The Baseball Confederation of Oceania is the governing body of baseball

Baseball

Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...

 within Oceania

Oceania

Oceania is a region centered on the islands of the tropical Pacific Ocean. Conceptions of what constitutes Oceania range from the coral atolls and volcanic islands of the South Pacific to the entire insular region between Asia and the Americas, including Australasia and the Malay Archipelago...

, and is responsible for the Oceania Baseball Championship

Oceania Baseball Championship

The Oceania Baseball Championship is contested between participating baseball federations in Oceania. It is sanctioned by the Baseball Confederation of Oceania ....

.

The Baseball Confederation of Oceania was established in 1989, it currently has 15 member nations.

Ray Brown, the BCO Development Officer, provides support throughout the region.

Since 2006, the BCO has run a Regional Training Centre for aspiring players. Run for approximately 10 days, the RTC is open to players 14-18 who want to perform at a higher level. In 2006, the RTC was held in Auckland, New Zealand. In 2007, it was held in Christchurch, New Zealand. A site for 2008 has not yet been determined.

History

Baseball arrived in most parts of Oceania as a result of Japanese influence prior to and during World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

, and American influence, particularly following the war. The Japanese influenced was most pronounced in Micronesia, particularly Palau.

Members

American Samoa American Samoa national baseball team The American Samoa national baseball team is the national baseball team of American Samoa. Competes at the South Pacific Games, has won Silver and Bronze at the event.South Pacific Games* 2003 : 2nd* 2007 : 3rd... Australia Australia national baseball team The Australian national baseball team represents Australia in international baseball tournaments and competitions. They are ranked as the top team in Oceania, and are the Oceanian Champions, having been awarded the title in 2007 when New Zealand withdrew from the Oceania Baseball Championship. They... Federated States of Micronesia Federated States of Micronesia national baseball team The Federated States of Micronesia national baseball team is the national baseball team of Federated States of Micronesia. Competes at the South Pacific Games, the team won Bronze at the 2005 event.South Pacific Games* 2005 : 3rd... Fiji Islands Guam Guam national baseball team The Guam national baseball team is the national baseball team of Guam. The team represents Guam in international competitions. Guam has competed in the Asian Baseball Championship.-Asian Baseball Championship:... Marshall Islands New Caledonia New Caledonia national baseball team The New Caledonia national baseball team is the national baseball team representing New Caledonia, part of the French Republic. The team is controlled by the New Caledonia Baseball Association. The team won Silver at the 2007 South Pacific Games.-Placings:...

New Zealand New Zealand national baseball team The New Zealand national baseball team is the representative team at international level for New Zealand. The team is controlled by Baseball New Zealand, the country's governing body. The team competes in the Oceania Championship, where in 2007 withdrew from play giving Australia an automatic berth... Northern Marianas Palau Palau national baseball team The Palau national baseball team is the national baseball team of Palau. Competes at the South Pacific Games, has won Bronze, Silver and Gold in their last three appearances.South Pacific Games* 2003 : 3rd* 2005 : 2nd* 2007 : 1st... Papua New Guinea Samoa Solomon Islands Tonga

Rankings

Rankings as of 19 October 2009
BCO Rank	IBAF Rank	| Team	Points
1	11		211.24
2	34		12.50
3	=37		10.00
4	=42		7.50
5	=55		3.75
6	=74		0.25

When the International Baseball Federation

International Baseball Federation

The International Baseball Federation is the worldwide governing body recognized by the International Olympic Committee as overseeing, deciding and executing the policy of the bat-and-ball sport of baseball at the international level...

 (IBAF) first released their world rankings, Australia

Australia national baseball team

The Australian national baseball team represents Australia in international baseball tournaments and competitions. They are ranked as the top team in Oceania, and are the Oceanian Champions, having been awarded the title in 2007 when New Zealand withdrew from the Oceania Baseball Championship. They...

 was the only team listed. The only continental tournament recognised at the time was the 2007 Oceania Baseball Championship, which had been awarded to Australia when New Zealand

New Zealand national baseball team

The New Zealand national baseball team is the representative team at international level for New Zealand. The team is controlled by Baseball New Zealand, the country's governing body. The team competes in the Oceania Championship, where in 2007 withdrew from play giving Australia an automatic berth...

 pulled out of the series.

However when the IBAF released their updated rankings list in August 2009, in addition to the most recently contested tournaments being added and their expired counterparts being removed, several past tournaments were also added to the ranking system, including the 2007 Pacific Games

Baseball at the 2007 South Pacific Games

Baseball at the 2007 South Pacific Games was contested by five teams. Palau won the gold medal, New Caledonia won the silver, American Samoa won the bronze...

. This resulted in a further five teams being added to the world rankings list. Australia maintained its position as first of the Oceania teams, given the number of tournaments they had participated in within the tracking period, whereas the newly entered teams had only contested the one tournament.

Though there are a number of teams explicitly listed in the current rankings as having participated in international tournaments within the tracking period but not in any that are considered in the ranking system, none of those teams are from Oceania.