The German championship is over. In the next few weeks we’re starting with our reviews of the 2008 season. This week Dirk Fries is looking at the playoff teams of the northern division in the Baseball-Bundesliga.
by Dirk Fries
Cologne Cardinals
The Cologne team underwent quite a transition from 2007. Coach Georg Apfelbaum had a few holes to fill, with starting catcher Markus Gienger leaving for Regensburg and one of their starters joining Haar due to career moves. On top of that mainstay Jo Heinen retired from the first team, leaving another hole on the roster.
Combined with the inability (or unwillingness) to spend big money on foreigners, the Cards choose to rely on a mixture of experienced veterans and rookies. Jens Warrelmann, Flo Nehring and Sascha Steffens were the main holdovers from past years. Youngster Markus Stryczek was handed leftfield duties and Pascal Raab was Cologne´s ace until Sckaer´s return from college ball. The catcher spot was turned into a platoon, with Nehring and Japanese Taishi Nakamura splitting time behind the dish. With the infield being pretty much set with Alvarez at short, Nehring or Nakamura, Ryo Kagami and Thomas Haufen, the main concern was the pitching staff.
With their only experienced starter (Moritz Sckaer), missing half of the season playing ball at Ottawa University in the United States, Youngster Pascal Raab was forced into the ace role until Sckaer´s return. Not expecting that Raab could dominate the league in his first full season, Cologne planned on using a bullpen-by-committee approach due of the lack of experienced arms. Marcel Kujau, Ryo Kagami and Benjamin Schepers were used most of the time, but position players like Mehmet Alkan, Sascha Steffens and Kevin Faries also tried out on the mound.
What the stats say:
Cologne, offensively challenged in the last few years, actually was an offensive surprise. The team ranked third in the league in team average, hitting at a .290 clip. The club did lack some power, hitting only five homeruns all year. Flo Nehring was the Cards leading hitter. The lefthanded swinger was around the .400 mark most of the year and finished at .390. Anderson Alvarez and Japanese Taishi Nakamura were not far behind. Most of the others stayed below .300. Nehring also led the team in runs batted in with 26.
Two Cardinals led the league in stolen bases. Nehring and Alvarez both swiped 18 bags for an aggressive club trying to manufacture runs because of less than stellar pitching. With a team ERA of 5.25 the Cards still managed to finish in fourth place in the North. But the gap between Cologne and the dominating teams from Solingen and Paderborn (ERA below 1.70) was huge.
Cologne did play average defense behind their pitchers, committing a total of 56 errors in its 28 games.
Impact player of the year was, without doubt, Anderson Alvarez. His play earned him a spot on the U-21 National Team, and increased his market value. Alvarez is said t be courted by a couple of teams. Losing him would mean a severe setback for Cologne. The rebuilding process still isn’t complete. And some of the club’s talent is still a while away. Taishi Nakamura will leave the club, as he returns to Japan after four years in Cologne.
Tomorrow: Dortmund Wanderers
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Solingen Alligators
Paderborn Untouchables
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