by Josh Chetwynd

In the fifth annual Mister-Baseball Top 50, T&A San Marino decisively took the top position, becoming the first club based in neither Italy nor the Netherlands to secure the number one ranking. Admittedly, San Marino’s victory is one for the Italian Baseball League as the club competes in Italy’s domestic league. But regardless of geography, San Marino’s performance was dominate: not only did the team capture the IBL title but it also won one of the two European Cup pool events as well as the European “Final 4” club title. The squad outpaced the second-place finisher in the Top 50, Hoofdklasse champion L&D Amsterdam by the largest margin since the first rankings in 2007 when the Netherland’s Corendon Kinheim prevailed by a slightly larger total over its closest rival.

Teams from the IBL also finished third and fourth in the Top 50. Danesi Caffe Nettuno, Coppa Italia victor and runner up in the IBL, came in immediately behind Amsterdam, while Cariparma Parma, which lost to San Marino in the “Final 4” championship, placed fourth. German Bundesliga champions, Buchbinder Legionäre, rounded out the top five.

Winner of one of the two Euro Cup pools, Unipol Bologna led the bottom-half of the top ten, followed by Hoofdklasse vice-champions, Vaessen Pioneers, perennial Dutch contender DOOR Neptunus, Spanish Division de Honor winners, FC Barcelona, and Germany’s second-place club, the Paderborn Untouchables.

As in years past, these rankings are based on a combination of factors. Point totals for teams were amassed from two categories:

1. Strength of baseball in each club’s country: The strength of domestic leagues and the countries’ overall international success are significant factors in these rankings. To varying degrees, the elements considered include: The standing of each country’s national team in the European Championships (and qualifiers); the country’s overall performance in CEB club events; the size of the country’s baseball membership; and the number of international quality facilities in the country. In looking at country performance, both recent events and historical performance are taken into account. Results from the 2011 European Championship qualifiers were considered in this year’s rankings.
2. Club’s performance: This is the actual performance of each club. It includes final standings in domestic leagues (and inter-league play where applicable) and cup competitions; club winning percentages; and performances in CEB-sanctioned competitions. Head-to-head performance against other teams in the rankings is taken into consideration – but it is one of many factors. In this category, a team’s performance for the 2011 season is exclusively considered.

The combination of country strength and individual team performance is intended to give a snapshot of European club play for a single year. These rankings do not attempt to offer a historic comparison of clubs and do not assert that a team ranked higher than another is a “better” team. Rather, a combination of performance and league strength reflects the ordering.

We recognize that these rankings stir debate. In part, that’s their very purpose. We do not claim this list to be definitive. If you have any questions or comments, send e-mails to rankings@mister-baseball.com.

2007 Mister-Baseball European Top 50
2008 Mister-Baseball European Top 50
2009 Mister-Baseball European Top 50
2010 Mister-Baseball European Top 50

Mister Baseball's 2011 European Top 50

Pos.	Club	Country	Points
1	T&A San Marino	San Marino	39.17
2	L&D Amsterdam	Netherlands	34.17
3	Danesi Caffe' Nettuno	Italy	30.17
4	Cariparma Parma	Italy	29.92
5	Buchbinder Legionäre	Germany	29.83
6	Unipol Bologna	Italy	29.17
7	Vaessen Pioniers	Netherlands	28.17
8	DOOR Neptunus	Netherlands	27.42
9	FC Barcelona	Spain	27.00
10	Paderborn Untouchables	Germany	26.83
11	Corendon Kinheim	Netherlands	26.17
12	Solingen Alligators	Germany	24.83
13	Technika Brno	Czech Republic	23.75
14	Sant Boi	Spain	23.00
15	Rouen Baseball 76	France	22.83
16	Bonn Capitals	Germany	22.33
17	Telemarket Rimini	Italy	21.67
18	AVG Draci Brno	Czech Republic	21.50
19	Heidenheim Heideköpfe	Germany	20.83
	Montpellier Université Club	France	20.83
21	Tenerife Marlins P.C.	Spain	19.50
22	Astros	Spain	19.00
23	Les Templiers de Senart	France	18.08
24	Savigny sur Orge Lions	France	17.83
25	Kotlářka Praha	Czech Republic	16.75
26	Southern Nationals	United Kingdom	16.33
27	KNTU-OSVSM Kirovograd	Ukraine	15.75
28	Stockholms BSK	Sweden	15.67
	UVV	Netherlands	15.67
30	Zagreb BK	Croatia	15.42
31	SK Krč Praha	Czech Republic	15.25
32	Lakenheath Diamondbacks	United Kingdom	14.83
33	Hoboken Pioneers	Belgium	13.83
34	Baseball Klub Nada SSM Split	Croatia	12.92
35	Tornado Balashikha	Russia	12.67
36	Göteborg	Sweden	12.17
37	Vienna Metrostars	Austria	11.67
38	Scythians	Ukraine	11.25
39	Namur Angels	Belgium	11.08
40	Bern Cardinals	Switzerland	11.00
41	MOSQUITO Athletics Attnang-Puchheim	Austria	10.67
42	Sugar Storm Skidel	Belarus	9.50
43	MGPU S.Y.O.S. Moscow	Russia	9.17
44	Szentendre Sleepwalkers	Hungary	8.50
	TJ STU Angels Trnava	Slovakia	8.50
46	Beograd 96	Serbia	8.25
	Sporto Vilkai Vilnius	Lithuania	8.25
48	Stal Kutno	Poland	7.50
49	Dublin Spartans	Ireland	6.75
50	Panthers Patras	Greece	6.25
	Zajčki Rabbits	Slovenia	6.25

