There are talks of a baseball stadium in Logan’s future. And it could be used to capture international audiences.
While community leaders are excited about what a stadium would mean for the city post-2032 Brisbane Olympics, some say it is only a stepping stone for Logan to become a baseball powerhouse and the Australian heart of the sport in 50 years.
What will sport look like in Logan by 2075? Will baseball be part of Australia’s national sport identity, like cricket or rugby league?
Not quite, according to mayor Jon Raven, who sees great value in baseball’s exporting potential.
Baseball is played in summer, unlike soccer, rugby, Australian football, netball, or basketball.
While countries in the northern hemisphere are cooped up inside over the Christmas season, they could be watching baseball matches in Australia.
“Baseball, even the Australian baseball league, isn’t really for the Australian market,” Cr Raven said.
“Australians watch it, but it’s played at a time of year where no one else is playing baseball and the rest of the world is hungry for baseball over that Christmas period because it’s winter in all the other countries that play it.
“The goal with baseball wouldn’t be to have it rival cricket.”
In tandem with Logan’s already diverse demographics, baseball could encourage investors and tourists to visit.
With them could come infrastructure like hotels and public transport links around a world-class stadium.
Member for Macalister Melissa McMahon said she hoped Logan’s sporting infrastructure would be much improved by 2075.
She said other councils with smaller populations seem to have national-quality facilities that Logan doesn’t have.
“I think the future for Logan is probably in a lot of those second-tier sports, like baseball,” she said.
“We’re not ever going to have a rectangular [field] stadium, there’s enough of them around us. But for those other sports there is a real opportunity for Logan to position itself as the home of those sports – at a state level, but also nationally.”
Ms McMahon said a potential baseball stadium would be an amazing opportunity for the local and state economy. It also could boost or fast-track local infrastructure projects like roads, public transport lines, hotels, and hospitality venues.
“A sport like baseball has amazing economic opportunities when you consider some of our major trading partners in Japan and Korea, and Taiwan, baseball is their national pastime.
“If you’re looking at the national Australian Baseball League competition, on every other week the matches go for a whole weekend. So you’re looking at people who travel to watch those, and who go out to dinner before or after the game.
“We’ve got to make sure we get the location right. If it’s about a legacy piece, and you want it to be used for more than just two weeks in 2032, then it’s got to be in a location where it will get used and magnify economic benefits.”
Beyond baseball, Cr Raven hopes that in 50 years’ time, Logan will have teams competing in national soccer, AFL, and NRL leagues.
“We are literally the nursery for NRL and also a whole bunch of other sports because we’ve got such a diverse community. That means we’ve got great opportunities to have elite players in sport, but none of them can [currently] represent Logan on the national stage.”
He said the 2032 Brisbane Olympics would give Logan the opportunity to become the heart of Australian baseball.
But to get the stadium by 2032, the sport would need to become included in the Olympic sport lineup. If we could overcome that hurdle, Mayor Raven said building the stadium was a real possibility.
Already, there have been talks between local and state levels of government about the stadium’s location, potential investors from Taiwan and Japan, and how the stadium could be maximised for use all year round, even in the baseball off-season.
“Often with many stadiums, they’re not just used for baseball,” Mayor Raven said.
“They could be used for outdoor events, cultural events, and for music performances.
“So it actually gives you an opportunity to have a venue that doesn’t just serve as baseball during the summer, but also provides us another outdoor venue all year round.”
The president of the Beenleigh Hawks baseball club, Matthew Ellems, said it made sense to establish a strong baseball presence in Logan.
“There is a strong contingent of the Asian community in and around Logan. Baseball is the national sport in Japan, and it’s very strong in Korea as well,” Mr Ellems said.
“I think Logan is a really good midway point between northern New South Wales and northern Queensland.
“We just need the facilities and infrastructure to be able to host those types of events.
“There’s a lot of scope if Logan got a baseball/softball facility with multiple fields and a stadium-type atmosphere, you could really make it the mecca of baseball and softball in Australia.”
