The starting catcher of the German National Team, Kai GRONAUER, stays in Solingen. The Alligators provided him with an apprenticeship in the region around the club. The 21-year-old had thoughts about a career in the United States. The Major League organisations Minnesota Twins and Pittsburgh Pirates showed interest. He also considered playing on the college level. However the opportunities in Germany to secure his future after baseball were more important to him.
GRONAUER hit .384 (OBP .520, SLG .589) in 23 games. He scored 33 runs and drove in 20. He led all players in the northern conference of the Baseball-Bundesliga with 20 stolen bases. He threw out 50 percent of opposing runners. He also was a member of the national team at the European championships (.333/.429/.833) in Barcelona and the Baseball World Cup (.167/.231/.375) in Taiwan.
