Last year’s first-place finisher in the southern division of the German Baseball-Bundesliga, the HEIDENHEIM HEIDEKOEPFE announced on their website on Thursday that the former Major League pitcher Mike Hartley and shortstop Ryan Lilly will stay for the 2009 season.
The 47-year-old head coach Hartley made 202 big league appearances between 1989 and 1995 for the Dodgers, Phillies, Twins, Red Sox and Orioles. Last season he returned to the mound for eight games (seven starts) during the regular season with an ERA of 1.64 and 16 strikeouts (ten walks) in 33 innings.
Lilly was one of the best offensive forces in the league, batting .411 (OBP .535/SLG .705) with 21 extra base hits, 46 runs and 25 RBI in 28 games. HEIDENHEIM does want to sign two more American players to strengthen the roster for the upcoming season. Keith Maxwell (.409/.478/.555) probably leaves the team.
The German players Simon Guehring, Markus Winkler and Robert Gruber, all three are members of the national team, signed unlimited coaching contracts with the club. Infielder Andy Janzen and pitchers Sam Whitehead, Peter Dankerl, Hagen Raetz and Aljoscha Schattmann remain with the team too. Marcel Hering and Daniel Vaas return after an injury-plagued 2008 season.
The HEIDEKOEPFE again travel to Piacenza, Italy at the end of March to hold a training camp in warmer weather conditions. They are scheduled to start into the new season on the road against the HAAR DISCIPLES on April 5th. The article also says that the German national team will hold its training camp in front of the Baseball World Cup in Heidenheim next September.