2022 European Champions Cup

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The 2022 European Champions Cup was held in Bonn, Germany from June 7-11, 2022. Former major leaguers to appear were Dovydas Neverauskas (Bonn), Roger Bernadina (Neptunus), Juan Jaime (Brno), Shairon Martis (Amsterdam), Carlos Contreras (Parma) and André Rienzo (San Marino).

Competing Teams[edit]

(country represented in parentheses, followed by manager)

Results[edit]

June 7[edit]

June 8[edit]

  • Amsterdam 9, Brno 0. The Pirates bounced back with a five-inning mercy rule win. Scott Prins and Mike Groen combine for two hits and no walks in five shutout innings, with CF Arnošt Dubový and 3B Milan Prokop getting the lone Czech hits. DH Rashid Gerard went 2 for 2 with a walk, double and three RBI to pace the Amsterdam attack that gave the loss to Filip Čapka.
  • San Marino 4, Ostrava 0. Carlos Quevedo allows no hits or walks in six shutout innings (a hit batsmen blowing the perfect outing) before Luca Di Raffaele relieved and allowed the only Czech hit, to RF Jakub Malík. 2B/SS Oscar Angulo goes 2 for 3 with a homer, while Marko Vykoukal takes the defeat.
  • Bonn 6, Ostrava 3. The hosts finally got to play, though their game is halted for a period by the rain that has been plaguing the event. It is 2-2 until the 9th, when Bonn nearly blows it as former major leaguer Dovydas Neverauskas throws a wild pitch to score Jakub Kubica. Ondřej Satoria comes in to close it out, but the home team gets plenty to celebrate as RF Wilson Lee walks, 3B Daniel Sánchez and 1B Daniel Lamb-Hunt both single and C Vincent Ahrens ends it with a dramatic grand slam.
  • Parma vs. Heidenheim suspended in progress due to rain
  • Bonn vs. Neptunus postponed due to rain

June 9[edit]

June 10[edit]

  • Neptunus 8, San Marino 7. As in the other pool, it becomes a three-way tie at 2-1. Despite winning the game halted in the 9th three days ago, Neptunus loses the tie-breaker to fall out of contention. Backup C Louie Sienders singles in backup LF Greg Muller with the winner in the 11th inning. 3B Stijn van der Meer and CF Roger Bernadina both double and homer while Kevin Kelly works three hitless innings for the win. Luca Di Raffaele, the 6th San Marino hurler, takes the loss, while 3B Leo Ferrini scores three runs for them.
  • Ostrava 8, Heidenheim 7. After Czech teams had dropped their first six games, the Arrows finally give their country a victory. RF Jakub Malík has two runs and two RBI to lead a balanced offense. It is 8-3 going into the bottom of the 9th before a Shawn Larry grand slam off Alec Lemmon. Lemmon still gets the win (saved by Marko Vykoukal), while Jared Mortensen takes the loss.
  • Amsterdam 13, San Marino 9. The Pirates make their third title game in six years by beating San Marino. C Sicnarf Loopstok doubles twice, homers twice, scores four and drives in five while 3B Delano Selassa connects for three hits; Scott Prins gets the win over Eduardo Peluso. CF Federico Celli drives in 3 for San Marino, while RF Nathanael Batista has three hits.
  • Brno 12, Neptunus 6. Brno is the last team to win a game, guaranteeing no winless or unbeaten teams this year. 48-year-old Pavel Budský, 25 years removed from being the first Czech-raised minor leaguer, shows he can still hit as he goes 4 for 4 with 4 RBI. 3B Milan Prokop, a teenager not alive when Budský's career began, scores three runs. Former major leaguer Juan Jaime gets the win despite 6 runs (4 earned) in 5 2/3 IP; Martin Schneider saves it with 3 1/3 shutout frames. Former Dodgers farmhand Misja Harcksen lasts only one inning in a loss, while LF Dwayne Kemp has three hits for Neptunus.
  • Parma 6, Bonn 5. The hosts put up a strong show but fall in extra innings. In the top of the 10th, RF Noel González hits a sacrifice fly off Zach Dodson to score LF Sebastiano Poma to make it 5-4. SS Manuel Joseph then singled in CF Aldo Koutsoyanopulos for his third RBI of the day. 2B Exequiel Talevi finished with three hits and C Alberto Mineo three doubles for Parma. Bonn had a shot in the bottom of the 10th, SS Eric Brenk doubled off Carlos Contreras to close it to 6-5 but Contreras struck out 3B Daniel Sánchez and 1B Daniel Lamb-Hunt, the 3 and 4 hitters, with the bases loaded to escape with a win.

