1998–99 Australian Baseball League season

The 1998–99 Australian Baseball League season was the 10th season of the original Australian Baseball League, contested between six teams representing state and regional capitals: Adelaide Giants, Gold Coast Cougars, Melbourne Monarchs, Melbourne Reds, Perth Heat and Sydney Storm. The championship was won by the Gold Coast Cougars, who defeated the Sydney Storm in 2 games in the championship series at the Sydney Showground Stadium. The Adelaide Giants finished the season on top of the ladder but were knocked out in Semi Final 1 by the Sydney Storm.

1998–99
Australian Baseball League

Season details
Sport	Baseball
Country	Australia
Teams	6
Dates	17 October 1998 – 13 February 1999
Defending champions	Melbourne Reds (1997–98)
Champions	Gold Coast Cougars (1st title)
MVP	Adam Burton ( Reds)
Final positions
Champions	Gold Coast Cougars
Runners-up	Sydney Storm
Finalists	Adelaide Giants
Finalists	Melbourne Monarchs
Fifth place	Melbourne Reds
Sixth place	Perth Heat
Regular season
Games played	132
Best batting average	Brandon Pollard ( Cougars) (.317)
Most homeruns hit	Brandon Pollard ( Cougars) (12)
Best ERA	Brett Cederbald ( Cougars) (2.34)
← 1997–98 Last updated on 13 February 2013

All play-off games in the 1998-99 ABL season were held at the then-recently completed Sydney Showground,[1] which was to become the main venue for baseball at the 2000 Summer Olympics.

1998–99 was the final season of the original Australian Baseball League. At the completion of the season the rights to the league were purchased by Dave Nilsson who then attempted to form the International Baseball League of Australia.

Teams

Adelaide Giants

Melbourne Monarchs

Gold Coast Cougars

Melbourne Reds

Perth Heat

Sydney Storm

Only 6 of the 8 teams from the previous season returned, The Hunter Eagles and Brisbane Bandits were both unable to continue in the league due to increasing financial pressure.

Rosters

During the regular season each team made use of an active roster of 22-24 men, with a maximum of 4 import players.

Adelaide Giants

Adelaide Giants roster - 1998–99 ABL
Active roster
Pitchers Right-handed pitchers ? Tom Becker ? Shayne Bennett ? John Challinor ? Darren Fidge ? Matt Herges ? Graham Ingram ? Blake Mayo ? Luke Prokopec ? Jeff Williams Left-handed pitchers ? Kym Ashworth ? Adrian Burnside		Catchers ? Darren Phillips ? Sam Tibbets Infielders ? Rick Bennett ? Andrew Brett ? Nathan Davison ? Michael Forbes ? Jason Hewitt ? Andrew Scott Outfielders ? Jay Ivanoff ? Tony Mota ? Mark Paparella ? Chip Sell ? Eric Stuckenschneider ? Andrew Taintley ? Marc Taintley ? Craig Watts
Current as of February 1999.

Melbourne Monarchs

Melbourne Monarchs roster - 1998–99 ABL
Active roster				Coaching Staff
Pitchers Right-handed pitchers 43 Phil Dale 34 Jason Flach 23 Cameron Forbes 9 Keith Gogas 47 Michael Nakamura 18 Steven Schram Left-handed pitchers 5 Earl Byrne 45 Cameron Cairncross 11 Erick Nelson		Catchers 14 Brett Caulfield 28 John Edwards 36 Steve Dax Norris Infielders 19 Rohan Brasher 10 Mark Doubleday 26 Paul Gonzales 50 Mike Hessman 25 David Kim 22 Ben Risinger 4 Jay Willis Outfielders 37 Ben Hammer 33 Aaron Harvey 16 Dean Marnell		Manager 24 Jon Deeble Coaches - Neil Bourke
Current as of February 1999.[2]

Melbourne Reds

Melbourne Reds roster - 1998–99 ABL
Active roster
Pitchers Right-handed pitchers 27 Matthew Gourlay ? Ben Mann 37 Warren May ? Denis Pujals ? Lucas Van Raake ? David White ? Gregg Wiltshire Left-handed pitchers ? John Box 44 Ben Donald ? Matt Ryan		Catchers 8 Scott Dawes Infielders 22 Myles Barnden ? Brian Becker 20 Adam Burton 16 Shane Hogan 30 Ben Utting Outfielders ? Cameron Hubbard ? Matt Kent ? David McGrady ? Matt Quatraro 26 Jeff Spencer 19 Darren White ? Glynn Kimberley 35 Glen Reeves 46 Derek Shumpert 18 Paul Weichard
Current as of February 1999.

