Werribee Giants boom recruit Josh Lee will come face-to-face with former club Williamstown Wolves in division 2 of Baseball Victoria’s summer league at President’s Park on Saturday.
It will be Lee’s first match against the Wolves since he left the club in the off-season, although he did cross paths with them at a mid-week double header at Melbourne Ballpark recently.
Lee made no apologies for moving to a western suburbs rival, nor do his old teammates seek one.
“They have no hard feelings,” he told Star Weekly. “They’re a good bunch of blokes and I caught up with some of them.
“It was good to have a fun chat with them and I’m looking forward to playing against them this week.”
Lee can be a cornerstone to the Giants push for a premiership as the 29-year-old left-handed pitcher has the experience that has been lacking in a young line-up.
“The average age of the playing group is about 24, so when I came to the club, I was like ‘holy crap, I’m one of the old guys’,” he said. “If we can keep this group together we can do some big things for the next 10 years.”
There were three key factors behind Lee’s decision to move to the Giants.
Playing closer to his Geelong home was appealing.
Getting to play year-round under his winter coach, Justin Charles, was a drawcard.
The sealer was a new committee at the Giants, one that has lofty ambitions to take a talented team to division 1 sooner rather than later.
The acquisition of Lee and Geelong Baycats recruit Charles Thompson, the imminent arrival of Venezuelan import infielder Jose Ruiz and the retention of the bulk of last summer’s finals team tell you all you need to know about the Giants’ goals this season.
“The first couple of weeks were the unknown, but we’re all starting to gel now,” Lee said. “Everyone has a different playing style, so we’re starting to get a feel for each other and getting to know each other’s playing abilities. It’s so much better now everyone is coming together.”
Lee’s obvious strength is his pitching and the Giants will need him to churn out lots of quality outings on the mound if they are to challenge at the pointy end of the season.
Lee also has an ace up his sleeve as a batter.
“Justin and I crossed paths five or six years ago at a carnival in Mildura,” Lee recalled.
“I played outfield and had one of the best hitting tournaments I’ve had, with eight home runs.
“I like to pitch and mainly just pitch, but I think I can hit a little bit to help out.”
Lee has been playing baseball since he was six, when he got his start with Bacchus Marsh.
He was on the verge of being drafted to the Toronto Blue Jays minor leagues before tearing ligaments in his elbow.
Interest from the Blue Jays cooled and Lee stayed in Australia.
“I was very close,” he said. “But I had that injury setback and the Blue Jays said they didn’t want to go any further with my injury.”
Lee has played division 1 at Geelong and Williamstown, all the while retaining his links with local club East Belmont Saints, where he is a six-time MVP winner.
Now he wants to take the leap to top division with the Giants.
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