Self-driven social media campaign results in Mexican baseball contract for Aussie WBSC Premier12 alum Todd Van Steensel
03/03/2021 2 Minute Read

Self-driven social media campaign results in Mexican baseball contract for Aussie WBSC Premier12 alum Todd Van Steensel

A video of Todd Van Steensel's ABL performances was spotted by Matt Clark, who faced him in Tokyo during the Super Round of the 2019 WBSC Premier12. The right-hander will play for the expansion team Mariachis.

Todd Van Steensel, a 30-year old right-handed reliever from Australia, has landed a job in the Mexican Baseball League (LMB, Liga Mexicana de Béisbol), thanks to a self-driven social media campaign.

Van Steensel has had long baseball seasons since 2009, playing in North America or Europe in the summer and going back Down Under for the winter Australian Baseball League (ABL).

After playing 215 Minor League Baseball (MiLB) games, including 66 at the Double-A level, in the US, the Sydney native dominated the ABL 2020-21 season with the Adelaide Giants.

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Using a highlight reel put together by the Giants, Van Steensel started a social media campaign.

Mexican League veteran Matt Clark, the slugger who sent the Premier12 2019 third-place game to extra innings with a solo home run, was impressed by what he saw and sent Van Steensel a message: "What about Mexico? We’re always looking for relievers."

The Australian pitcher messaged to all the LMB clubs and the expansion team Mariachis de Guadalajara got back to him with a proposal.

Van Steensel is a veteran of international baseball. He has represented Australia since the U-21 Baseball World Cup 2014. He has also appeared in the 2017 World Baseball Classic. He helped Australia finish in sixth place at the WBSC Premier12 2019. The righthander appeared in two games for a total of four innings pitched. He allowed just one run on three hits, while striking out four.

Australia is currently sixth in the WBSC Baseball World Rankings and will compete in the WBSC Olympic Baseball Final Qualifier for a chance to play in the Tokyo Olympics.

Premier12