Black Sox coach Mark Sorenson admits he has “some tough calls to make” after a successful trial series in Hamilton last weekend.
Thirty world championship hopefuls contested a four-game trial with players split between two squads, Team Herlihy and Team Mossman.
Team Mossman, named after former Waikato and New Zealand shortstop Carl Mossman, won the first game 6-5 after a tiebreaker in the eighth inning, but Team Herlihy, named after late New Zealand and Waikato pitching legend Kevin Herlihy, fought back to win the next three, 8-0, 10-5 and 8-1.
The triallists now have one last chance to impress at the national interclub championships at Albany next week before the 17-man team to contest the 2015 world championships is named on March 17.
Sorenson confirmed American-based pitcher Jeremy Manley — the pitcher of the tournament when the Black Sox won a record sixth world title in 2013 — would be available for selection after recovering from a leg injury which kept him out of the Oceania qualifying series last December. Click here to continue reading story and view photo at Auckland Now.