas at Monticello, hitting .277 with 12 home runs, 44 RBI, 23 stolen bases and a .966 OPS.

That’s 24 home runs and 47 stolen bases across his final two college seasons.

Quite the transformation for a player who once relied primarily on contact hitting and speed.

The club announced his signing in August, before Black Pearl Sports Group assumed management. His roster status under the new management group still needs confirmation.

Josh Beezley | RHP | Sydney Blue Sox

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Josh Beezley knows what it’s like to pitch for Australia on the international stage.

The right-hander from Wheeler Heights in Sydney’s Northern Beaches represented Australia at the 2024 WBSC U-23 Baseball World Cup in China. Now he’s returning home after three seasons at the University of Arkansas at Little Rock, where he developed into a dependable bullpen arm.

Beezley saved his best for his final college season.

In 2026, he made 29 appearances, posting a 3-0 record with one save and a 3.57 ERA across 40.1 innings. Perhaps most impressively, he walked just nine hitters all season, a significant improvement on the 19 walks he issued in only 24.1 innings the previous year.

He also helped Little Rock win consecutive Ohio Valley Conference Tournament championships and reach the NCAA Super Regionals for the first time in program history.

Beezley began his American college career at National Park College before moving to Little Rock. Now, with five years of college baseball behind him and international experience already on his résumé, he’ll look to establish himself in Sydney’s bullpen.

Beezley is from Manly Baseball Club.

James Boeree | RHP | Sydney Blue Sox

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The tallest professional baseball player…ever?

At 7-foot-2, the towering right-hander is one of the tallest players to have competed in professional baseball. Imagine being a hitter trying to pick up a pitch coming from that height.

The tallest minor league player ever, for the record, is former Adelaide Giant / Brisbane Bandit Lock Van Mil (7’1).

Boeree’s baseball journey has taken him from Sydney to American college baseball, independent professional baseball and now back to the ABL.

He spent time at Salt Lake Community College in Utah before moving to the University of Colorado – Colorado Springs.

More recently, he pitched professionally for the Mississippi Mud Monsters in the Frontier League, an independent competition in the United States. Boeree struck out 32 hitters across 35.1 innings with Mississippi.

Boeree made a brief appearance for Sydney during the 2017-18 season, pitching just one inning.

Lachlan Rosser | LHP | Sydney Blue Sox

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Here’s another tall, commanding Aussie pitcher heading to the ABL.

Lachlan Rosser is a product of Wollongong baseball who has spent the past two seasons pitching for Hutchinson Community College in Kansas.

The tall left-hander recorded 72 strikeouts across 73.2 innings, holding opposing hitters to a .231 batting average.

Those numbers have helped earn him an opportunity at the next level of American college baseball. Rosser had committed to the University of Nebraska for 2027.

If the name sounds familiar, Rosser also competed for Australia at the 2023 U18 World Cup.

Aidan Torpey | RHP | Sydney Blue Sox

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An 11-1 college record is a pretty good way to finish your time in the United States.

That’s the career record Aidan Torpey brings home after four years at Augustana University in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.

Across 54 appearances for the Vikings, the right-hander struck out 87 hitters while establishing himself as a regular contributor to the pitching staff.

The 25-year-old right-hander was part of two NSIC Championship-winning teams and helped Augustana reach the Division II College World Series in 2023.

Torpey was born in the USA, but raised in Sydney while playing for Manly.

What’s Next?

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Can they make the next step in the ABL?

The pitching is more experienced than a low-level minor league system and college.

The rosters include professionals from around the world – including from the NPB, former Major Leaguers, ABL veterans and top prospects from MiLB systems.

Some will be using the summer to prepare for their next professional season overseas. Others will be looking to establish themselves in the ABL and push towards future national team opportunities.

However, for Australian baseball fans, there’s the chance to see what our community helped create.

The 2026-27 ABL season begins November 19.

There are plenty of familiar names returning to the league, but I’m particularly looking forward to watching the next wave.

The Australian Baseball League returned over the weekend.

Plenty of young Australians had career firsts. Let’s take a look below.

Don’t forget, you can watch and support these athletes by attending a game or by purchasing an ABL Access on Baseball+.

ADELAIDE GIANTS

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Sean Maple: The South Aussie utility man returned from four years at college. He made his first career start and went 2-for-6 on the weekend and picked up his first career hit and RBI.

