When the German Baseball-Bundesliga opens its gates this weekend, the Mannheim Tornados will be on the sidelines with a bye on game day one. They still will be on the field, wrapping up preparations with a preseason tournament in Utrecht against Hoofdklasse clubs UVV and DOOR Neptunus and the Czech Extraleague team Kotlarka Prague.
They concluded their roster this week with the acquisition of shortstop Jeff Beachum. The 28-year-old from Memphis, Tennessee is coming from the Gary SouthShore Railcats of the American Association. He has played on the independent league circuit in the last couple of years, following a stint with the New York Yankees organization in 2006.
Beachum is the fifth new player on the team. The Tornados heavily invested into the squad after missing the playoffs in 2012. Player-coach Matt Kemp, pitcher Jan-Niclas Stoecklin, first baseman Luke Matthews, infielder Jordan Dyer and now Beachum should get them back on track.