Adelaide Giants
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Most recent season: 2018–19 Australian Baseball League season | |
Team Details | |
---|---|
League | Australian Baseball League |
Previous names | Adelaide Bite |
City | Adelaide, South Australia |
Ballpark | Diamond Sports Stadium |
Year founded | 2009 |
Inaugural season | 2010–11 |
Postseason | |
ABL Championships | Nil |
Minor premierships | 1 (2014–15) |
Uniforms | |
Colours | Prussian blue Crimson Gold |
Management | |
Manager | Chris Adamson |
Owner | Adelaide Football Club |
General Manager | Nathan Davison |
The Adelaide Giants are a professional baseball team who plays in the Australian Baseball League and is one of the six foundation teams of the league which is owned and operated by the Adelaide Football Club as of June 2018.
The Giants have multiple alumni who have played in the MLB in following years and many players who play for Team Australia in an international level. The team is made up of up-and-coming MLB draft prospects who play minor league baseball in the USA or established Australian players. Former big-league players often play in the ABL.
Their home ballpark was the historic Norwood Oval in Norwood, South Australia which is based in the city of Adelaide, South Australia from 2009 to 2016, They however made the moved to West Beach in the 2016/2017 season. The team name originates from the nearby hydrographic landmark, the Great Australian Bight as well as the Great White Shark which inhabits the coast of South Australia.[1]
The Bite are famous for their Shark Tank - the only section in Australian sport where you can sit on the actual playing surface during the play of the game.
Adelaide's first general manager was former New York Yankees infielder Pat Kelly.[2] He served as the General Manager from 2009-2013. Since the beginning of the 2013/14 season, former Adelaide Giants and Team Australia baseball player Nathan Davison took over the team as GM and CEO.[3]
In three seasons under Davison the Bite have made the Australian Baseball League Championships Series twice - falling to the Perth Heat in 2015 and the Brisbane Bandits in 2016.
In 2010 South Australian power company ETSA Utilities was announced as the major sponsor of the Adelaide Bite and that the team would be known as the Adelaide ETSA Bite.[4] After an ETSA rebrand to SA Power Networks the Bite became the "Adelaide Bite, proudly presented by SA Power Networks."
Contents
Game day atmosphere
The Adelaide Bite are known for their unique sports atmosphere. Their speciality is the Shark Tank - a section where fans can sit on the field right next to the Adelaide Bite home dugout and interact with players. They also served a pig roast on the field as well as a drinks package. [2]
The nature of baseball allows kids to run around and chase foul balls. They even can run on the field in-between innings. There are many catchy songs, quirky Walk up music selections from the players, and lots of in-game activations.
In 2016, players from the Adelaide Football Club, Port Adelaide Football Club and Adelaide Strikers showed up to participate in a pre-game home-run derby that brought thousands of people to the stadium.[5]
Various entertainers appeared for their games including Ethan Hall (or "Hiccup Kid") who sang the national anthem while hiccuping before a game.[6] Other famous anthem singers include Darth Vader.
The Bite are known for their quirky off-field antics. On April 1, 2016, the Bite fooled the world by announcing that baseball legend Derek Jeter would be joining the club as a player manager. It would have been the most high-profile signing in Australian sports' history. The practical joke garnered international headlines including a story in The New York Times and the Yankees' Twitter account.[7]
Recent history
The Adelaide Bite has experienced recent heartbreak having been to the Claxton Shield final four times since 2009 and unable to win in the championship game.
The Bite went to the ABL Championship Series back-to-back years in 2015 and 2016 but fell to the Perth Heat at home and the Brisbane Bandits on the road respectively. The Adelaide Bite hosted the 2015 ABL Championship Series and set a record for single game attendance in the ABL on the Saturday night with over 5,000 people attending the game.
In Mid 2016 they shifted, their home down to the 5,000 capacity Diamond Sports Complex located at Barratt Reserve on West Beach Road, West Beach adjacent to the Adelaide International Airport. This was due to scheduled renovations at Norwood Oval.
Late Summer 2019, the team announced they would be rebranding as the Adelaide Giants, the name of the city’s original ABL team from 1989 to 1998.[8]
Team Australia players
The Adelaide Bite send numerous players to represent team Australia on various international stages including the World Baseball Classic, World Baseball Classic qualification, Olympic baseball and Honkbal Hoofdklasse in Harlem.