Honorable Mentions:

Club	Country
Blagoevgrad Buffaloes	Bulgaria
Espoo Expos	Finland
Kiili Pantrid	Estonia
Oslo Pretenders	Norway
Riga Lions	Latvia

Countries covered: Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and Ukraine.

Just a little bit of self-promotion on a Monday morning:

We have started a new series, called Ballparks in Europe. If you would like to introduce your ballpark, you’ll find more information here.

You are on Facebook? Become a Fan of Mister-Baseball.com here.

You can also follow Mister-Baseball.com at Twitter. @MisterBaseball

Hello Baseball Fans and Mister-baseball readers,

the Mister-Baseball-Team is looking for an Assistant Webmaster/Editor to help put content on our website.

This is -as all jobs on mister-baseball- a volunteer position.
Our Assistant Editor / Assistant Webmaster should be interested in helping us on the following things:

- Establish new contacts within European baseball to obtain news for the website
- Enter news and information ion the WordPress-backend and put these news on the website
- Rewrite articles that have been sent in by correspondents which are no native English speakers
- Find photos for articles and publish them

Anybody that has good English language skills and is willing to invest at least 1 to 2 hours per day is welcome.

Internet HTML or PHP/SQL Knowledge is a plus but it is not mandatory for this position.

Mister-Baseball looking for Writers:

Mister-Baseball also would like to add some writers to its staff, which would be assigned to a European league and are going to provide weekly game day previews and recaps to our website. We are looking for people, which have knowledge of European Baseball and Softball and are comfortable in the English language. The position would be on a volunteer basis, financial compensation is not included. Writers would be able to cover most of the countries. If you want to know, which leagues are open, send us an email.

If you are interested or you’re having any questions let us know at news@mister-baseball.com

Sikaras was talking to Danesi Nettuno this winter, but an agreement fell through a couple of weeks ago. The 32-year-old former minor leaguer is well known in Italian baseball, having played for De Angelis Godo and Telemarket Rimini. The 26-year-old Bourdaniotis was a member of the Greek team at the IBAF Baseball World Cup in Panama last October. He attended Sacramento State University and Cal State in Los Angeles.

Blessed with the state of the art facilities of the Ahorn Sportpark, which is a heavens playground for sport fans with the addition of an indoor baseball area, baseball and softball clinics, umpire and scorer’s seminars, press workshops, minor league camps and DBV meetings took place. Kids got the opportunity to play baseball with their idols Kai Gronauer, Martin Dewald and Simon Guehring. Speakers Tom O’Connell, Reggie Smith, Tim Leveque, Greg Frady, Alper Bozkurt, Georg Bull, Guehring and Gronauer highlighted the baseball program. Udo Dehmel, Lilliana Rossetti, Christina Lipp, Stephanie Kuepers, Chrissi Bruckner and Nils Hachen talked to the softball coaches.

On Saturday evening during a “party” the DBV said farewell to Stefan Hoffmann, who however will remain involved in German baseball as vice president of a regional federation and as board member of the Rhein-Main Baseball Academy. Also awards for the best German players were handed out, which turned out to be a love fest for the Untouchables Paderborn with Jendrick Speer receiving MVP honors and Eugen Heilmann getting named best pitcher. Additionally Max Boldt of the Mainz Athletics got the best batter trophy and LeRoy Ewart of the Mannheim Tornados the rookie of the year award.

But we also have to talk about the things, which need to get better. While the number of coaches on hand with about 70 to 80 for the baseball part and 40 for softball, have been promising figures compared to previous years, it seems that German coaches and players of all levels don’t understand what great opportunity these clinics are. You can find new impulses for weekly practice sessions and are able talk baseball to some of the smartest coaches in the game. Obviously there is always the factor costs, especially for the relatively expensive DBV Academy.