Sydney Storm

Sydney Storm roster - 1997–98 ABL
Active roster
Pitchers Right-handed pitchers ? Anthony Brasher 7 Graham Cassel ? Greg Clark ? Gary Glover ? Craig Lewis ? Mark Marino ? Sean McClellan ? Peter Moylan ? Brian Murphy ? Robbie Taylor Left-handed pitchers ? Craig Anderson ? Clint Lawrence 11 Shane Pepper		Catchers ? D. Tomaszewski 15 Gary White Infielders ? Matt Buckley ? Greg Morrison 19 Mark Shipley 43 Craig Stone 4 Scott Tunkin Outfielders 3 Matt Everingham 22 Brendan Kingman ? Ryan Manfield ? Brett Schylder ? Chris Snelling ? Rodney van Buizen ? Vernon Wells 18 Glenn Williams
Current as of February 1998. Incomplete

Venues

Teams in the ABL

Team	City	State	Stadium	Ref
Adelaide Giants	Adelaide	South Australia	Norwood Oval
Gold Coast Cougars	Gold Coast	Queensland	Carrara Oval
Melbourne Monarchs	Melbourne	Victoria	Melbourne Ballpark
Melbourne Reds	Melbourne	Victoria	Moorabbin Oval
Perth Heat	Perth	Western Australia	Bassendean Oval
Sydney Storm	Sydney	New South Wales	Sydney Showground Stadium

Match results

Key

†	Clinched final berth

1997-98 regular season standings

Team [3]	W	L	Pct.	GB	Home	Road
Adelaide Giants^†	28	17	.622	-	15-9	13–8
Gold Coast Cougars^†	24	20	.545	3​^1⁄2	16–10	8–10
Melbourne Monarchs^†	22	22	.500	5​^1⁄2	13–8	9–14
Sydney Storm^†	21	22	.488	6	13–10	8–12
Melbourne Reds	20	23	.465	7	15–8	5–15
Perth Heat	17	28	.378	11	12–9	5–19

Top 10 Stats

Defensive Stats Name Wins Losses Saves ERA Adrian Meagher 6 1 3 2.97 Brett Cederblad 4 1 0 2.34 Phil Brassington 5 3 0 3.68 Paul Wollin 1 2 1 3.41 Jason Davis 2 3 1 3.60 Aaron Reed 2 2 2 3.89

Offensive Stars Name Avg HR RBI Brandon Pollard .317 12 33 Ron Johnson .307 5 19 Steve Hinton .303 1 8 Grant McDonald .269 5 29 Paul Gorman .263 7 22 Jose Macias .267 1 18

Postseason

Finals Series at Sydney Showground Stadium

The 1999 Postseason was held at the newly constructed Sydney Showground Stadium, The Showgrounds Stadium was to be the main venue for Baseball at the Sydney 2000 Olympics.

The Postseason followed a 3-game Semi Final playoff format, 1st vs 4th and 2nd vs 3rd. The winners of the two Semi Finals series then played off in a 3-game Championship series.

