Baseball in Sydney: Dodgers-Ariz. March Major League Openers!!

If you're a baseball fan, you will find this story of interest for what will be happening a few weeks after our visit to Australia and starting our Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014 Solstice cruise from Sydney to Aucikland.

From the Los Angeles Times yesterday morning, they have this headline: "Follow Dodgers to Sydney for $1,859" with these highlights: "LA, Arizona to open Down Under. An early travel package for the Dodgers’ 2014 season opener in Sydney, Australia, is looking more affordable than you might’ve expected. Down Under Answers is offering round-trip airfare from LAX to Sydney, five nights of lodging and airport transfers starting at $1,859. The Dodgers announced this week that their 2014 season will begin in Sydney on March 22 and 23 against the Arizona Diamondbacks at the historic Sydney Cricket Ground. The game will be Major League Baseball’s first regular season games to be staged in Australia. MLB has previously opened seasons in Monterrey, Mexico (1999); Tokyo (2000, 2004, 2008, 2012); and San Juan, Puerto Rico (2001). The Sydney Cricket Ground will be fully renovated to a baseball configuration and Major League standards. The first game there March 22, a Saturday, will be an evening contest that will begin Major League Baseball’s 2014 regular season. The Sunday March 23 matchup will be played during the day."

It will be interesting to hear from those in Australia as to how popular they think these Major League games will draw and interest folks down under. It does involve the Dodgers, one of baseball's most historic and best known teams.

In reading a little more, the Sydney Cricket Ground has a long history going back to the 1800's, seats about 46,000 and is SE of the main downtown area. It is about three-fourths of a mile east of the main train station.

Reactions, local insights, predictions for success with this sport?

Full story at:

http://www.latimes.com/travel/deals/la-trb-sydney-australia-dodgers-and-diamondbacks-20130612,0,3304144.story

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Celebrity Solstice Visual Highlights? From our June 7-19, 2011, Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in France, Italy, Kotor and Dubrovnik, I have pull together a number of wonderful visuals of the Solstice, its features, food, entertainment, options, etc. We are now at 7,001 views for this shorter version of my larger full review of that cruise and all of the port pictures/details. Check these postings and added info at:

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I hope it proves popular. I would love to see it expand to other Australian cities. I just can't make it to Sydney.

Baseball is a very low profile sport in Australia, but there will no doubt be some interest in it. In Sydney we have four codes of football to either enjoy or endure, depending on your orientation. Cricket of course is king in summer.

Baseball, as Karennella says, is a fairly low profile sport in Australia. However, when we lived in Canberra, there was a very active youth baseball organization, ACT Baseball. Both of my kids (one girl, one boy) played with ACT Baseball while we lived in Canberra--the only Americans on their respective teams.

There's around a dozen Australians currently playing for Major League Baseball, but, unfortunately, none of them play for either the Dodgers or Diamondbacks, the teams that will play in Sydney.

As a sidenote--my son learned how to play cricket at an after school activity club in Canberra. The coach had to remind him repeatedly not to drop the bat when he ran as he had learned to do in baseball. He decided that cricket was not his sport! :)

Terry, this one is interesting. I don't think Baseball is followed much down under but maybe this will cultivate some interest.

Keith

Baseball is a very low profile sport in Australia, but there will no doubt be some interest in it. In Sydney we have four codes of football to either enjoy or endure, depending on your orientation. Cricket of course is king in summer.

Appreciate so much these added comments and insights. It will be interesting to see how the build up for these baseball games works out. Personally, I'm not a big baseball fan. Am most into college and NFL football (our version, not soccer). Keep the good comments and sharing coming. Fun to see how the world "shrinks" and various sports/cultural aspects move and shift around the world.

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

For details and visuals, etc., from our July 1-16, 2010, Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise experience from Copenhagen on the Silver Cloud, check out this posting. This posting is now at 110,075 views.

http://www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1227923

Baseball is a very low profile sport in Australia, but there will no doubt be some interest in it. In Sydney we have four codes of football to either enjoy or endure, depending on your orientation. Cricket of course is king in summer.

Apparently baseball was bigger in Australia immediately after WWII. My father-in-law played baseball in school, as well as cricket and AFL (well VFL). Even now he's a bigger baseball fan that I am and I'm the American! He's a huge Minnesota Twins fan, while if forced, I'll pull for the Cubs and anyone playing the Yankees. :)

And one of the free-to-air networks airs baseball games throughout the (US) summer, so there has to be at least some market for it in Australia.

