A TRIO OF ‘ADOPTED KIWIS’ PLAYING PIVOTAL ROLES IN DODGERS QUEST TO TAKE OUT MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL FINALE  

There will be a strong New Zealand flavour at this week’s Major League Baseball World Series between the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Dodgers with three of New Zealand’s long-time American coaches involved in key roles for the famous Los Angeles institution.

New Zealand Diamondblacks manager and former Major League Baseball player Chris Woodward is the Dodgers third base and infield coach, while one of his assistants with New Zealand’s national team, Josh Bard, another former big leaguer, is LA’s bullpen coach. Finally, former New York Mets pitcher DJ Carrasco is an advanced scout in the organisation and playing a crucial role in providing the team with knowledge about their current opposition, Houston.

“I got involved with the Dodgers after coaching with Woodward and (Josh) Bardo in the WBC qualifier (in Sydney, Feb 2016),” said Carrasco, who also was the pitching coach for New Zealand’s Ripken U13 All Star team in 2016 in Maryland.  “I am a pro scout, which entails scouting throughout the professional ranks for potential prospects, contributors and any evaluations of potential acquisition players,” he said.

“The amount of information collected varies on the time of the year and towards the end of the year advance scouting involves getting a look at potential opponents and trying to find any advantage,” said Carrasco, who has just finished scouting the Chicago Cubs – Washington Nationals NLDS series and the New York Yankees – Houston Astros ALCS series. “It (the information) goes to a group of guys who will analyze it and have it at their disposal to do what they see fit with it.”

Carrasco will be back in New Zealand over the coming summer to assist national development officers Riki Paewai and Kris Richards with the tall order of coaching New Zealand’s U15 national team in January during the Oceania Championship, which will be hosted by Baseball New Zealand and held at Lloyd Elsmore Park in Pakuranga, and Carrasco said he is ready to head back to what is now a second home for he and his wife and travelling companion, Autumn.

“I am looking forward to coming out to New Zealand and working with a good group of under 15-year-olds. It will be nice to see them grow year to year in their baseball skills and personal growth as well,” he said, referencing a number of players he has worked with in recent years.

“Having three of our US-based national coaches involved in a World Series is a huge positive for our programme here in New Zealand,” said Baseball New Zealand CEO Ryan Flynn, who added that all three men have had a “significant influence on our national structures and processes, with Woody (Woodward) having been to the country on five separate occasions, while DJ (Carrasco) also spent three months here two years ago and Josh has been on two coaching panels in the last three years.

“Our (baseball) programme is growing at such quick rate…it’s important we have coaches that are involved in the game at the highest level to ensure that growth is developed and nurtured properly,” said Flynn, who has just returned from the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) Congress in Botswana. “The next two years are the most important in our history with Olympic and World Baseball Classic qualifying tournaments coming up, and to have coaches of the quality of this trio (plus more) can only benefit our organization.”