Also, it seemed that the softball clinic used the facilities at the Ahorn Sportpark better than the baseball clinic. They moved around and kept participants on their toes, while the baseball coaches were stuck on a mobile stand (which also has its advantages), which wasn’t really comfortable. While the baseball program featured great pitching lectures by St. Louis Cardinals minor league pitching coach Tim Leveque, the scheduling involved too many changes to keep up due problems with speakers arrival.

Nonetheless the DBV Academy 2012 was a huge success thanks to the local organization by the Untouchables Paderborn and the BSV NRW, and of course the engagement of the International Sports Group and the German Baseball and Softball Federation. In January of 2013 everybody will return to the Ahorn-Sportpark in Paderborn. However the DBV Academy will be re-named into the “DBV Convention” to avoid any confusion due to growing emergence of German baseball academies in Regensburg, Paderborn and Mainz.

It didn’t take long for general manager Mauro Mazzotti to find a replacement. Marco Yepez, also from Venezuela, is taking over Vasquez’ foreign player spot. He played for Cariparma Parma in the last two seasons, batting .303/.386/.322 in 2011. He is also some kind of insurance in case Giovanni Pantaleoni’s knee injury is indeed serious.

Yepez is going to be the fifth new player on the roster besides Chris Cooper, Daniel Bittar, Yulman Ribeiro and Joe Mazzuca. One last piece is missing for the reigning European Champions Cup winner, as a strong foreign starting pitcher is anticipated.

On the mound Juan Carlos Campos replaces Luis Alberto Amaro as foreign starting pitcher. He is a former minor leaguer in the Houston Astros organization. Between 2000 and 2003 the 31-year-old Venezuelan had an ERA of 2.96 in 285 1/3 innings. Back healthy is infielder Camilo Alberto Gonzalez. From the Viladecans farm team Javier Monzon and Yuri Despaigne will be promoted to the Division de Honor roster.

• Group A: Czech Republic, France, Ukraine, Bulgaria
• Group B: Russia, Poland, Slovakia, Greece

Group A

• Russia
• Netherlands
• Belgium
• Lithuania

Group B

• Italy
• France
• Croatia
• Denmark

Group C

• Czech Republic
• Great Britain
• Israel
• Greece

Group D

• Germany
• Spain
• Austria
• Ukraine

Mister-Baseball: Looking back at the Baseball World Cup, while the results didn’t show it Germany received praise from the other teams for their good play. What did you take from the Baseball World Cup?

Greg Frady: I think the team did a good job at the World Cup. Certainly the results of winning weren’t there. We don’t make excuses, but you have to look where the team is at and the growth of the team. Five years ago, half of the games we may not played so well in. But every game with the exception of one was very competitive and we played good baseball. There are other factors in the world cup, the travel problems; no preparation was unfair to the players. And I think the players have great pride in playing well and getting a good result for Deutschland. And not getting that result is difficult for all of us, coaches, players. But I think we played with a lot of pride and earned more respect and improved the organization, even after this tournament.

Mister-Baseball: The scouts which were on site especially talked about Donald Lutz and Max Kepler for their play at the field and at the plate. What did you see in their development in comparison with previous years and what are their biggest challenges going forward?

Greg Frady: Well, it is easy to see the great talent both of those guys possess. They have something that is special. Donald has big league power and this is special. And every big league club needs a guy this size who can hit in the middle of the order that is left-handed, that can hit some homeruns. Everyone needs that. I think this is big contributing factor why he was placed on the 40-man roster with the Reds. First time a German player has been moved to that level. A fantastic accomplishment and we are very proud. We are all big fans of Donald, as he goes up the ladder and wish him well. Certainly they see that. As far as his improvement, he has a lot of power, but he needs to cut his strikeouts down and with more time and more games, more at-bats that will happen. He needs to improve his defensive play. He is a hitter first and defender second. He needs to make that more equal. A hitter and a defender with the same priority. If he stays in the National League he is going to play first base and he is going to continue to improve his defense. He is a very good athlete and he is pretty good there, but he needs to improve.

