THE natural instinct and flair for baseball seems to run in the blood of La Salle College student Chris Daniele’s family.
The Swan View teenager has two older brothers who play the sport and said that was one of the reasons he took up the game.
“I’ve been playing Tee Wee baseball since I was eight and started at the Swan Districts Baseball Club, originally in the junior division and now the seniors,” he said.
“Both of my brothers played state baseball and it just seemed natural to follow in their footsteps. I think it’s a really interesting game.”
Chris recently returned from Manila after he was selected to represent WA at the South East Asia Youth Baseball Softball Tournament, which he said was an experience he would definitely want to go through again.
“We played six games and finished third after Singapore and Manila,” Chris said. “The atmosphere was good because most teams got into it and watched other teams play.”
“I actually played really well against Singapore. I pitched seven innings and they only managed to score one run off me so I’m happy with that. All the boys put up a great effort.”
The final team of 13 was announced last month following tryouts that were held at Victoria Park, where all players were put through a series of training sessions to qualify for the squad.
Last year, the Australian team won the same tournament in Singapore and managed to stay undefeated through the entire series.
Singling nine-time All Star shortstop Derek Jeter from the New York Yankees as his baseball idol, Chris has the versatility to both bat and pitch.
“I don’t have any trademark moves but I guess I have my own personal batting and fielding style,” he said.