June 11[edit]

  • 7th/8th place game: Neptunus 10, Heidenheim 8. The Netherlands nearly had one of their entries relegated, which would have ended a long run of two teams in the European Cup/European Champions Cup, but survived in extra innings. Heidenheim chased former AA hurler Diegomar Markwell with one out in the first and scored four times off him and Ryan Hoogendoorn in that frame. Luke Sommer had allowed two runs in six but was tagged for four in the seventh. Neptunus still led 6-4 going into the bottom of the 9th, when C Drew Janssen hit a two-run homer against former AAA pitcher J.C. Sulbaran. 3B Stijn van der Meer hit a grand slam in the 10th off Simon Liedtke; Sulbaran allowed two in the bottom of the inning before finishing off the win. Van der Meer finished with four hits as well, while SS John Polonius had three hits and CF Christian Diaz three runs for Neptunus.
  • Bronze Medal game: Bonn 6, San Marino 3. Bonn becomes the first German team to win two medals in European Cups, let alone in back-to-back years. CF Danny Lankhorst drives in three, while Dovydas Neverauskas saves it for Nick Miceli. Luca Pulzetti is the losing hurler.
  • Gold Medal game: Parma 7, Amsterdam 6. The title game featured defending champion (and 14-time titlist) Parma versus 2016 champion Amsterdam. The Pirates got to Emailin Montilla quickly; in the bottom of the first, 2B Delano Selassa singled and 1B Denzel Richardson went deep. The next three all reached but DH Rashid Gerard hit into a double play, costing some critical opportunities. In the top of the second, DH Cesare Astorri doubled off Nelmerson Angela and LF Riccardo Flisi singled. With one out, Angela hit CF Aldo Koutsoyanopulos. 2B Exequiel Talevi then tied it with a single to left-center. Parma took the lead in the third. SS Manuel Joseph's leadoff double chased Angela in favor of Jelle van der Lelie. After a wild pitch, 1B Alex Sambucci drew a walk then C Alberto Mineo hit into a run-scoring double play. The lead did not last long as Richardson hit his second homer of the day off Montilla to lead off the bottom of the third. SS Sharlon Schoop singled, RF Kalian Sams doubled and C Sicnarf Loopstok singled them both in, knocking out Montilla in favor of former major leaguer Carlos Contreras.

Parma moved back within a run, 5-4, in the top of the 5th when RF Noel González homered off van der Lelie. In the bottom of the 6th, Amsterdam got their last run, off Jose Diaz. 3B Tommy van de Sanden got plunked, stole second, took third on an error and scored on a fly from CF Roelie Henrique Jr. In the top of the 7th, Parma moved back within a run when Joseph homered off Mike Groen. They almost got another as Sambucci singled, Astorri drew a one-out walk and Sambucci tried to score on a single by Flisi, but was thrown out. Amsterdam turned to their fourth pitcher, former Giants farmhand Franklin van Gurp, to try to keep the lead. It was not to be. With one out, Koutsoyanopulos. walked and Talevi singled him to third. Van Gurp got González swinging then Joseph hit the game-winning two-run double to left. Amsterdam had a chance in the bottom of the 9th as Sams and Gerard drew walks from Yomel Rivera. Marc-André Habeck replaced him and got van den Sanden on strikes to end the game.

Final Standings[edit]

Leaders and Awards[edit]

European Cup

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2021 | 2022 | 2023