Max Kepler is just young. He has five tools. And I don’t say someone has five tools very often. But he does. And I was particularly surprised; I think this is the right word, on how much power he has. I think I expected him to do everything he did with exception of the power. I was surprised by that. Particular at this young age, usually power comes later. If he continues to develop his power, then he is going to be a big leaguer and he has the chance to be a big league all-star, which is really amazing for me to say that, because I don’t say that easily. But he plays the game with a great ease, he plays the game in a way that he stands out and he is very exciting to watch. The things he has to improve on. He is still a young player. Every aspect of his game needs improvement. One of the things he will continuingly getting challenged as he gets into baseball is the ability to focus and concentrate over long periods of time. I noticed in the games that he would start out very focused and concentrated and then he would go through periods of times, where he was waiting seemingly that something was going to happen. As he gets older and more mature I think he will become moving into the leadership aspect of the game versus being the younger guy watching all the things around him. But he is an extremely exciting player and he potentially has the chance to become the best player in German baseball history. And I think we are definitely all big fans of Max because he has the legitimate chance to become a big leaguer.

Mister-Baseball: Did you have a chance to see the Dutch play in the World Cup and what means the success for European Baseball.

Greg Frady: I did not get to see the Dutch team play in person, but I watched the Dutch play on TV, because we were in two different brackets in two different parts of the country. Why the Dutch team had success is because number one they have good players. But secondly what is important, they have a good organization, they are well coached, they are well organized, they scout well, they work on fundamentals, they are able to practice and get together collectively as a team. It is a great advantage in Europe when you can do that. I can only say that I am jealous, that they have that. Because the German team doesn’t have that capability. And what that means for European Baseball is, I am a big fan of the Dutch team. I like their coaches. I like their organization. I know a lot of their players, I feel when we go to these tournaments like World Cups or we’re at Olympic Qualifiers or maybe we are at other world type tournaments, the World Port Tournament, at one point I saw the Dutch team as our big rival enemies. Now I see them more as a fellow European country, where I am pulling for those guys. Not when we are playing head to head of course. But I have respect for the Dutch team, because they are working really hard there and they are trying to make baseball excellent. And I was a big fan of the win. And when the tournament was over I sent Robert Eenhoorn and Brian Farley, Steve Janssen all emails congratulating them on not just winning the World Cup. But congratulating them for the work, which has gone into this over the last ten years to put the team into a position for success and then getting that result is fantastic thing.

Mister-Baseball: Speaking for this DBV Academy. When you came here and saw the speakers and the program, what were you looking for the most before the event?

Greg Frady: Well, for one thing the DBV Academy attendance is really up, which I think that was important for me to know how many people are interested now in baseball and are we growing. And the people that are coming here are not just playing baseball. They are coming here now to learn how to coach better. How to be a better organizational manager in their organization. You are seeing umpire having clinics to work and improve. Scorers have clinics and work to get better at it. In general all of baseball during the winter is trying to improve here in Germany. The speakers here are fantastic world class speakers. There is great information being exchanged for the German coaches and players. I am always happy to come to Germany to talk about Baseball. But to be part of the DBV clinic is a great honor and I enjoy it very much.

Mister-Baseball: Looking ahead to 2012 there are two major tournaments ahead for Germany, the European Championship and the World Baseball Classic Qualifier. Also they are most likely going back-to-back. What are the challenges and keys for success?

Greg Frady: 2012 I think is my ninth year with the team. Every single year I’ve been here, we always made the statement, this is the most important year for German baseball, but easily we can say that now that 2012 is the most important year in the history of German baseball. And it is going to be a great challenge. First the European Championship. It is always my belief that the foundation of the German team starts in Europe. If you are competitive and you are at the top of European baseball, then we can work on these other things, other world tournaments and taking our place in World Baseball rankings. We can work on that in time. But we cannot lose our place in European baseball.

And the thing, that is so challenging about is, I believe that the Czech team gets better, the French team gets better, the Great Britain team is unpredictable in the way who they may bring, the Greece team is unpredictable, who they may bring. We’ve seen Spain to be not that powerful team at the last European Championship, but I know this championship they’ll show back up and will be a very strong opponent. The Dutch just come off the World Cup as the World Cup Champion. Italy returns as the European Champion. And then I look into our bracket and see who we have on our side, it is going to be a great challenge for the German team to play at high level. Yet, I know that we can, but all the European tournaments before are gone. The only one that matters is this one coming up. And we’ve got to get together.

Right now we are in the stages of planning about how we are going to make a preparation for this. One of the things which really got lost for the World Cup was no preparation. And it all comes back to funding. No one of the DBV wanted to go there without preparation, but money is the factor. We think we are going to be able hopefully to play two or three games as preliminary games prior to the European Championship. And we are really putting on a real focus on the European Championship. And that will be important. Our goal is to go there and do well, stay in the top of European baseball. For me to say, we are going to finish first or sixth or 12th, no one knows that. But we need to play consistently good baseball to give ourselves a chance to be at the top. Because I think European Baseball all as a whole is better than it has been ever before this championship.

