2013 Australian Baseball League postseason

See also: 2012–13 Australian Baseball League season

The 2013 Australian Baseball League (ABL) postseason was held from 2 to 9 February 2013. It was scheduled to start on 1 February, but the first game of the preliminary final series was postponed due to wet weather, and was the first game of a doubleheader the following day. The postseason was contested by three of the six teams participating in the regular season, with the teams with the best winning percentages qualifying.

The preliminary final series was hosted by the Sydney Blue Sox at Blue Sox Stadium in Sydney, against the Perth Heat. The Heat won the series two games to nil, to then face the Canberra Cavalry at Narrabundah Ballpark in Canberra in the championship series. Canberra defeated Perth two games to nil to win their first ABL championship and be awarded the Claxton Shield. It was the first time a team from the Australian Capital Territory won the Claxton Shield

Format

At the conclusion of the regular season, the postseason will involve the teams in a two-round structure. Each round will consist of a best-of-three game series between the respective teams. The first-placed team will directly qualify for the championship series, and the second- and third-placed teams will play each other in the preliminary final series, the winner of which will qualify for the second place in the championship series.

Bracket

	Preliminary Final Series 2 February 2013					Championship Series 8-9 February 2013
						1	Canberra Cavalry	2
	2	Sydney Blue Sox	0			WP	Perth Heat	0
	3	Perth Heat	2

Qualification

The Sydney Blue Sox were the first team to clinch a postseason berth, when they defeated the Brisbane Bandits in the first game of their second series at Blue Sox Stadium in Sydney, the final series of the regular season. In the second game of the same series the following night, the Blue Sox clinched a home postseason series by beating the Bandits again. The Canberra Cavalry clinched their first ABL postseason berth that same night, when they defeated the Adelaide Bite at Norwood Oval in Adelaide. The win also guaranteed a regular season finish no lower than second, and like the Blue Sox assured the Cavalry oh hosting a home postseason series.

The final makeup of the postseason bracket was not determined until the final day of the regular season. The Cavalry guaranteed themselves first place and a place in the championship series when they beat the Bite in their final game. This win also confirmed the Blue Sox would finish in second place and host the preliminary final series. The Perth Heat qualified for the final postseason position when they defeated the Melbourne Aces at Baseball Park in Perth in their final game. The win eliminated the Bandits from contention.

Preliminary final

File:2013 abl prelim.png

The 2013 ABL preliminary final series logo.

The Sydney Blue Sox hosted the Perth Heat in the preliminary final series at Blue Sox Stadium. The Blue Sox and Heat split their season series 4–4. The four game series played in Sydney in November 2012 was also split 2–2. Over the three ABL seasons played up until this series, Perth has the better record head-to-head against Sydney, with a record of 18–9. The two teams have met in one postseason series before, in the 2011 major semi-final: the Perth Heat won the series 2–0 in Sydney.

Head-to-head record:
Perth Heat v Sydney Blue Sox

Game type	Games played	Perth won	Sydney won
Overall	27	18	9
In Sydney	14	12	2
In 2012–13 season	8	4	4
In Postseason	2	2	0

The first game of the series was scheduled to be played on 1 February, but was postponed due to wet weather. It was rescheduled to be the first game of a doubleheader the following day.

Game 1

2 February 2013 15:30 (UTC+11:00) at Blue Sox Stadium, Sydney

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Perth Heat	0	1	0	0	0	0	3	0	0	4	10	0
Sydney Blue Sox	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	1	9	0
WP: Anthony Claggett (1–0)   LP: Wayne Lundgren (0–1)   Sv: Brendan Wise (1) Attendance: 794 Boxscore

Game 2

2 February 2013 19:30 (UTC+11:00) at Blue Sox Stadium, Sydney

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Perth Heat	2	0	4	2	0	0	0	0	0	8	14	1
Sydney Blue Sox	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	1	3	6	10	1
WP: Warwick Saupold (1–0)   LP: Brad Thomas (0–1)   Sv: Brendan Wise (2) Home runs: PER: Timothy Kennelly (1), Allan de San Miguel (1) SYD: None Attendance: 1,212 Boxscore

Championship series

File:2013 abl champ.png

The 2013 ABL championship series logo.

The Canberra Cavalry will host the Perth Heat in the championship series at Narrabundah Ballpark. The Cavalry won their season series against the Heat 6–2. The four game series played in Canberra in January 2013 was won by Canberra 3–1. Over the three ABL seasons played up until this series, Canberra has the better record head-to-head against Perth, with a record of 13–12. The two teams have not previously met in a postseason series; Canberra qualified for the postseason for the first time in 2013.

Head-to-head record:
Canberra Cavalry v Perth Heat

Game type	Games played	Canberra won	Perth won
Overall	25	13	12
In Canberra	13	7	6
In 2012–13 season	8	6	2
In Postseason	0	–	–

Game 1

8 February 2013 19:00 (UTC+11:00) at Narrabundah Ballpark, Canberra

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Perth Heat	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	2	4	8	1
Canberra Cavalry	1	3	0	2	0	0	0	0	X	6	12	2
WP: Brian Grening (1–0)   LP: Anthony Claggett (1–1)   Sv: Sean Toler (1) Home runs: PER: Timothy Kennelly (1), Luke Hughes (1) CAN: Aaron Sloan (1), Ryan Stovall (1) Attendance: 2,013 Boxscore

Game 2

9 February 2013 19:00 (UTC+11:00) at Narrabundah Ballpark, Canberra

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Perth Heat	2	0	0	0	4	0	0	0	0	6	8	2
Canberra Cavalry	1	4	1	0	0	0	1	0	X	7	13	0
WP: Brodie Downs (1–0)   LP: Jack Frawley (0–1)   Sv: Sean Toler (2) Home runs: PER: None CAN: Kody Hightower (1), Michael Wells (1) Attendance: 2,043 Boxscore