Cooper Morgan: First appearance since returning from college (Cumberlands). The U23 Team Australia member from Canberra delivered big time. He threw 2.0 shutout innings on Friday and struck out the first five batters he faced.

James McFarlane: The Team Australia U18 outfielder from West Torrens wrote his final Year 12 exams on Tuesday. He played his first game Thursday as a pinch-hitter and recorded his first hit on Saturday.

Liam Scott: The right-hander out of Goodwood pitched in the ABL for the first time. He just returned from four years at college. Scott registered his first strikeout in a two-inning outing on Thursday.

AJ Verastegui: Venezuelan-born Verastegui came to Australia in 2019 with five years experience in the Rays organisation to play club ball. Now a resident, he’s played seven seasons of South Australian Baseball League for Golden Grove Central Districts and Woodville. He made a long-awaited ABL debut on the weekend, throwing 3.0 innings of shutout, hitless baseball with just one walk. He struck out six.

BRISBANE BANDITS

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Luke Krkovski: The lefty made his ABL debut after returning from NCAA Division I (Lamar). The New South Wales product tossed 1.1 scoreless innings on Thursday. He pitched a perfect 1.0 innings in a shutout win on Sunday. In a cool connection, he threw to his Cronulla junior baseball tournament Jake Burns on Sunday.

Jackson Grounds: The 20-year-old Queenslander pitched in his first ABL game since being released from the Pittsburgh Pirates, and first for the Bandits. He did pitch 2.0 innings a couple years ago, but this was a return to his home ground and organisation he grew up with. He threw 3.1 shutout innings on Saturday.

Liam MacDonald: Liam stepped in for a pinch-hit with bases loaded on Saturday. His first ABL hit? A grand-slam.

PERTH HEAT

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Kristian Hauesler: Fresh off an appearance at the 2025 U18 World Cup, Kristian tossed 2.0 innings in his debut and registered his first strikeout.

Ben Nesbit: After playing for Australia at the 2025 U18 World Cup and the 2025 U23 Oceania Championships, Nesbit drove in his first career run in front of a hometown crowd on Saturday.

SYDNEY BLUE SOX

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Josh Bishopp: After returning from college, Bishopp threw 3.1 innings in his ABL debut with nine strikeouts.

Ky Jackson: Made his return to Australia after spending five years in Japan. He threw 1.1 shutouts in his ABL debut.

Josh Nati: In his first career game, the two-time Team Australia U18 World Cup rep, delivered. His first hit? A three-run homer.

 

The Sydney Blue Sox have a new license holder.

The Black Pearl Sports Group (BPSG) will take over the license, assuring the Sydney Blue Sox commitment to the Australian Baseball League for 2025-26 and beyond.

“At the heart of everything we’re building is a belief in opportunity, community, and integrity,” said Cole Sherertz, Managing Director of Black Pearl Sports Group.

“My deepest passion is serving people. I love people, and I love culture — especially when it’s rooted in great baseball. What we’re building in Sydney has the power to inspire far beyond the diamond. We’re laying the foundation for a new era of baseball in Australia.”

The team will be run in partnership with Baseball New South Wales (BNSW).

Although BNSW will not be providing financial support, they will be offering strategic, promotional, and community engagement support to help elevate the team’s presence and strengthen ties with the grassroots baseball community.

“The Sydney Blue Sox’s participation in the Australian Baseball League is vital for the growth and visibility of baseball in New South Wales,” said James Morley, Interim CEO of Baseball NSW. “It provides a clear pathway for our homegrown talent to compete at the highest level nationally, inspires the next generation of players, and strengthens community engagement with the sport. We are eager to be working with Cole and the Black Pearl Sports Group for the coming ABL season.”

Australian Baseball League General Manager Paul Gonzalez says it’s exciting news as the league continues to finalise plans for the upcoming season.

“Sydney is our biggest market and represents a great opportunity going forward,” he says. “The Blue Sox, Baseball New South Wales, and their fans have a great foundation to build off of after winning the minor premiership in the 2024-25 season.”

The Australian Baseball League will be proceeding with four teams in 2025-26 as the professional competition continues to reset.

The Sydney Blue Sox, Adelaide Giants, Brisbane Bandits and Perth Heat have all committed to the upcoming season.

The schedule and competition details are expected to be announced in July.