And then we follow that up with the World Baseball Classic. But these are two total different tournaments. We know where the European Championship is going to be, I know the opponents, I know what the opponents are capable of doing and I can prepare for that. I don’t know where the World Baseball Classic is going to be, I don’t know when it is going to be played, I don’t know who the opponents are and I don’t know who our team is comprised of. So there are so many things that are out there that makes it difficult to plan, so we are talking about a lot of strategy, about the World Baseball Classic, but the European Championship is first. This is where our focus is right now. I know we need to take the step and win the Qualifier it is going to be good for German baseball if do that and go through to the World Baseball Classic. I will do everything in my power to that and we have to wait and see what the perimeters are, where we are playing, who we are playing, all these things.

Mister-Baseball: Two of your most important pitchers, Tim Henkenjohann and Enorbel Marquez-Ramirez are currently injured or are thinking about retirement. What can you say about them? Are they going to be healthy and are they going to continue to play?

Greg Frady: I can say about them that they have been great competitors for German Baseball. They have been very high performers and much of appreciation goes to both of those players. As far as, will they retire or will they continue, it’s too early to say now. Maybe they do retire. But then emerges Jan Niclas Stoecklin and Max Schmitz. Okay. The good news is that we still have some veteran players, which still can play baseball at a high level. And can help us with experience. And maybe they are getting a little older or they are injured or are returning from injury. But because they have experience and been there before that is something we have grown into now after some time. Five or six years ago we didn’t have this situation. These are veteran players with a lot of international experience and they can compete at a high level.

But because we have had some success and the Bundesliga clubs have worked really hard to improve the league and then the emergence of the academies and the junior national teams and the state games, baseball is at a higher level now then it is ever been in Germany. So there are more options to choose from young players. And these young players have gained more international experience and are exposed more, because the older players are coming back from these tournaments and talk to the players in the club and they seem to be more connected to that. So if we lose a player or players to retirement, I think we have a bright future with some young guys on the horizon. Enorbel Marquez and Tim Henkenjohann are heroes of German baseball and they always will be looked at that. But no club is just made up by one or two players.

Mister-Baseball: Going back to Georgia. You have two European players on the team this year. What will be there role and will it be different to their previous roles in Europe. So for example Max Schmitz is he going to be a reliever or a starter? Is Roy Seltenrijch going to be a starter or a backup infielder?

Greg Frady: First of, I am thrilled to have both of them to come play for me at a US Division I college. It is a big adjustment leaving and going to the US. As it is for European players to go to the MLB, to play with the Twins or the Giants or the Yankees. It is a big adjustment. You are leaving home, you are eating new food, you are living with people you never met or talked before, you left your girlfriend back home, you left your family back home, you are playing with players that equally are as talented as you are on your team, you are competing against guys that you have never seen, you are practicing every day, in the weight room every day. Roy just told me that he is so busy that he didn’t have time to go to the market to get food right now. So his days are all filled up.

So it is a big change for them. But both, Roy and Max, are very talented. And both are going to help the team immediately. Max Schmitz was brought to be a reliever, as a young player to grow into something. But we just lost our number one pitcher to a knee injury, so now he is going to a rotation. So now he looks like a starter. This has to work out as we get into the games. But Max has a great attitude and he is a great talent. And he can do any role and he it is going to be a wonderful development for him as a German player to get this kind of everyday baseball and routine.

Roy is going to be a middle infielder. He is in competition with three other guys for two spots. Two of those guys are freshman, the same age as he. So it is a lot of learning there too. Both of them have to make the adjustment to mirror the American player that is their age, to lift weights, which is something they are doing every day now. And they have done this in their clubs, but the commitment to do it every day and the physical conditioning of running and strengthening their body, is now every day for them. That is a big adjustment for them. That will help them. Being in baseball every day, literally every day, is going to be good for them as a development overall. They are talented players and they are going help our team, but they are going to be challenged greatly, because they are around players that are equally as talented as they are. But I know what they are capable of and I think they are continue to rise through the system and they will emerge as the top players at the Division I level.

Mister-Baseball thanks Greg Frady for the interview and wishes good luck for the upcoming season

The British Baseball Federation has released the full 2012 schedule for the National Baseball League (NBL), which will play their first official games of the year on Sunday 1 April. Nick Hadley, BBF Southern Senior Leagues Commissioner, has published the full slate of NBL match-ups following weeks of work at Board level and a close consultation process with the managers from the eight NBL teams.

