Gabe Sandersius wants to be more than just a star player for the Newport Rams.
The US import will be a cornerstone to a Rams team searching for a playoff berth in the Baseball Victoria summer league division 1.
An experienced 28-year-old left-handed pitcher, Sandersius is programmed to churn out long stints on the mound, which he has shown through his career.
Barring injury, he’s viewed as a risk-free investment because he has consistently delivered on his promises in stints abroad, whether it be playing in France, Germany or even in Perth, where one season he had an incredible 155 strike-outs in 105 innings.
But Sandersius has the chance to leave a bigger legacy than a predicted low earned run average (ERA).
“When there’s an import, they want more than just a good player,” he told Star Weekly.
“They want you to be a good person and willing to help. You’re here to share your knowledge, not just play well so you need to embrace your position. They want to get the most they can get out of you and that’s through teaching the game, teaching people how to be on and off the field. It’s not just pitching eight innings; it’s what you do off the field too that these kids look at.
“If they see me slamming helmets, swearing and getting kicked out of games, that’s not what I represent, so in many ways every aspect of the way you go about it is important.”
Sandersius dreamed of playing in the major leagues when he was growing up in the suburbs of Phoenix, Arizona.
He played at a high level in college, part of a division 1 Texas Christian University team that nearly made it to the NCAA’s College World Series. As he was not the first pitching option at TCU, Sandersius moved on to the University of Dallas for opportunities where his skills were better utilised. But leaving a division 1 program for more playing time at Dallas was not what the major league scouts were looking for. With an absence of interest from the scouts, Sandersius turned to plan B.
Passionate about the game, he wanted to stay involved and work it into his lifestyle so he started playing abroad in 2011 and has been hooked ever since.
Not only does he get to test his baseball skills against players from around the world but he gets to see the world and do it in a unique way.
“You don’t have to be making millions of dollars to embrace baseball and to share your knowledge of baseball and your love of the game to people all over the world,” Sandersius said.
“I like where I’m living now – close to the beach in Altona.”
Above all, Sandersius is part of the Rams stable for one reason, to take the club to the ultimate glory.
The Rams, coming off a 3-2 loss to Sunshine on Sunday, have started the season slowly with just one win from five starts, but Sandersius will remind his teammates that it’s a long season.
“In Munich this year, we lost five of the first six games. We didn’t freak out, but we got a wake up call and only lost three games for the rest of the year. We finished in third place and it was a team that had not been in third place before.
In the weekend action, Williamstown Wolves had an upset 9-3 win over the Werribee Giants to pick up their third win of the division 2 season. Footscray won a close one, 7-6 over Ormond Glenhuntly to remain in second place in division 3.
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