Voting EBCA Coach of the Year
Voting EBCA Grass Roots Award
By European Baseball Coaches Association
The EBCA board has selected the 3 finalists for each Award that will be submitted to public vote. As a reminder, EBCA staff votes account for 40% for total votes, the EBCA membership for 30% and there will also be a public vote for 30%.
For the EBCA Coach of the Year award, the finalilsts are :
Pavel CHADIM: Nominated for his work with the U21 National Team that he took to a best ever 5th place at the World Championship
David WINKLER: Winkler had a pretty busy year with a 11th place at the World Championship, a 3rd place at the European Championship for the U18 Czech National Team and a 4th place at the PONY World Series Colt
David BYRNES: Took over a middle of the pack Zurich Barracudas team to the 5th game of Swiss Series in 2014 before taking the crown in 2015. Also competed in the Athens Euro qualifier ending in a 3-way tie, losing the top spot to the tie-breaker rule.
The second Award, orginally named Arce Award, in honor to longtime European baseball friend Bill Arce has been renamed to avoid confusion with an already existing award.
Out of respect for the Dutch Federation, who already named an award Bill Arce Award afew years ago, the EBCA has decided to meet their request to rename the Award to “Grass Roots Award”. It also helps give our followers a better understanding of what we are trying to achieve, that is honor the workers of the shadow, who are the core of European baseball. The Grass Roots Award is truly dedicated to the people who are striving to strengthen the base of European baseball through developing youth.
For the 2015 EBCA Grass Roots Award, we are proud to present 3 relentless workers, learners and teachers. The 3 finalists are :
Martin BRUNNER: Martin Brunner has played a key role in the creation and growth of the Regensburg baseball academy and the Regensburg baseball program. He has been instrumental in the success of most of the German prospects who went on to play college or professional baseball. He is also very involved in coaching development in Germany and internationally.
Terry LINGENHOEL: Terry Lingenhoel is somewhat different than the 2 other finalists in a way that he is a 100% volunteer coach. Lingenhoel is active in Hungary since 2005. He started and grew a club into the biggest in the country, raising money to build a field and running camps all over the country. He is also involved in the national program. He just sent his first local kid to a high school program in the US finding sponsors so it didn’t cost a cent to the kid’s family.
Martijn NIJHOFF: Martijn Nijhoff, much like Brunner is key to the success of Dutch baseball for the last few years where he helped countless Dutch talents to college and professional ball. Nijhoff is also well know for his outside the box approcah and his research on how to teach more efficiently, in collaboration with Dr Frans Bosch and University programs. He basically redesigned how each coach in each Dutch baseball academy is teaching the game.