Competing in the National League in 2012 are the reigning champions Southern Nationals, London Mets, Croydon Pirates, Essex Arrows, Herts Falcons, Bracknell Blazers, Lakenheath Diamondbacks and Southampton Mustangs. The Mildenhall Bulldogs and Richmond Flames — who were part of the 2011 NBL season — will not be entering top-tier squads into the National League this year.

The season also features several weeks of special intra-Federation play with the NBL sides facing off against the Great Britain Junior National Team. The full post-season selection process will be detailed in the coming days, but it has been announced that the playoffs will take place on the 18-19 August and the 2012 National Baseball Championships will be staged over the three-day Bank Holiday weekend of 25-27 August.

The 2012 NBL schedule will be uploaded to the BBF website calendar and individual team pages later in February, when the site will undergo a refresh of the full Federation league and team structure.

For the complete schedule visit www.britishbaseball.org

In game four of the series the Aces crushed Sydney 14-4 for the tie. Brad Harman led the way with two homeruns and six RBI. Paul Weichard collected four hits. Travis Blackley dominated on the mound, collecting eight strikeouts in five strong innings. Aidan Francis took the loss.

There also was little drama in the decisive fifth match of the series. Melbourne scored 14 runs in the first five innings of a 15-3 blowout. Player of the week Harman added another homerun and two RBI. This time it was the turn for Elliot Biddle to hit a pair of homeruns. Jeff Jamnik went the distance to pick up the win and the pitcher of the week honors.

Results ABL Playoffs Round 2:
Wednesday, February 1:
Melbourne – Sydney 5-7
Thursday, February 2:
Melbourne – Sydney 7-2
Friday, February 3:
Melbourne – Sydney 2-6
Sunday, February 5:
Melbourne – Sydney 14-4
Melbourne – Sydney 15-3

For more information visit the official website of the Australian Baseball League

The other two newcomers are coming from Europe. The Venezuelan Richard Bermudez is playing in Austria for a couple of years. The German utility player Tobias Rein played for the Rosenheim 89ers and has moved to Kufstein. Key players Werner Harrasser, Koichi Hida and Mark Malerich are coming back. Malerich has taken over as head coach of the club, going into his third year with the Vikings.

Justin Huber homered for the Aces, but it wasn’t enough to initiate a comeback. Elliot Biddle collected three hits. On the mound Brad Thomas (W, 1-0) issued four hits, a run and a walk in seven innings to pick up the win. Nic Ungs (L, 0-2) struck out ten in 6 1/3 innings for Sydney. But allowing eight hits and five runs led to a sour taste at the end. The two teams will meet again on Sunday for the remaining two games of the series.

Results ABL Playoffs Round 2:
Wednesday, February 1:
Melbourne – Sydney 5-7
Thursday, February 2:
Melbourne – Sydney 7-2
Friday, February 3:
Melbourne – Sydney 2-6

For more information visit the official website of the Australian Baseball League

Italian baseball is still buzzing about Danesi Nettuno’s coup to bring one of well-known pitchers in baseball into the Italian Baseball League. Dirk Hayhurst is currently promoting his new book “Out of my League”. The clip shows him talking to Keith Olbermann about the book, baseball and the real life of players behind the jerseys.

Huber finished the game with three RBI. Kevin David doubled twice for Melbourne. Boss Moanaroa continued his hot streak with the Blue Sox and collected three more hits and a RBI. On the mound Kevin Reese picked up the win after five scoreless innings of six-hit relief. Chris Oxspring took the loss, issuing seven hits, seven runs (6 ER) and two walks in five innings.

Results ABL Playoffs Round 2:
Wednesday, February 1:
Melbourne – Sydney 5-7
Thursday, February 2:
Melbourne – Sydney 7-2

For more information visit the official website of the Australian Baseball League

Wednesday 29 February:

15.00-17.00  Youth Clinic (age 9-12) for players and coaches
17.30-17.45  Opening Ceremony
17.45-18.30  Long Term Athlete Development in Dutch Baseball by Brian Farley
18.30-19.30  Hitting Mechanics by Robert Eenhoorn
19.30-20.00  Break
20.00-20.45  Perception & Eye Tracking by Michelle Kinburn
20.45-21.45  The Athletic Pitcher by Steve Janssen

Thursday 1 March:

15.00-17.00  Youth Clinic (age 15-18) for players and coaches
18.00-18.45  How to Build a Successful Team by Brian Farley
18.45-19.30  From Long Toss to Bullpen by Steve Janssen
19.30-20.00  Break
20.00-20.45  Communicating Effectively to Today's Players by Robert Coffie
20.45-21.30  An Infielders's Toolbox by Robert Eenhoorn
21.30-22.00  Break
22.00-22.30  Panel Discussion with all Speakers

We already reported about the acquisitions of Eric Segura, Abel Jimenez, Kevin Malone and Daniel Cepin. No longer part of the team are Emmanuel Febles, Oscar Angulo, Jose Luis Salazar, Ricardo Hernandez, Jason Friedman, Rafael Llames, Cole Yanco Rancoll, Felix Isasi, Sebastian Tesouro and Jose Carreras.

