Former England fast bowler Liam Plunkett made his professional baseball debut after taking the mound for the Oakland Ballers in the Pioneer Baseball League in the United States.
The 41-year-old featured against the Yuba-Sutter Freebirds at Raimondi Park, becoming one of the few professional cricketers to compete in professional baseball. Although Oakland suffered an 18-11 defeat, Plunkett enjoyed a memorable debut by striking out Josh Duarte with one of his five pitches.
New sporting challenge
Plunkett, who moved to the United States five years ago, currently plays in Major League Cricket and has embraced baseball as a fresh challenge. He joined the Ballers under the Pioneer Baseball League’s marketing player exception, which allows clubs to sign notable athletes outside the standard roster rules.
Reflecting on the occasion, Plunkett said he believes he is the first English cricketer to play professional baseball.
“It’s obviously a few rungs below Major League Baseball, but it’s still pretty cool to say I have played as a professional in two bat-and-ball sports,” he told BBC Sport.
Pitching over batting
Before making his debut, Plunkett experimented with batting during training but quickly realised pitching suited him far better.
“The swing path when you bat is so different compared to cricket, especially when someone is pitching at 90mph,” he said.
“I’d have loved to hit a monster home run because that would have gone viral.”
His appearance is expected to be a one-off rather than the beginning of a full-time baseball career, as he remains part of the San Francisco Unicorns squad in Major League Cricket.
Distinguished cricket career
Plunkett enjoyed a successful international career with England, playing 13 Tests, 89 One-Day Internationals and 22 T20 Internationals. He claimed 201 wickets across all formats and played a crucial role in England’s historic 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup triumph.
At county level, the right-arm fast bowler represented Durham, Yorkshire and Surrey before relocating to the United States to continue his cricket career.
Discussion about this post