Player Name | Years Represented | Level(s) |
---|---|---|
Angus Roeger | 2015 | 2015 ABL All-Star Game |
Stefan Welch | 2009-2016 | World Baseball Classic |
Steven Chambers | 2015-2016 | World Baseball Classic Qualifiers, Honkbal Week, ABL All-Star |
Josh Tols | 2015-2016 | World Baseball Classic Qualifiers, Honkbal Week, ABL All-Star |
Matthew Williams (baseball) | 2009-2016 | Baseball World Cup, World Baseball Classic, World Baseball Classic Qualifiers, ABL All Star |
Tom Brice | 2002 - 2008 | Olympics, Baseball World Cup |
Wilson Lee | 2016 | Honkbal Week Harlem |
Dushan Ruzic | 2009 - 2016 | Baseball World Cup, World Baseball Classic, Honkbal Week |
Aaron Whitefield | 2016 - Present | Australian National Senior Team |
Mitch Edwards | 2019 - Present | Senior Team Call Up |
Notable alumni
The Adelaide Bite are the only ABL team who have had a former player progress to the big leagues every Major League Baseball season since the ABL's reincarnation. Some notable players include:
Brandon Maurer - Kansas City Royals pitcher, played for the Bite in 2010/11
Tom Brice - 2004 Olympic silver medalist for Team Australia
James Jones (baseball) - Seattle Mariners outfielder. Played for the Bite in 2011/2012.
Rinku Singh - The subject of the film Million Dollar Arm. Played for the Bite in 2011/2012.
Ji-man Choi - Tampa Bay Rays outfielder. Played for the Bite in 2012/2013
Rocky Gale - San Diego Padres Catcher. Played for the Bite in 2014/15.
Mitch Dening - Australian baseball player. Played in the top league in Japan for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows
Chang Tai-shan - Taiwanese baseball player. Holds record for all-time most CPBL home runs. Played for the Bite in 2017/18.
Year by year results
Season | Record | Finals | Manager | Team MVP |
---|---|---|---|---|
2010/11 | 23-17 (3rd place) | Lost in Championship Series to Perth (1-2) | Tony Harris | |
2011/12 | 20-25 (4th place) | Lost in semi finals to Sydney (1-3) | Tony Harris | |
2012/13 | 21-25 (5th place) | No finals | Tony Harris | |
2013/14 | 21-25 (5th place) | No finals | Charles Aliano/Brooke Knight | |
2014/15 | 32-16 (1st place, minor premiers) | Lost in Championship Series to Perth (1-2) | Brooke Knight | Aaron Miller (baseball) |
2015/16 | 30-26 (3rd place) | Lost in Championship Series to Brisbane (0-2) | Steve Mintz | |
2016/17 | 23-17 (2rd place) | Lost in Preliminary Final Series to Brisbane (1-2) | Steve Mintz | |
2017/18 | 11-29 (6th place) | No finals | Chris Adamson | |
2018/19 | 19-21 (6th place) | No finals | Chris Adamson | Markus Solbach |
Current Roster
Adelaide Giants roster - 2018–19 ABL
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Active Roster | Reassigned Players | Coaching staff | ||||
Pitchers Right-handed pitchers
Left-handed pitchers |
Catchers Infielders
Outfielders
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Pitchers Infielders Catchers |
Manager Coaches
: 7-day disabled list | |||
17 November 2018. |
See also
References
- ^ Stockman, Jennifer (6 August 2010). "Adelaide takes a BITE at new ABL". Adelaide Bite. Australian Baseball League. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
- ^ Our Staff[permanent dead link] Adelaide Bite
- ^ [1] Archived 15 August 2016 at the Wayback Machine Boris Kilpatrick
- ^ "ETSA Utilities named naming rights sponsor". Adelaide Bite. Australian Baseball League. 16 September 2010. Retrieved 19 June 2011.
- ^ PTV: Home Run Derby Port Adelaide vs Adelaide - portadelaidefc.com.au, retrieved 22 July 2016
- ^ "Boy who hiccupped through national anthem becomes internet sensation". ABC News. 22 November 2015. Retrieved 22 July 2016.
- ^ "Australian team uses Derek Jeter in April Fools' Day prank". Retrieved 22 July 2016.
- ^ Bite, Alex Jacobs / Adelaide. "Adelaide Giants return as Bite rebrand | Adelaide Giants News". Adelaide Giants. Retrieved 21 September 2019.