Promising Northern Pirates pitcher Alex Osborne is making his international baseball debut at the world's biggest tournament, the 15-Years-and-Under World Cup in Mexico, which begins today.
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The 189-centimetre pitcher broke his ankle in March but still made the 20-man Australian roster for an event featuring the 18 best baseball nations, and will be part of Australia's pitching rotation.
The 15-year-old is a relative late starter to baseball, taking up the sport just five years ago and even had a four-year break after his initial introduction through Tee-Ball.
But the giant left-handed pitcher continues to impress, playing in two Little League National Championships and three Country Championships.
Last January, Osborne was part of the NSW Country Blue Sox team that won the national under-16s title at Blacktown.
His Country triumph was shared with Pirates teammates Dylan Rower and Angus Black, plus talented Cardinals juniors Joel Thompson and Johnathan Hall Walsh.
The 15-Years-and-Under World Cup runs until August 10, with Australia in Group C alongside world No 3-ranked Cuba, No 5-ranked Venezuela, Argentina, Lithuania and Hong Kong.
Australia are ranked No 9.
However, officials believe they are medal contenders and capable of finishing top two in their pool to qualify for the medal round.