by Australian Baseball Federation
New South Wales native Grant Balfour earned the save in game three of the Oakland Athletics postseason series against the Detroit Tigers, becoming the first Australian to ever record a save in the Major League Baseball postseason.
A save, as defined by the MLB rulebook, is credited to a pitcher when, “he is the finishing pitcher in a game won by his club and he enters the game with a lead of no more than three runs and pitches for at least one inning,” among more specific qualifications.
With the A’s facing elimination, Balfour entered in the final inning with a 2-0 lead and faced the minimum three batters en route to the first save in history by an Australian-born player. During the regular season, the Sydneysider converted 24 of 26 save opportunities for the American League West Division Champion Athletics.
“To see Grant shut down the Tigers tonight in the final inning was a great feeling,” Sydney Blue Sox General Manager and Grant Balfour’s father David Balfour said. “Facing elimination the team played great and seeing Grant finish the game was fantastic.”
Aside from Balfour, three Australian pitchers have appeared in the MLB postseason, as Graeme Lloyd pitched for the New York Yankees in the playoffs from 1996-1998, Damian Moss appeared for the Atlanta Braves in 2002 and Peter Moylan also appeared for the Braves in 2010.
The Sydney Blue Sox begin their season with a showcase series from the 26th-28th of October against Team Australia at Blacktown International Sportspark.
