The Philadelphia Phillies have signed Australian pitcher Josh Gessner
Josh Gessner, an Australian pitcher has signed with the Philadelphia Phillies. The right handed ace now has a $850,000 international contract with the team. Gessner is originally from Sydney and has previously played for the Victoria HarbourCats. However, he grew up in Japan and that is where he fell in love with baseball. He then joined the professional Sydney Blue Sox of the Australian Baseball League shortly thereafter.
International scouts were likely watching the eighteen year old like a hawk. An interview with international scout Matt Stark says “skill and ability is the key, but once you zero in on that, intangibles make the difference. Attitude, commitment, work ethic, athleticism, project ability.” Gessner seemed to have all that they were looking for. There were also eleven other team players from the HarbourCats that were chosen for major league teams this past week.
MLB’s Jesse Sanchez broke the news on twitter that Josh was signed.
International Signing Period News: The Phillies signed RHP Josh Gessner, 18, out of Australia for $850K this week. He had committed to pitch at Tulane and was also recruited by Harvard.
— Jesse Sanchez (@JesseSanchezMLB) June 12, 2019
Gessner is looking to follow Aussie’s Grant Balfour, Luke Hughes, Ryan Rowland-Smith, and Rich Thompson in the MLB. Ryan even went to twitter after the news broke to speak with a fellow MLB writer about the signing.
@ToddZolecki hey Todd, Josh Gessner is a kid who just signed with you guys today, he is a kid we brought over and the story is kind of cool how it all went down.
— Ryan Rowland-Smith (@hyphen18) June 12, 2019
RRS
Craig Shipley was the first modern day baseballs player that was born in Australia. As of 2012, there have been 31 Australians have played in at least one major league game. Six teams play in the Australian league. They usually play from October to February.
What is the one thing that draws attention to these players? Grant Balfour says “Australians play hard”. He also believes that the way they were brought up to play football seeps into their ability to do well in baseball. They are rough and fight hard, thus this makes them unique individuals for MLB to consider.
The Philadelphia Phillies organization is one of many who have international players on their roster. Who will be the next Australian to follow Josh Gessner’s lead?