Miqueleiz gave a short interview to the blog of the Catalan Baseball and Softball Federation. He mentions winning the Copa del Rey and qualification for the playoffs as goals for the upcoming season in the Spanish Division de Honor. Baseball Barcelona is entering as defending champion and is also representing Spain in the European Cup.

For more information download the attached PDF-File with the official invitation by the organizers of the Athletics Attnang-Puchheim. In the file you’ll also find contact information.

On the mound Craig Anderson dominated with eight strikeouts. The former Neptunus hurler allowed eight hits, five runs and three walks. Travis Blackley topped him with ten Ks in seven frames, but also was charged with eight hits, seven runs and three bb. Three relievers closed it out for Sydney with Dae-Sung Koo picking up his third save of the postseason.

The winner of this series will meet with the Perth Heat in the championship series of the Australian Baseball League season 2011/2012 next week.

Results ABL Playoffs Round 2:
Wednesday, February 1:
Melbourne – Sydney 5-7

For more information visit the official website of the Australian Baseball League

The 30-yerar-old Hayhurst was born in Canton, Ohio. He attended Kent State University, where he set numerous school records as a baseball player and received a degree in communication studies. The San Diego Padres selected him in the eighth round of the 2003 MLB Amateur Draft. He signed and made his professional debut later that summer.

Hayhurst moved up the ladder in the Padres farm system and made his Major League debut on August 23, 2008 as a spot starter in a matchup against Barry Zito and the San Francisco Giants. After ten games with the Padres in the big leagues the Toronto Blue Jays picked him up on waivers, where he made 15 more appearances in Major League Baseball.

Hayhurst missed all of 2010 due to rehab after shoulder surgery and joined the Tampa Bay Rays organization for 2011, but didn’t make it back to the MLB. In eight seasons of Minor League Baseball, he had a 40-41 record with five saves and an ERA of 4.02 over 252 games (76 starts). He collected 619 strikeouts and 201 walks in 693 1/3 innings. In the MLB he was 0-2 with an ERA of 5.72 in 25 games (eight starts). He struck out 27 batters in 39 1/3 innings, walking 19.

As mentioned above Hayhurst is not only a baseball player, but also an author. His second book “Out of my League” is scheduled to get released on February 28, 2012. He also wrote a diary for Baseball America and works as a public speaker.

The third new hurlers is Ruderly Manuel from the Netherlands Antilles. The 21-year-old right-hander was with Sparta/Feyenoord Rotterdam last year. He was their number-two starter behind Bobby Carrington thanks to a 4-5 record with an ERA of 3.70 in the Dutch Hoofdklasse. He struck out 47 batters in 65 2/3 innings, walking 28.

Stuttgart, Germany – With their first venture into the 1.Bundesliga, the Reds needed the ultimate utility player and the answer came in the form of Hagen Rätz. Rätz reunites with teammate Markus Winkler from Heidenheim Heidekopfe and will strengthen the Reds in 2012.

Rätz was a part of the 2009 German National Championship team with Winkler and in 2010 played in the European Cup finals. In 1999, he was a Junior National Team member. Rätz has played in the German Bundesliga for 10 years and holds a career .262 average in the regular season and an almost identical average in the playoffs. Rätz also has a career 4.59 ERA on the mound in the Bundesliga in 301 innings.

“Having a player like Hagen opens up so many possibilities to move players around and give us the best options possible” said Bret Helenius, Head Coach for the Reds. “He brings a hard work ethic and positive attitude to the club.”

Rätz, a switch hitter, will see time at shortstop, catcher and on the mound for the Reds in 2012. The Reds home opener is April 9 against the Mainz Athletics.

Lawson is from Hilton Head, South Carolina, where he also went to High School. He started his college career at the Middle Georgia Junior College and later transferred to the Division I University of North Carolina in Charlotte. He signed with the Detroit Tigers organization as an undrafted free agent in 2010 and made his professional debut in the same year.

