1979 European Championship

The 1979 European Championship was held from August 11 through August 19 in Trieste and Ronchi dei Legioniari in Italy. With only four teams, it marked the smallest European Championship in terms of entries since 1960. Among the then-traditional performers to sit out were  Spain and  France.

 Italy went 6-1 as the hosts, losing one game 8-5 to the Netherlands but otherwise going unbeaten. Giuseppe Del Sardo was named the tourney's best hitter, Dario Borghino (1 H, 0 R in 10 IP) the best pitcher and Davide DiMarco (.385, 12 RBI) the MVP. It marked their third straight title, their best run ever (through 2010).

 Netherlands was 3-4, finishing second; all four losses came to Italy. After three straight Silver Medals, they would rebound in 1981.

 Belgium went 2-3 to take Bronze, getting both their wins against Sweden.

 Sweden placed last at 1-4, its lone win coming by two runs over Belgium.

See also 1979 European Championship (Rosters)

Source: Baseball in Europe by Josh Chetwynd