Graeme Lloyd was one of Australian baseball’s most successful players, having played for a number of US Major League franchises over a professional career which spanned more than a decade.
In 1996, the left-armed pitcher became the first Australian-born player to win baseball’s World Series with the New York Yankees, an accomplishment he repeated in 1998.
He also won a silver medal for Australia at the 2004 Athens Olympic Games and was inducted into the Sport Australia Hall of Fame in 2013.
File: New York Yankees relief pitcher Graeme Lloyd from Australia pitches during the Yankees game against the St. Louis Cardinals in 1997. Source: AP
In order to improve on last season, where players were sourced from various leagues, the team has instead sourced players from five professional Korean baseball teams.
Korea Baseball Organization heavyweights Lotte Giants, Kiwoom Heroes and LG Twins Hanwha Eagles and SK Wyverns have sent players to Geelong-Korea for the upcoming season.
Geelong-born Lloyd replaced Dae-Sung Koo at the helm of the expansion outfit, an appointment which was hoped would reap rewards on the diamond, team spokesperson Dong Hoon Lim said.
Lotte Giants players attending the Geelong-Korea orientation Source: Geelong Korea
“He was a great player who played in the Major League. We expect his experience and skills would be helpful to our young players,” Lim said. “He is a baseball hero representing Australia and he is from Geelong. We expect more Australian fans to show love for Geelong-Korea this season.
"We concluded that in order for Geelong-Korea to grow and be loved, a good accomplishment is the first thing.
“As a result, we worked hard to strengthen our team and were able to recruit good players after making steady contact with Korea professional baseball teams.”
Lloyd told SBS Korean he’s confident that he would be able to form a good relationship with his players - most of whom speak only Korean.
Geelong Korea players in 2018/19 season Source: Geelong Korea
“I have a plan of obviously individually talking to the players with my interpreter and asking what they want to do this season,” he said.
“They want to get better so I want to give them the chance to get better and get there as quick as I can.
“You know it’s definitely a different situation with the baseball players being Korean and the language barrier but I think that would be no problem in the language of baseball.”
Geelong-Korea joined the league as part of an expanded 2018-19 season. Source: ABL
Winning over new fans
The inclusion of the team last season saw the league attract thousands of new fans.
Baseball Australia CEO Cam Vale .
The matches were also broadcast through the ABL's channel on Korean online video platform Naver TV, which has generated millions of views since the channel's launch in November 2018.
It’s a trend that Lloyd hoped would continue.
“They see that our players are getting better as we keep playing and that you know we going out there every day to compete and go after it and you know I mean there’s no reason to play a season if you don’t go for the championship. Obviously you know the players don’t get here until a certain time,” he said.
“I hope our fans enjoy our season this year. I hope they enjoy the journey with us.”
The team will begin its campaign on November 21 against the Sydney Blue Sox.
