Jason hits home run with plans for baseball team

Tayport man encouraged by response after pitching idea for local club

An American, who lives in Tayport, hopes to hit a home run with plans to introduce his national sport to the region.

Jason West, who has called the Fife town home for five months, is setting up a baseball team after seeing a gap in Scotland’s market.

There are just a handful of teams in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen, with Jason believing Tayport is ideally placed to cater for people in Tayside and Fife looking to get into the sport.

The 37-year-old has been bowled over by the interest already shown in the Tayport Breakers with more than 25 people making inquiries.

At least nine people are needed to field a baseball team while Jason believes a squad of around 15 is ideal.

He said: “There are some teams in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen but that means anyone in the middle of that triangle has a lot of travelling to do if they want to take part.

“We’re looking for people from all over Fife to get involved and we’ve already had players interested in Perth through to Arbroath.

“The community has been really supportive. I wasn’t expecting to get such a good response.”

The current season wraps up this weekend with a Caledonia Classic clash between Aberdeen Express and Jason’s former team, Glasgow Galaxy, with whom he won two league titles.

He said: “I played American football predominately in my youth but also a bit of baseball. I played for Dundee’s American football team for a while, in fact.

“But what’s great about baseball is that you don’t need a huge amount of money to begin.

“You just need nine people, a glove and some bats. It’s also a good game for men and women to get into.

“We want to start strong next season, which kicks off in spring 2020. We want to get some training in before the season so we don’t just muddle through for a while.”

Jason, who will take on the general manager position for the Breakers, one day hopes the club can grow to encompass a youth team.

He said: “Anyone over 16 can join now and even some 14 or 15 year olds, with parental permission, but I hope to expand into a youth club as well.”

The team has already scouted a training site near the beach at Tayport, with an eye on kitting that area out in early spring. Jason is in the process of finding a location for training during the winter months.

Anyone interested in joining the team can email tayportbaseballclub@gmail. com or contact the team via its Facebook page.

Tayport could soon play host to baseball matches as plans to launch a team in the area attract interest from the local community.

Jason West hopes to launch the Tayport Breakers baseball team after seeing a gap in the Scottish market.