Former Black Sox pitching great eager to develop and coach New Zealand's first MLB star

Former Black Sox pitcher Marty Grant has switched codes, opting to coach baseball rather than softball, as he looks to help find New Zealand's first Major League Baseball player.

There is about 100 children playing baseball in Nelson, thanks to Grant.

"I'm coaching young kids in the game of baseball," said Grant.

"My son was a softball pitcher - just like his father and I used to teach him and we'd train three days a week.

"My son's now a baseball pitcher and he dedicates those three days or four days a week to throwing the ball over hand.

Marty's son Cooper is a pitcher, but prefers the batting side of the game.

"I pitch and I play short stop but my passion is to hit, I love hitting it's just the most enjoyable thing," said Cooper.

"When you get a good hit and you don't even feel it off the bat and it's just such a clean hit and yeah it goes."

Softball is rich in history New Zealand, but the dollars are in baseball.

American baseball player Mike Trout signed a world record contract last month worth $NZ635 million and Marty believes Kiwi softball players can make the transition.

"I played with some of the best softball players to ever come out of this country and I do believe that more than fifty per cent of them if they'd been in a baseball programme would've absolutely been successful. I've got no doubt in my mind," Marty said.

"We've got very good athletes in this country and the Americans and all these other international baseball programmes realise that we've got great athletes and they want to see us playing baseball."