Plunkett giving baseball a try with Oakland’s minor league team
Liam Plunkett leaned over the dugout rail at Raimondi Park with his arms crossed, looking every bit like a professional baseball player as he waited for his first chance to hit as a member of the Oakland Ballers.
Formerly a fast bowler for England’s cricket team, the 41-year-old Plunkett made his pitching debut in June. He faced one batter, striking out Yuba-Sutter’s Josh Duarte on five pitches - one of the best hitters in the independent Pioneer League.
Plunkett topped out at 77 mph and spun a breaking ball clocked at 63. “At first, I wanted to be respectful and put it down the middle so he could hit it, not throw something wild,” Plunkett said. “Then I realized I could throw in some skills. I expected to give up a hit.”
His career ERA stands at 0.00 - at least for now.
The appearance was part of a bigger effort by the 6-foot-4 cricketer to raise awareness for his own sport. Plunkett has been dabbling in America’s pastime while visiting the Bay Area to broadcast Major League Cricket’s latest stop in Oakland, which includes the championship match for the fourth-year league on Saturday at the Coliseum. The former San Francisco Unicorns player signed with the Ballers through a marketing exception. He has made two appearances so far, and that might be it.
“When he said, Shall I do it?’ I was like, Why not, what have you got to lose?’” Major League Cricket CEO Johnny Grave said. “I think he surprised himself.” Plunkett hopes his endeavor can help grow baseball and cricket. Cricket will return to the Olympics for the first time in 100 years at the 2028 Games in Los Angeles.
It is not a marquee sport in the U.S., but Grave is trying to generate interest beginning at the youth level with events leading up to those Olympics.
Plunkett is nearing the end of his competitive cricket career but will continue to stay involved as an ambassador, in the Bay Area and beyond. He is hosting four youth clinics this summer in Canada. Ballers manager Aaron Miles was open-minded when the idea came about, trusting co-founders Bryan Carmel and Paul Freedman to do something fun for the fans of the defending Pioneer League champions.
