HAPPY NEW YEAR!

We hope you all had a relaxing break with friends and whānau. We’re now mid-way through another successful and exciting baseball season at Wellington City Pirates. Here’s a quick update and a shout out to our supporters.

2021 DEVELOPMENT LEAGUE

Our Tuesday night Development League wrapped up before Christmas, and once again was a great success. Good weather early in Term 4 meant there was plenty of game time, although sadly our Play-offs and Finals were rained out. 

• ROOKIE LEAGUE - This term we introduced a fun Rookie league focussed on new players aged 9 - 11 years and it was great to see them having lots of fun around the Diamond. Special thanks to Craig Wallace from Wgtn Baseball for helping run this.
• MAJOR LEAGUE - Our Majors competition saw the Dodgers, Mariners, Padres and Giants teams go head-to-head each week, with support from some of our fantastic 16U players who volunteered as Player Coaches.  Thank you Daniel Covert, Jayden Cox, Taison Shea and Zakary Broadway for your great leadership!
• SKILL DEVELOPMENT - We also offered our competitive players the chance to hone their Pitching and Catching skills at a regular Bullpen training session led by Baseball NZ's Coaching Development Officer - Kris Richards.

The Development League ended in December and will not continue in Term 1 2022. Last year we learned that Term 1 didn’t work for many of our players who needed to move on to pre-season Winter sport training. So the Development League will run during Term 4 only, and 2022 registrations will open in Aug/Sep. 

UNIFORM RETURN

If you haven't already, please return your player's Majors or Rookie uniform to the Club as soon as possible. The hat is theirs to keep, but we need the playing shirt, pants and belt to be returned. Please contact us at wgtncitypirates@gmail.com to arrange a time.

SUNDAY TRAVEL LEAGUE 

Our 13U and 16U Sunday Travel League teams have had an exciting start to the Wellington Baseball regional comp. We’ve seen plenty of high quality baseball played amongst the Wellington region clubs and both teams are playing well. 

In December, Pirates hosted six teams for the Annual 13U Holiday Ham Tournament. This was the first ever tournament we've hosted and we were delighted with the positive feedback from visitors and clubs alike. Thanks to our Club Captain Scott Sullivan for organising, to Baseball NZ for Umpiring support, and to Nelson Heat for travelling so far to attend. Thanks also go to the Pirates Committee and our army of willing volunteers for making it such a great event.

The competitive season recommences on 30 Jan, with 13U and 16U games against the Hutt Valley Hornets at Home. You can find a link to the 2022 Draw below.

In Term 1 we’ll also be building our 13U Travel League team toward the Club National championships. This tournament runs from 5 - 10 April, and will once again be hosted by Te Tau Ihu Baseball in Nelson. If your player is part of the 13U squad, check out the article below for more detail on the tournament. There's still plenty to finalise, so we'll be sharing regular updates over the coming months. 

Sadly we won’t be sending our 16U team to the Club Nationals in Auckland this year, but they're primed for a strong finish to the Wellington season!  

KEY DATES

Check out our PIRATES CALENDAR for upcoming dates and events.

SUPPORT & FUNDRAISING

It takes a community to run a sports club and we’re so grateful for our sponsors and supporters. Once again this year we’ve had incredible support from local businesses and sports charities. Thanks to them, we’ve been able to invest in new safety equipment and uniforms, and keep our registration fees affordable. 

We’re especially grateful for the support of an ‘angel’ investor this season. Patricia's generosity has made it possible to purchase a leading-edge Pitching machine and generator to make our training sessions more fun and challenging for our players. 

Once again our Pirates whānau of volunteers have been awesome. With their help we've raised close to $3,000 through sausage sizzles, bake sales and raffles. We'd particularly like to thank Sophie Gray (and whānau), Ros Doney and Regan Taouma for your help. We're also thankful for the talents of Josh Broadway, Trina and Joe McGarry and Kerri Cox for keeping our website and social media channels in ship shape!

FROM THE CLUB PRESIDENT

Thank you all for your support again this season. It’s been a real pleasure welcoming new players to our club and watching our seasoned players continue to improve. I'd personally like to acknowledge our Coaches, Scorers and Umpires for so generously giving your time, and our committee and parents for your continued support and enthusiasm - thank you. I’m so proud of everything our club has achieved and hugely grateful for the support of you all, and for the generosity of our new and returning sponsors. 

There’s still plenty more baseball to come this summer and I’m looking forward to taking our 13U Travel League team to the Club National Champs in Nelson in April (COVID willing!). I'll look forward to seeing you around the diamond soon. Meantime, follow us on Instagram or Facebook to keep up-to-date with our 16U and 13U competitive teams. 

Let's go Pirates! 🏴‍☠ ⚾
Clayton 

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STAY IN THE KNOW

Go to piratesbaseball.nz for everything you need to know about the Pirates club and baseball season.  

For regular updates and club news, follow us on Facebook and Instagram.