After a solid season in the NY-Penn League with a 3-3 record and an ERA of 2.93 in 16 games (nine starts) Lawson only made it to Extended Spring Training in 2011, getting released after being put on the roster of the West Michigan Whitecaps.

by Riccardo Schiroli

A golf resort close to the Garda lake hosted the 2012 edition of the Italian Baseball and Softball Coach Convention. The Convention was an overall success: 436 coaches attended, including a delegation from Belgium. “This was one of the best editions in the history of the Convention” said Commissioner Giorgio Moretti.

The Convention took off in 1986, but no edition before had the highlights provided by the first player developed in Italy to debut (and actually hit for the fences) in the Big Leagues. Alex Liddi was the star of the Convention, with countless requests of pictures and autographed balls. Liddi also attended a speech on talent (“Is talent overrated?”) by Team Italy’s manager Marco Mazzieri. The speaker was the first Federation coach to include Alex in a National Team back in 2003: “You could see he had potential, but was not the kid who impressed me most for his talent. He was the one who impressed me most for his will. What Alex is now, requested at least 10,000 hours on the field practicing with deliberate intensity”.

Amongst the 20 speakers, 5 where from the United States: Jim Hickey and Derek Shelton are on the Tampa Bay Rays coaching staff, Greg Riddoch (a former manager in the Big Leagues) is the mental skill coach for the organization. Craig Montevidas is the manager for the softball Dutch National Team and shared the podium with his colleague Marina Centrone of Team Italy.

During the gala dinner on Saturday 1/21, the Tampa contingent received a surprise visit: manager Joe Maddon, who was vacationing in Venice with his wife, joined the dinner. “It is always a pleasure for me to visit Italy” said Maddon “I am proud of my heritage”. Maddon‘s grandparents, the family’s original name is Maddoni, emigrated to the US from the Region of Abruzzo. Joe Maddon answered a few questions and made his philosophy pretty clear: “The Rays are still competing, even if they lost some key players, because our success is all about the team effort”

Photo Gallery

Photo: (c) FIBS

Liam Carroll has been selected by the Great Britain Baseball programme and the British Baseball Federation to serve as Head Coach of the newly formed GB Under-23 National Team. Carroll will join team General Manager Jo Ratcliff on the staff, who was appointed in November 2011. The Under-23 Team has been created to fill the gap between Junior and Senior international baseball and to give promising young players additional competitive experience that will help them succeed at Senior level.

US tour

The GB Under-23 team will travel to Boston, Massachusetts in July 2012 for a specially-created “Revolution Tour”. The players – who are halfway through a try-out and roster selection process – will face off against a selection of teams from two very competitive summer ball associations: the New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL) and the Futures Collegiate Baseball League (FCBL). Throughout the spring and early summer, Carroll will work with a large pool of players in the UK to fashion and then select a competitive squad.

The tournament will include a special series opener and welcome party on the island of Martha’s Vineyard and an Independence Day celebration in Montpelier, Vermont, some 239 years after the American colonists dumped three shiploads of British tea into Boston Harbour.

Background

Liam Carroll is BaseballSoftballUK’s full-time Regional Coach and Club Development Officer for London. He has a long history with the Great Britain Baseball programme, first as a player with the GB Cadets (1996-1997) and Juniors (1998-2000), and then as a Senior team player at the European Championships in 2003.

Carroll has also coached extensively for Team GB. He was an Assistant Coach with the GB Cadets in 2007 and 2010 and with the GB Juniors from 2004-2006 and again in 2010. In 2008, as Head Coach, Carroll led the GB Juniors to a second place finish at the European Championship Qualifier.

Carroll’s North American career began as a player at Porterville College in California. He went on to serve as Director of Baseball Operations at NCAA Division 1 University of Nevada at Las Vegas (UNLV) between 2005 and 2010, where he worked with 16 players who subsequently signed professional contracts with Major League Baseball organisations.

In the British domestic leagues, Carroll has played for the Bracknell Blazers, Brighton Buccaneers and London Mets. He was an Assistant Coach for the London Mets in 2007 and 2008 when they won back-to-back BBF National Baseball Championships. Assisting Carroll on the New England tour will be Brian Essery (GB Senior Team Pitching Coach) and Darryl Reid (GB Senior Team Third Base Coach). Additional staff will be named during the spring.

The club also confirmed in the press release that Swedish outfielder Peter Johannessen is coming back for a second season. They already had extended the contract with American hurler Pat Haugen. However they also lost the promising German pitcher Jan-Niclas Stoecklin to the Mannheim Tornados.

Kelly won batting titles in Sweden, France and Germany. In 2010 he played for the Tornados in the Baseball-Bundesliga and batted .425/.521/.708 with six homeruns, two triples, ten doubles, 39 runs and 26 RBI in 28 games. He also stole 19 bases in 20 attempts.