The Auckland Tuatara have secured a nine-year deal with North Harbour's QBE Stadium from 2019.
New Zealand's newest professional sporting franchise will play their inaugural Australian Baseball League season out of McLeod Park in Te Atatu before making the North Shore their permanent home from next November.
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Regional Facilities Auckland will bankroll alterations to QBE Stadium to allow baseball to be played on the outfield. Auckland Stadiums announced they will reconfigure the west stand to accommodate a baseball diamond. The alterations will cost $2million.
"We had to do our part too – we had to come to the table with some investment, "Tuatara general manager Ryan Flynn told Newshub.
"Our board did a great job getting this over the line. It was a pretty fair deal and part of a wider high-performance plan for New Zealand sport.
"This becomes another high-performance hub for North Harbour Rugby, for New Zealand Football – it's their hub, it's baseball's hub – it's very exciting.
"Baseball has never been given any money in the decade I have been here so this is a long time coming."
The Tuatara's opening homes series begins on November 23, and Flynn is counting down the days with anticipation.
The American native has been a vocal minority for the sports since taking the job at the head of Baseball New Zealand in 2010.
Flynn has always felt New Zealand was a sleeping giant of the sport and with the Tuatara launching next month, the giant could be awakened.
"How big could baseball be here? As big as you can imagine because I believe we can become a top 10 country in the world," Flynn told Newshub.
"This puts us on par with the likes of Australia – gives us a leg up to move forward.
"This is a game changer from both a commercial and player development side of things."
The Tuatara's season begins in Western Australia against the Perth Heat on November 15.
Newshub.
