We are happy that Josh Chetwynd agreed to answer a few questions for Mister-Baseball.com. He is a former professional baseball player and was a member of the British National Team for many years. He is currently a player/coach for the London Mets, the defending British champion. Chetwynd is a journalist and a former staff reporter for USA Today and US News & World Report. He is a co-host of a national TV show in Great Britain called “MLB on Five,” which broadcasts Major League Baseball games from the United States twice weekly during the Major League season. He now has published two books about European Baseball. His latest “Baseball in Europe – A Country by Country History” looks into the history of Baseball in 40 European countries. The book is available at McFarland’s or Amazon.com. David Lengel of the Guardian wrote a nice review.
Q: Let’s start with your playing career. You have played in different leagues in the United States and Europe. For which teams did you play and what was your biggest success in retro perspective? In 2007 you helped the London Mets to win the British Championship. Are you still involved in the club?
A: I played four seasons of NCAA Division I college baseball at Northwestern University in the Big Ten Conference and then signed a professional contract with the Zanesville Greys in the independent Frontier League in 1993. My U.S. professional career was brief and I assumed at that point my baseball playing days were over. But I have dual nationality (I was born in the Great Britain but grew up in the United States), which ended up vastly lengthening my baseball career. I began playing for the Great Britain National Team in 1996 and played in four top-tier European Championships (1999, 2001, 2003, 2005) and one “B-pool” (now known as the “Qualification Pool”) championship in 1996. Great Britain won that “B-pool” event in 1996 to earn promotion to the highest level of European national team play. I would rate that tournament as one of my greatest personal successes. In addition to my experiences with Great Britain, I also spent a season as a “professional” player in Sweden’s Elite Series in 2003. That year, I played for Oskarshamn and we tied for the regular season title with Leksand. We also made the finals of the Swedish Cup. Alas, we were unable to bring home any major hardware. As for the London Mets, I helped form the senior team and coached it in 2007. We were fortunate to win the national championship that season. I’ve served as the player/coach again this season and we put together a great regular season (winning the National Baseball League – South title). We’ll see if we can match our post-season performance.
Q: Your active career is not that far away. Do you see a development in European Baseball over the course of the last decade? Is it getting better?
A: I think there’s been a massive increase in performance at the European Championships. My first EC was in 1999 and the difference in terms of the depth of quality of talent between that tournament and my final EC in 2005 was great. Some of that is due to improved recruiting of dual nationality players, but I also believe that domestic development has improved tremendously in that period. Obviously, development has varied from country to country. For example, in 1996, GB beat the Czech Republic in the EC qualifying event. Since then, I believe that while Czech domestic baseball has improved considerably, British baseball has remained stagnant after an upturn at the start of the 2000s.
Q: What do you think. How much has Baseball in Europe been hurt by the fact that the sport was removed from the Olympic Games 2012? Do you have hopes to for a potential reinstatement of the sport next year for 2016, especially after seeing the poor European coverage of the Baseball/Softball tournaments in Beijing?
A: I think baseball being dropped from the Olympics is a true tragedy for those who love the game. The funding that comes from being an Olympic sport is so vital in so many countries. Without it, baseball will likely whither in a number of European nations. When some baseball fans point to the World Baseball Classic as an alternative major event to the Olympics, they seem to miss the point that while the WBC is a great showpiece for baseball, it doesn’t (at this point) help funding in smaller baseball countries. This saddens me to no end. My hope is that some people will see my book and realize that baseball does have a firm (albeit) small footing in Europe to go along with its massive followings in the Americas and Asia. As for reinstatement, I fear it’s a long shot. I’m more hopeful for softball, but I suspect that baseball’s main shot will be if either Chicago or Tokyo win the 2016 Games and choose baseball as a sport to be included as part of the IOC’s rotating schedule.
Q: Regarding London 2012. Would it help the sport, if someone organizes a Baseball tournament in London at the same time like the Olympics?
A: I believe the ship has passed in regards to the 2012 Games. The problem with organizing a major Baseball tournament in London is facilities. There really isn’t a high-level facility. There are some sports stadiums that could be modified for a game (like the Oval, one of the country’s premier cricket grounds), but that would cost a decent amount of money. One of the saddest elements of baseball being eliminated from the Olympics in 2012 was that a permanent “legacy” facility was planned in conjunction with the games outside of London. That addition would have done a lot for the sport. I do believe that at least one top-notch facility would spur interest and growth for the sport in the UK.
Q: What do you think about British Baseball? Why is it so difficult for the sport on the Island?
