 DONNY DROPPED: Black Sox great Donny Hale has been left out of the world championship squad after four previous appearances and three gold medals.
Â
The Black Sox have dropped three-time gold medallist Donny Hale and dual international Tyron Bartorillo from the squad charged with winning a record seventh title.
Head coach Mark Sorenson has named seven world championship rookies in his 17-man squad to defend their crown in Canada in June, but 2013 pitching ace Jeremy Manley declared himself unavailable.
The new recruits include 16-year-old Junior Black Sox shortstop Cole Evans, who will become the youngest player to represent New Zealand in a world championship since Sorenson won the first of four gold medals in 1984 at 16.
But the major talking point was the jettisoning of two members of the 2013 title winning team.
Hale, one of the Black Sox's greatest hitters, had been a world championship ever-present since 2000.
The Aucklander, now in his late 30s, has lost out to fellow veteran sluggers Brad Rona and Wayne Laulu.
Sorenson said it as "pretty tough" telling Hale he was not in the mix. "Donny's been a great contributor to Black Sox softball over a long period of time. I played two world championships with him so it was really hard.
"Donny's at a stage where he was restricted to just DH-ing [designated hitter] and we had other performers that were putting their hands up a bit higher."
Sorenson said Bartorillo, who won gold medals with his native Australia in 2009 and New Zealand in 2013, was "another difficult one" to omit. But other infielders had made stronger cases for inclusion.
Manley was expected to lead the Black Sox pitching staff again after winning the pitcher of the tournament award when he hurled New Zealand to their sixth title in 2013. But the American-based pitcher has been plagued by a knee injury over the last year and withdrew from contention for personal reasons.
Sorenson and assistant-coach Carl Franklin have opted instead for three specialist pitchers and will use outfielders Thomas Enoka and Jovaan Hanley as back-ups.
Hutt Valley's Nik Hayes and 39-year-old Auckland left-hander Heinie Shannon will back up from 2013 and 20-year-old Marlborough man Kurt Schollum got the nod after pitching Canterbury club Albion to the national title on Sunday.
Only seven players remain from the 2013 gold medal team. Sorenson said Cole Evans, North Harbour catcher Connor Peden, Hanley, Harbrow, Joel Evans and Campbell Makea would bring"a youthful enthusiasm" to the ranks.
"There a lot of parallels with the 1984 and 1996 [gold medal] squads when we had groups that were young, hungry and fast around the basepaths," said Sorenson, who wants the Black Sox to put equal emphasis on hitting, baserunning and defence.
He said Harbrow, who was MVP in leading Albion to the New Zealand club title, and Joel Evans, who was top batter, had been "consistent performers all season but their performances at the nationals put smiles on our faces, knowing we were picking the right guys."
AT A GLANCE
Black Sox world championship squad: Pitchers: Nik Hayes (Hutt Valley), Kurt Schollum (Marlborough), Heinie Shannon (Auckland). Catchers: Stephen Ratu (Canterbury), Connor Peden (North Harbour). Infield: Tyson Byrne, Joel Evans (Hutt Valley), Cole Evans (Auckland), Josh Harbrow (Canterbury), Jerome Raemaki (Wellington), Brad Rona (North Harbour). Outfield: Nathan Nukunuku (c), Thomas Enoka, Ben Enoka (Auckland), Jovaan Hanley, Wayne Laulu, Campbell Makea (Wellington).
* Eight players (Schollum, Peden, Joel Evans, Cole Evans, Harbrow, Raemaki, Makea and Thomas Enoka) will be attending their first world championship for the Black Sox.
* Rona and Nukunuku will be attending their fifth. Both have three gold medals.
 - The Press
Â
