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 baseball history, but was overshadowed in the day’s action by Slovakia’s Jakub Ižold, who quite likely set an all-time record for strikeouts a qualifier game for the Euros.
Ireland 6– Finland 1
The day started with a thrilling pitching duel between Finland and Ireland. Scoreless through three and one-half innings, Ireland finally broke through against Matti Nylander. Two straight singles started the fourth, before Fionn Gallahar-Hall laced a triple to centre field, Later coming around to school on a ground ball. Meanwhile, Smithers had only improved as the game progressed and struck out eight consecutive batters in the third and fourth innings.
Ireland struck again in the bottom of the sixth after yet another 1-2-3 inning for Smithers – who struck out the side – as a Brian McAuliffe double plated one. Jamie Cuevas then immediately followed with a two-bagger of his own, and island had a 5-0 lead.
The final fight of the game moved quickly with each side scoring once, although Ireland drew three-straight free passes to start the 7th , but was unable to score. Smith is only lost his no-no with one out in the seventh, as José Mesa bounced a ball up the middle.
Finland did have a solid opportunity to break through against Irish reliever Liam Shier in the 9th, loading the bases with no outs. Ireland lost the shutout on a passed ball, but Shier recovered to punch out the next two batters and then induce an infield fly.
Smithers’ performance is one that will long be remembered, as the right hander struck out 16 in seven innings, allowing only one hit without walking a batter. Nylander turned in a solid effort against Ireland’s hitters several of whom have U.S. university experience. Among those, McAuliffe reached base three times on a double, single, and a walk, while Patrick Mitchell was 2-for-4. Mesa had two of Finland’s three hits.
Slovakia 3 – Hungary 2
If Smith is was locked in, Ižold somehow managed to be even better against Hungary. Slovakia and its arch nemesis combined for only eight hits, and the games five runs were scored in only two half-innings.
Both sides went three-up, three-down in the first, before Slovakia rattled an otherwise excellent Sean Fekete. After a Jakub Horáček single and a base on balls to Martin Lukačka with one out, Daniel Just drove in the game’s first run with a one-base hit to left center. Lukačka then came around on a balk, which moved Just into scoring position and allowed him to score on a wild pitch. Two more singles threatened to blow the game wide open, but Fekete buckled down for an inning-ending K.
From this point the game settled into a fast rhythm, with 17-year-old Zajzon Házi breaking up Ižold’s no-hitter with a double down the left field line in the third. Nothing came of the two-bagger, however, and Fekete needed only 10 pitches to go 1-2-3 in the third. Hungary’s starter retired eight in-a-row in the middle innings, matching the zeroes posted by Ižold.
Slovakia’s moundsman registered 16 consecutive outs until a hit batter in the eighth, with 11 of those hitters going down on strikes. However, everything suddenly changed with one out in the game’s final inning. Bálint Piros singled, moving to third on a long fly ball by Carlos Rubio, which just managed to stay in the park. Fekete, now playing centerfield, beat out an infield single that scored Piros. Ižold fought for his second K of the inning, and a youthful Hungarian side was down to its last out. Barnabás Komádi, only 19, did what it took to beat out the throw on a chopper in front of the plate, with a throwing error allowing Rubio to come home. Ižold then claimed the final out on strikes, his 22nd strikeout of the day. Incredibly, he only twice struck out the side.
The 127-pitch gem featured only four hits and one earned run, while Ižold did not issue a free pass. Fekete was the hard-luck loser, turning in one of the best-ever pitching performances by a Hungarian hurler. Fekete, only 21, sent down nine on strikes and permitted four hits and three walks in six innings. Robert Ogg, age 17, retired all six batters he faced, recording two Ks.
Bratislava Schedule
June 30: Finland 1– Ireland 6
June 30: Hungary 2 – Slovakia 3
July 1: Ireland – Hungary
July 1: Slovakia – Finland
July 2: Hungary – Finland
July 2: Ireland – Slovakia
July 3 (Final): TBD
| Country | W-L | Pct. | RF | RA | Str |
| Ireland | 1-0 | 1.000 | 6 | 1 | W1 |
| Slovakia | 1-0 | 1.000 | 3 | 2 | W1 |
| Hungary | 0-1 | .000 | 2 | 3 | L1 |
| Finland | 0-1 | .000 | 1 | 6 | L1 |