A: Surprisingly, baseball in Great Britain has one of European baseball’s most rich histories. It dates back to 1874 and the country will crown its 75th national champion this year. In addition, there have been two periods of professional baseball (in 1890 and the late 1930s) that had varying success. Nevertheless, I think it’s fair to say that the sport has less traction today in Britain than in many other locations in Europe. One reason is simply British culture, which tends to shy away from sports beyond the “big three” – cricket, rugby and football (aka soccer). Throughout baseball’s British history, many British commentators have lambasted baseball in the context of cricket. I guess the fear has been that the two sports can’t peacefully coexist. Even today, I believe that one of the reasons that baseball has not grown is that so many local governments in the UK thumb their noses at the idea of using public space for baseball diamonds. Although not alone on the continent, I believe this negativity in Britain is among the worst in Europe.
Q: You wrote a new book “Baseball in Europe: A Country by Country History”. It is your second work on European Baseball after “British Baseball and the West Ham Club”. How do you feel as the pioneer on books about European Baseball?
A: Frankly, I’m surprised that there hasn’t been more written on the topic. There were two booklets on European baseball history produced by the continent’s baseball confederation in 1973 and 1993 that give brief country backgrounds; an Italian baseball history (in Italian) produced by the Italian Federation; a statistical look at Dutch baseball (in Dutch); and a few books about personal experiences in baseball in Europe (like Dave Bidini’s “Baseballissimo” and Jeff Archer’s “Strike Four”). But otherwise there are just bits and pieces here and there. I believe there are so many interesting stories – and cultural facets – to explore. I point out in both my books that I hope my work serves as a starting point for others to carry the torch and write more on the topic. There are certainly writers out there in a number of countries – particularly in the more developed European baseball nations like the Netherlands and Italy — who could easily expand on my work. I’m hopeful that such historical coverage will continue.
Q: Was it difficult to find enough information about the 40 countries you are talking about?
A: I spent approximately two years doing research for the book. That included interviewing countless people (players, officials, etc…) and doing a lot of library research. Most of that research came through newspaper articles (dating back more than 100 years). I also was lucky to have friends who spoke Italian, Dutch, Flemish and French (among other languages) who helped me with some primary federation materials.
The book mainly focuses on 11 of the most developed European baseball nations – the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Great Britain, Germany, Russia, France, Sweden, Czech Republic and Croatia. In these sections I try to give a modestly comprehensive overview. I then have two more chapters devoted to 29 additional countries. For those two chapters, it ranges from pretty in-depth to somewhat basic. I also have a chapter summarizing every European Baseball Championship tournament to date.
Q: As part of your research you probably discovered also failures in European Baseball. Any suggestions from your side to make things better? Is a professional baseball league good for the sport in Europe?
A: It’s probably obvious, but the countries where baseball has had the biggest success in Europe are those where the sporting establishment bought into the game. For example, early adoption by Italy’s Olympic body certainly helped the sport there. In addition, early supporters of baseball in the Netherlands were academics and professionals. Countries where efforts were made to artificially boom the game (in other words outsiders simply pushing for the sport without a ton of internal support) have not seen such success. Germany is a good example. Following World War II, baseball was seen as a tool by the Americans to inculcate Germans with democratic ideals. While some Germans certainly took to the game, when American soldiers left Germany in large numbers the sport collapsed. Today, the game is driven by Germans for Germans and the sport is growing as well as in any country on the continent. With that in mind, I do believe a professional league is essential, but organizers must be sensitive to the cultural uniqueness of countries in Europe. If it seems that baseball is merely being foisted on Europe from outside sources, it will be a difficult sell. Hopefully, efforts like my book and mister-baseball.com will show that there are firm roots for baseball already in place in Europe.
Q: How would you rank the countries in European Baseball at the moment and which one is going to be on the top in 10/20 years?
A: The Netherlands and Italy remain at the top. They have the best infrastructure and the best leagues. That said, I do believe that Germany is on the rise. It currently has the highest numbers in terms of participation and its facilities are very good by European standards. The Czech Republic is another country I have high hopes for. I also believe that some Eastern European countries – like Poland — will further emerge. As has been chronicled on this website, I fear that Russia will struggle to maintain the great momentum it developed over the past 25 years.
Q: Any Ideas/Plans for a new book about European Baseball?
A: I’ve often toyed with the idea of doing something on the intersection of baseball and football in Europe. There have been numerous football greats and top football clubs that have also embraced baseball. I still haven’t figured out whether there’s a book in it. To be honest, I think it would be better served as a long article at this point…but you never know!
Picture 1: Playing professionally for the Zanesville Greys in the Frontier League in 1993
Picture 2: Sitting in the dugout at the 2003 European Championships
Picture 3: Hitting for the London Mets in 2007
Picture 4: Catching for Oskarshamn (Sweden) in 2003
Photos: © Josh Chetwynd