Bad Homburg Hornets
The Bad Homburg Hornets have added some depth to their pitching staff. They signed former German national team pitcher Mike Otto. The 30-year-old right-hander has a career ERA of 2.69 in 92 games in the German Baseball-Bundesliga for the Mainz Athletics, Fuerth Pirates, Untouchables Paderborn, Saarlouis Hornets and Mannheim Tornados. In 2010 he wore the jersey of the Darmstadt Whippets in the second division. He played for Germany at the European Championships in 2001, 2003 and 2005 and at the 2007 Baseball World Cup. He is supposed to give the Hornets another arm, as game-one starter David Kleim is recovering from Hernia surgery. Bad Homburg hosts the Mainz Athletics in their home opener on Saturday.
Gauting Indians
The Gauting Indians will be without Jakub Sladek in the first couple of weeks of the season. The club reported that the Czech national teamer and former minor leaguer in the Philadelphia Phillies organization is battling an undisclosed illness. The Indians open the 2011 season on Sunday with a doubleheader against the Haar Disciples.