My brother played baseball in the 60s when he was at school rather than football. I remember cricket being a bit of a nerdy sport when I was in high school (But we were in a beach suburb and the whole culture was surfing) However cricket is now very much back in favour. I like it as it goes slow enough for me to follow what is going on!

 

And one of the free-to-air networks airs baseball games throughout the (US) summer, so there has to be at least some market for it in Australia.

I didn't think it was on free to air..I know its on our cable (Foxtel) and then via ESPN or some such channel. I am pretty sure its not on at prime time if on commercial free to air as I would remember it (except for maybe the end of season game) - we have some base ball nuts at work and my best friend is a former US born lawyer now resident here in Melbourne and naturalised (although just to complicate things he is a soccer nut which has a strong following here but would not as big as Cricket, Australian Rule Football and Rugby).

Edit: I have been corrected - I believe free to air Ten Network secondary channel 'One' broadcasts it in the graveyard shifts in the early 'am' time slots or around 9am. But I do know I have watched it on cable networks on the Foxtel channels (which I watch far more than any free to air channel).

For those that are saying they 'played' it here in the 60's and 70's - are you sure it wasn't Softball you were playing or Rounders (which is very very similar) as I know thats what we played at our school as organised sports....in the 70's.

Edit: I have been corrected - I believe free to air Ten Network secondary channel 'One' broadcasts it in the graveyard shifts in the early 'am' time slots or around 9am. But I do know I have watched it on cable networks on the Foxtel channels (which I watch far more than any free to air channel).

 

For those that are saying they 'played' it here in the 60's and 70's - are you sure it wasn't Softball you were playing or Rounders (which is very very similar) as I know thats what we played at our school as organised sports....in the 70's.

It is on One HD. I don't have cable, so I only watch free-to-air and I love getting baseball in the mornings through the US summer, though it's hardly ever live, the way NFL is on Monday mornings in the fall/winter.

My father-in-law was born in 1939, so he played baseball in school well before the 60's or 70's. He has photos of himself playing shortstop on a bar-league type team as part of a construction company team in the mid-to-late 50's/60's so I know there was at least some interest then. I can't comment about baseball in schools at the time as my husband went to school in the late 70's-90's and I grew up in the US. I played both baseball and softball, and the school-yard variant kickball.

Aussie here replying to the baseball popularity question. It really isn't followed by a great number of people. But as a father of two young kids I am noticing more baseball fields in some of our larger city's and will be looking to get my kids into playing. I would have a guess and say there would be more baseball fields in Australia than cricket fields in the USA.

How many will they get to Sydney? Maybe 40,000? If they held it in Melbourne at the MCG, they would get 100,000. Not because it's more popular but because Melbourne is Australia's Sporting Capital and Victorians will turn up in droves to watch just about any sporting event. But to see a world series game for real points, Hell that would be Awesome! The MBL has missed a great opportunity to really get a decent crowd.

Aussie here replying to the baseball popularity question. It really isn't followed by a great number of people. But as a father of two young kids I am noticing more baseball fields in some of our larger city's and will be looking to get my kids into playing. I would have a guess and say there would be more baseball fields in Australia than cricket fields in the USA. How many will they get to Sydney? Maybe 40,000? If they held it in Melbourne at the MCG, they would get 100,000. Not because it's more popular but because Melbourne is Australia's Sporting Capital and Victorians will turn up in droves to watch just about any sporting event. But to see a world series game for real points, Hell that would be Awesome! The MBL has missed a great opportunity to really get a decent crowd.

Appreciate the added comments and insights. Interesting item on "Melbourne is Australia's Sporting Capital and Victorians will turn up in droves". There clearly is a sense of "competition" between these two great and large cities. Enjoy learning more on Australia. Keep it coming!!

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

Did a June 7-19, 2011, Celebrity Solstice cruise from Barcelona that had stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Enjoyed great weather and a wonderful trip. Dozens of wonderful visuals with key highlights, tips, comments, etc., on these postings. We are now at 133,419 views for this live/blog re-cap on our first sailing with Celebrity and much on wonderful Barcelona. Check these postings and added info at:

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