To say the Auckland Tuatara have faced an emotional year would be an understatement.
Tempers boiled over in their clash with Canberra Cavalry earlier this month, with shortstop Josh Morgan and coach Steve Mintz ejected for disputing an umpire's.
But since that blow-up, they've lost just two of eight matches, scoring series victories over Canberra and Brisbane Bandits.
"It was a blessing in disguise," says Morgan. "That was definitely one of the things that drove us to be better.
"You look back at that and you're like, 'That shouldn't have happened, let's be better'.
Mintz says the outburst shows his team wear their hearts on their sleeves, part of the strong culture that's developing within the team .
"We spoke about taking pride and caring about what we're doing, and representing the great country of New Zealand," he says.
On Thursday, the American was suspended a game and fined AU$200 for his ejection.
"Our coaching staff is right with us," says Morgan. "If one guy goes down, you know it's going to take another guy… everyone protects each other."
After the death of infielder Ryan Costello days before the season opener, players banded together, despite understandable grief and shock.
"You couldn't make any changes until we were ready and we'd had time to grieve," says general manager Regan Wood. "We didn't really get to grieve losing one of our friends."
Now looking forward, a place atop the Northeast Division is within their sights, as they host the leaders Sydney Blue Sox this weekend.
"We look at the standings, we understand where we're at, but we have to play good baseball on a nightly basis," says Mintz.
With playoffs now on the horizon, the Tuatara's rollercoaster season could finally be heading in the right direction.
