There are not many cricketers who can claim a professional career in two bat-and-ball sports, but Liam Plunkett has done exactly that. The former England fast bowler, best remembered for his crucial contributions to England's 2019 50-over World Cup triumph on home soil, stepped onto a baseball diamond in a professional capacity last Friday night — and even managed to get a strikeout for good measure.
A Night to Remember at Raimondi Park
Plunkett took to the mound for the Oakland Ballers against the Yuba-Sutter Freebirds in the Pioneer Baseball League, pitching in front of a crowd of 1,878 spectators at Raimondi Park on the USA's west coast. The 41-year-old delivered five pitches in total and sent Freebirds batter Josh Duarte packing with a strikeout — a result that will surely sit proudly in any sporting CV. Unfortunately for Plunkett and the Ballers, the individual highlight came amid a heavy 18-11 team defeat, so there was little wider celebration to be had on the night.
From Cricket Whites to Baseball Whites
Plunkett has been living in the United States for five years and has firmly embedded himself in American sporting culture. He currently plays T20 cricket in Major League Cricket, representing the San Francisco Unicorns franchise, though he has yet to feature for them in this season's tournament. His route into the Ballers' squad came via the Pioneer Baseball League's marketing player exception — a provision that allows clubs to add one non-prospect player, typically a high-profile figure, to their 25-man active roster without breaching standard eligibility rules. It is a clever bit of marketing for the league, and Plunkett is clearly a willing participant.
During preparations for the game, Plunkett had a go at batting but quickly concluded that pitching was the better option. Speaking to BBC Sport, he was candid about the challenge of picking up a bat against baseball pitching: "The swing path when you bat is so different compared to cricket, especially when someone is pitching at 90mph. I'd have loved to hit a monster home run because that would have gone viral!" It is a fair point — a cricketer smashing a baseball homer would have been extraordinary viewing.
Making History Between the Sports
What makes this more than just a novelty appearance is Plunkett's own belief that he has made genuine sporting history. "I think I'm the first English cricketer to ever play a professional game of baseball," he told BBC Sport. "It's obviously a few rungs below Major League Baseball but it's still pretty cool to say I have played as a professional in two bat-and-ball sports." He also acknowledged that his style on the mound was something of a hybrid, describing it as "a mix between bowling and pitching" — which, as a former international quick bowler capable of genuine pace, is hardly surprising. He had previously thrown ceremonial first pitches for the Philadelphia Phillies and Minnesota Twins through his role as an MLC ambassador, so this was not entirely uncharted territory.
What Next for Plunkett?
From a cricket perspective, the focus will soon return to MLC and whether Plunkett can force his way into the San Francisco Unicorns' plans this season. His baseball appearance is unlikely to mark a permanent crossover, but it serves as a reminder that Plunkett remains one of sport's more adventurous characters. For a man who helped win a World Cup at Lord's and is now getting strikeouts in California, life after county cricket — he represented Durham, Yorkshire and Surrey during his domestic career — has been anything but dull.