Semi Final 1: 1st vs 4th

Game 1: 10 February 1999

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Sydney Storm	0	1	0	1	0	0	3	1	1	7	10	2
Adelaide Giants	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	0	?	?	?
Starting pitchers: Storm: C. Anderson Giants: S. Bennett WP: C. Anderson (1-0)   LP: S. Bennett (0-1)   Sv: C. Lewis Home runs: Storm: G. White, C. Snelling Giants: D. Phillips Attendance: 1,500[4]

Game 2: 10 February 1999

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Sydney Storm	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	1	0	3	8	1
Adelaide Giants	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	1	3	2
Starting pitchers: Storm: G Glover Giants: M. Herges WP: G Glover (1-0)   LP: M. Herges (0-1)   Sv: G. Cassel Home runs: Storm: - Giants: - Attendance: 1,500[5]

Semi Final 2: 2nd vs 3rd

Game 1: 11 February 1999

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Melbourne Monarchs	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
Gold Coast Cougars	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
WP: ? (1-0)   LP: ? (0-1)   Sv: ? Home runs: Monarchs: ? Cougars: ?

Game 2: 11 February 1999

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Melbourne Monarchs	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
Gold Coast Cougars	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?	?
WP: ? (1-0)   LP: ? (0-1)   Sv: ? Home runs: Monarchs: ? Cougars: ?

Championship Series at Sydney Showground Stadium

Game 1: 12 February 1999

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Sydney Storm	5	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	7	13	1
Gold Coast Cougars	0	3	1	0	2	0	0	0	2	8	12	1
Starting pitchers: Storm: C. Lawrence Cougars: K. Calvert WP: A. Meagher (1-0)   LP: G. Cassel (0-1)   Sv: nill Home runs: Storm: - Cougars: R. Jonhnson, B. Pollard, P. Gorman Attendance: 3,120[6]

Game 2: 12 February 1999

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Sydney Storm	2	0	1	0	2	1	2	0	0	8	13	8
Gold Coast Cougars	1	2	0	1	0	8	2	0	-	14	9	1
Starting pitchers: Storm: C. Lewis Cougars: P. Brassington WP: P. Brassington (1-0)   LP: S. Pepper (0-1)   Sv: nill Home runs: Storm: S. Tunkin, G. White (2) Cougars: S. Hinton, A. Pearce Attendance: 5,600[7]

Awards

Award	Person	Team
Most Valuable Player	Adam BURTON	Melbourne Reds
Championship M.V.P.	Paul GORMAN	Gold Coast Cougars
Golden Glove	Gary WHITE	Sydney Storm
Batting Champion	Adam BURTON	Melbourne Reds
Pitcher of the Year	Pat Ahearne	Perth Heat
Rookie of the Year	Clinton BALGERA	Perth Heat
Manager of the Year

All-Star Team

Position	Name	Team
Catcher	Gary WHITE	Sydney Storm
1st Base	Andrew SCOTT	Adelaide Giants
2nd Base	Adam BURTON	Melbourne Reds
3rd Base	Paul GONZALEZ	Melbourne Monarchs
Short Stop	Matt BUCKLEY	Sydney Storm
Out Field	Brandon POLLARD	Gold Coast Cougars
Out Field	Matt Quatraro	Melbourne Reds
Out Field	Chip SELL	Adelaide Giants
Designated Hitter	Craig WATTS	Adelaide Giants
Starting Pitcher	Pat AHEARNE	Perth Heat
Relief Pitcher	John CHALLINOR	Adelaide Giants
Manager	Tony HARRIS	Adelaide Giants

References

1. Flintoff, P. (1999?) Flintoff & Dunn's Australian Major League Baseball - The First 10 Years. Accessed on 28 July 2010.
2. "Melbourne Monarchs Roster". Melbourne Monarchs. Archived from the original on 22 April 1999. Retrieved 15 February 2013.
3. "FINAL FAI CUP STANDINGS". Australian Baseball League. Sydney Storm. Retrieved 12 February 2013.
4. "FAI CUP - Playoff 1 Game 1". Sydney Storm. Archived from the original on 29 April 1999. Retrieved 12 February 2013.
5. "FAI CUP - Playoff 1 Game 2". Sydney Storm. Archived from the original on 29 April 1999. Retrieved 12 February 2013.
6. "FAI CUP - Championship Game 1". Sydney Storm. Archived from the original on 29 April 1999. Retrieved 12 February 2013.
7. "FAI CUP - Championship Game 2". Sydney Storm. Archived from the original on 29 April 1999. Retrieved 12 February 2013.