By “DZ”. Filed 07 July 2021. Several Europeans made their professional debuts as the rookie-level Florida and Arizona Complex Leagues began their seasons in the last days of June. 19-year-old Darryl Collins is…
Author: Gabriel Fidler
Euro Qualifiers Day 4 (Belgrade): Ukraine Qualifies for European Championship; Serbia Falls Short at Home
BELGRADE — In a surprisingly even title game that was full of ups and downs, during which every Serbian rally seemed to be answered by Ukraine, a bigger second inning for the…
Euro Qualifiers Day 6 (Moscow): Three More Homers, Lobanov and Leonov Arms Send Russia to Euros
MOSCOW — After five days of blowout victories during pool play, Russia qualified for the European Baseball Championship with a 4-1 victory over Belarus. Despite the low-scoring game, in which Andrei Lobanov…
Euro Qualifiers Day 3 (Belgrade): Lukin Pitches Ukraine to Final; Bulgaria Eliminated with Winning Record
BELGRADE — Bulgaria thrashed Estonia 17-2 on the final day of pool play in Serbia, but Ukraine fought hard in a 6-1 defeat of the home nation to set up a final…
Euro Qualifiers Day 4 (Utena): Kourtis Secures Euro Bid for Greece; Lithuania Falls at Final Hurdle Once More
UTENA, Lith. — Seeking to qualify for the European Championship for the first time in thirty years of attempts, Lithuania fell one game short, as Dimitrios Kourtis turned in a legendary effort…
Euro Qualifiers Day 4 (Bratislava): Historic Win for Slovakia, Qualifies to Euros for First Time
BRATISLAVA — Slovakia used three big innings to defeat Ireland by mercy rule and leave no doubt that it had earned the right to contest the European Baseball Championship for the first…
Euro Qualifiers Day 5 (Moscow): Belarus One Win from Euros; First B-Pool Win for Slovenia Since 2008
MOSCOW — Belarus defeated Switzerland 8-6, despite a spirited ninth-inning comeback from the Red Crosses, claiming a spot in the title game of the Russian qualifier for the 2021 European Baseball Championship,…
Euro Qualifiers Day 2 (Belgrade): Kozjak Pitches Serbia to Second Win, Bulgaria Upsets Ukraine
BELGRADE — Danijel Kozjak tossed five excellent innings against Estonia in a 13-0 victory for Serbia that was significantly more difficult than expected on Day 2 in Belgrade. Earlier that day Bulgaria…
Euro Qualifiers Day 3 (Utena): Lithuania Escapes Greece in Title Game Preview
UTENA, Lith. — Romania’s Edy Pirvu struck out 14 batters in his second start in three days in a 6-3 defeat of Poland, while Lithuania survived a breathless finish to defeat Greece,…
Euro Qualifiers Day 3 (Bratislava): Youthful Hungarians Claim First Win, Brunegraf Drives Slovakia’s Blowout
BRATISLAVA — A young Hungarian squad impressed in a 5-3 defeat of Finland, while Slovakia surprised Ireland’s American university-tested squad with a 15-5 walloping. With the latter two nations already holding a…
Euro Qualifiers Day 4 (Moscow): Paton, Ilyin No-Hit Turkey; Switzerland Blasts Slovenia
MOSCOW — Russia and Switzerland scored lop-sided victories over Turkey and Slovenia, respectively, with the host nation clinching a spot in the qualifier championship with a 24-0 combined no-hitter by James Paton…
Euro Qualifiers Day 2 (Utena): Kountis Tosses Second-Straight Shutout for Greece, Final Set with Lithuania
UTENA, Lith. — Greece received another impressive pitching performance, this time from Jonathan Kountis, easily dispatching Romania, 14-0. Meanwhile, Lithuania had little trouble with Poland, as Eimantas Zickus, one of the top…
Euro Qualifiers Day 1 (Belgrade): Bokich Shuts Out Bulgaria, Ukraine Breezes to Easy Estonia Win
BELGRADE — The fourth pool of qualification for the European Championship began today in Serbia with a dominant performance by Christian Bokich, as the hosts claimed a 7-0 victory. Earlier in the…
Euro Qualifiers Day 2 (Bratislava): Ireland, Slovakia to Final; Hungary, Finland Eliminated
BRATISLAVA — Ireland and Slovakia each scored big wins on the second day of qualification for the European Championship and eliminated Hungary and Finland from the picture. The day started with a…
Euro Qualifiers Day 3 (Moscow): Soler with Two More Homers in Russia’s One-Hitter Over Belarus
MOSCOW — The battle for Union State bragging rights between undefeated Belarus and Russia ended in a result almost as lop-sided as possible, while Turkey finally had a bit of fun in…
Euro Qualifiers Day 1 (Utena): Kourtis, Balandis Deliver Victories for Greece, Lithuania
UTENA, Lith. — As in Bratislava, the third bracket to begin European Championship qualification also featured multiple superb pitching performances. The mound mastery of Dimitrios Kourtis delivered a shutout victory for Greece…
Euro Qualifiers Day 2 (Moscow): Péres, Soler Lead Home Run Derby for Russia; Belarus’ Sokal with Two
MOSCOW — Belarus and Russia each changed opponents on Day Two of European Qualification, but the results were similar, as both trotted out their relentless offenses for the second day in-a-row. Slovenia…
Euro Qualifiers Day 1 (Bratislava): Slovakia, Ireland Win After Legendary Performances from Ižold, Smithers
BRATISLAVA — Excellent pitching and solid defensive play marked the opening day of European Championship Qualification in Bratislava. Kealan Smithers turned in one of the best performances on the mound in Irish…
Euro Qualifiers Day 1: Russia Provides Fireworks in Moscow, Belarus Also Big Winners
MOSCOW — Russia showed why it is a favorite for Italy as qualification for the European Baseball Championship began in Moscow, blasting Slovenia 20-0. Meanwhile, Belarus easily handled the Turkish national team,…
Croatian League Week 10: Varaždin Finishes Third, Will Face Nada, Winners of Eight Straight, in Playoffs
The final series of the regular season in Croatian baseball featured a pair of sweeps, with the first securing Vindija Varaždin the all-important No. 3 spot in the standings. Its consecutive 20-run…
Spanish Baseball League Week 6: Three Meléndez Homers Keep Marlins Deadlocked with Astros
Another week of play meant another pair of sweeps for Tenerife and Valencia, with Viladecans keeping pace in third. Five of the six series ended in two wins for one side, but…
British Baseball Weeks 3 & 4: Relentless Offense for London Mets Breaks NBL Logjam
Our last update featured a four-way tie for first place in British Baseball’s National Baseball League. A fortnight later and the London Mets are once more on top as the juggernaut seeks…
Croatian League Week 9: Playoff Teams Set; Karlovac, Split with Home Field Advantage
The penultimate week of league play in Croatian baseball sewed up the final two spots in the playoffs as Zagreb and Varaždin will travel to Olimpija Karlovac and Nada Split, hosts for the…
Austrian Bundesliga Week 7: Standings Shakeup Makes MetroStars the New Leader
It would not be much of a stretch to say that half of the victories recorded in last weekend’s Austrian baseball circuit were shocking upsets, and the results almost completely rewrote the…
Kenko New Netherlands Baseball5 Partner
Nagase Kenko has been named the new partner for baseball5 by the Royal Dutch Baseball and Softball Federation (KNBSB). Although the company is not well-known in Europe, it is a significant sporting…