Baseball: Baseball stadium likely to happen

New Zealand in action during the 2013 World Baseball Classic Qualifier against Taiwan. Photo / Getty Images

It isn't a case of if but when a minor league style baseball stadium will be constructed in Auckland clearing the way for a New Zealand franchise to compete in the Australian Baseball League.

Baseball New Zealand was this week officially invited to apply for a franchise in the ABL with a stadium being the biggest stumbling block. But Regional Facilities Auckland's Director of Stadium Management Paul Nesbit has been working with the sport on finding a location and thinks a facility is a given in the near future.

"If I take my work hat off and any responsibilities I have with the broader aspects of our stadium strategy I would suggest it is certainly a code that is growing and the changing demographics of Auckland in particular lends itself to that growth," Nesbit told The Herald.

"It is not a matter of if, it is a matter of when we see a baseball franchise out of New Zealand playing in the ABL and that we see some of those Major League Baseball franchises coming down in their off-season and doing their training camps in Auckland should there be an appropriate facility."

Nesbit and Baseball New Zealand have worked together for a number of years to try and find a suitable location around Auckland to build a minor-league scope stadium and it appears the best spot would be at or around QBE Stadium at Albany.

"With Baseball NZ we have looked at various sites - out west obviously, down in South Auckland, around the Penrose area, certainly Western Springs in the early days in the overall investigation into the regional stadium plans," Nesbit said.

"From a demographic perspective and a catchment location I think it is fair to say Baseball NZ prefer to be based on the Shore. At various times we have looked at opportunities maybe identifying a footprint in or around QBE or adjacent to that site.

"We have accommodated the North Shore City Baseball club at QBE in the past - on domains 1 and 2. That was an outstanding summer in that we had baseball played by their age groups on the Saturday and then on the Sunday we had AFL being played.

"That is an objective with the future use of QBE - to work with a varying or myriad of sporting codes with regards to the development of their codes and their players.

"There is a lot of water to go under the bridge. The investigation is not just on existing stadium land but also adjacent pieces of land."

Basically the plan is for RFA to find the land on which the stadium could be constructed and then it would be up to baseball to largely fund the building on it.

Baseball New Zealand chief executive Ryan Flynn thinks they have the support needed to get it built.

"That is the case we have made to the city and government officials - we think we can come up with the funding or a good deal of it and not put it all on the backs of taxpayers if the proper piece of land is identified where we can have a home for the sport of baseball," Flynn said.

"We have gotten commitments from the World Baseball Softball Confederation, from Major League Baseball and other parties domestic and international, who have confirmed their support financially to help us get this over the line.

"We have just got some funding from Sport NZ to address the best location. A company called GLG is working with the steering group that includes people from RFA, the Council, Simpson Grierson, our organization, my directors and we are pushing very quickly on getting that business case finalized to showcase the steps to go forward."

Flynn is confident they will be ready to enter the league by 2019-20 but hasn't ruled out entering as early as next year.