Ben Wigmore

Ben Wigmore

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 187 lb.

• Born January 17, 1982 in Adelaide, South Australia Australia

Olympics-Reference

Biographical Information

Ben Wigmore has been a productive catcher in his native Australia. He played in the 2004 Olympics. He has twice led the Claxton Shield in average, twice in OBP and once in homers.

Wigmore debuted in 1999 with the Adelaide Giants, going 0 for 1. In 1999-2000, he was 3 for 14 for South Australia in the International Baseball League of Australia. Ben was 12 for 20 with 3 doubles and a homer in the 2002 Claxton Shield, leading South Australia's attack. He led the Shield in average and hits and tied Rodney van Buizen for the best OBP (.636). He got offers from several US teams but turned them down to focus on his education.

Ben hit .435/.480/.696 with 7 runs and 6 RBI in five games in the 2003 Shield competition. He was 5th in average and 4th in slugging in that Shield. He played for Australia in the Oceanic Olympic Qualifier, batting .385/~.412/.846 and handling 39 chances error-free. He led the event in RBI (6, one ahead of Dan Floyd), tied Adam Bright and Andrew Utting for the most doubles (2) and was 3rd in average (behind Floyd and Rico Castro). For South Australia in the 2004 Shield, he was 10 for 20 with 3 doubles, 4 walks, 7 runs and 7 RBI. He led in average and OBP once again and tied Nick Kimpton for 4th in slugging.

Wigmore was originally overlooked for Australia's roster for the 2004 Olympics, but replaced an injured Justin Huber on the final roster. He went 1 for 3 in the Summer Games, backing up Dave Nilsson and Andrew Utting at catcher. Wigmore did not play in the Medal round but got a Silver Medal due to his team's performance.

Wigmore batted "only" .292/.370/.333 in the 2005 Claxton Shield, his first non-stellar performance in the Shield. The next year, Ben hit .381/.425/.857 with 3 homers and 7 RBI in five games. He led the event in home runs and slugging and was third in total bases behind Brad Dutton and Matthew Kent.

Wigmore hit .333/.429/.458 in the 2007 Claxton Shield, bringing his career batting line in Australian ball to an amazing .395/?/.599 in 147 AB.

In 2008, Ben batted .295/.415/.341 for South Australia. The next year, he fell to .242/.299/.387 with 11 runs in 16 games, tying for 6th in the Shield in runs scored.

Primary Source: Flintoff & Dunn Australian Baseball Almanac