Owen Ozanich

Owen Ozanich

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 170 lbs.
• School University of Vermont
• High School South Burlington High School

• Born June 23, 1989 in Annemasse France

Biographical Information

Owen Ozanich has pitched in Europe from 2011-2024. He led the French Division I in wins, strikeouts, saves and ERA and posted a 104-21 record for the Rouen Huskies, Parmaclima and Montpellier Barracudas in 14 seasons in Europe. He also played in the Australian Baseball League in 2011-2012, for Team Europe in 2015-2016, and in Santiago, Chile (2018) during the winter seasons. Ozanich played infield and outfield at times in his career. He pitched the only perfect game in French D1 history. He is now the manager of the Montpellier Barracudas.

Ozanich was born in France before moving to Aruba and then the United States. He grew up in South Burlington, Vermont. In 2001, the South Burlington little league team advanced to the championship game of the New England bracket, playing on national television (ESPN2) - the furthest any Vermont little league team has ever gone. Ozanich was the winning pitcher in the state championship game which sent the team to the regional tournament.

Ozanich played two seasons for both the SBHS varsity team and the South Burlington Legion team. In 2007, Ozanich helped lead the Rebels to a 20-0 record and the Vermont State Championship. That summer, the legion team composed of many of the same players also won the state championship, posting a 30-7 overall record.

In the fall of 2007 Ozanich walked on orginally as an infielder for the University of Vermont Catamounts. When it became clear that former MLB/NPB infielder Matt Duffy would beat out Ozanich for the starting shortstop nod, Ozanich was turned solely into a pitcher. He appeared in 35 games over two seasons at the University of Vermont. As a freshman, he had a 1-1 record, 4.88 ERA in 20 games. In the summer of 2008, Ozanich pitched for the Bennington Bombers of the NYCBL, posting a 3.86 ERA. He fell to 0-3, 9.18 in 2009 in 16 2/3 IP. Vermont dropped baseball after his sophomore season. Ozanich played both infield and pitcher with the South Burlington Expos of The Green Mountain Baseball League in Vermont from 2009-2011.

Ozanich, who has dual French/American citizenship, chose to continue his career in Rouen, France following graduation from the University of Vermont in 2011. His first start with his new club came in the 2011 European Cup. Ozanich pitched a complete game shutout, giving Rouen a 1-0 win over the Tenerife Marlins.

Rouen took home the 2011 Challenge de France, qualifying for the 2012 European Cup. For his efforts during the week long tournament, Ozanich took home the best pitcher award. The Huskies swept not only through the French field, going 5-0 in the Challenge, but in the awards department as well. In addition to Ozanich winning the award for best pitcher, Rouen's Joris Bert took home the award given to the top hitter, and Jordan Crystal was named the tournament MVP.

With a 19-9 record, the Rouen Huskies finished third in the French league during the 2011 regular season before advancing to the French D1 finals against Montpellier in October 2011. Rouen beat Montpellier three games to two to claim the 2011 title. In limited at bats when not pitching, Ozanich finished the regular season with a .323 batting average (10-for-31) with two doubles and a triple. He also scored eight runs and drove in seven more in nine games, posting a .452 slugging percentage and a .432 on-base percentage along with one stolen base. On the mound for Rouen, Ozanich posted an 8-2 record in 82 1/3 IP, surrendering 69 hits, allowing 21 earned runs (2.30 ERA) while walking 17 and striking out 43 with a 1.04 WHIP (Regular season, Euro Cup and Playoffs).

Ozanich was joined by former Vermont college teammate Ethan Paquette, former Bite teammate Mathew Smith and USC pitcher Chris Mezger for the 2012 season in Rouen. The Huskies finished first in the 2012 French Division 1 with a 26-2 record. In May 2012, Rouen took home the Challenge de France, going 5-0 in the week-long event for the second consecutive season. In the 2012 European Cup, held in Rotterdam, Netherlands that June, Rouen finished with a 4-1 record, becoming the first French team to ever qualify for the Final Four, held in Nettuno, Italy that August. Under the European Cup's previous format, the Huskies had finished second in the 2007 European Cup.

Ozanich pitching in the World Baseball Classic Qualifiers

Ozanich, along with Rouen teammates Mat Smith, Quentin Becquey and Oscar Combes participated in the inaugural Collegiate Baseball League Europe tournament, which was held in July 2012 in Oosterhout, Netherlands. This event showcases the best prospects from Europe and elsewhere. Ozanich's team, the Falcons, finished first with a 5-1 record. Mat Smith won MVP honors, while Ozanich batted 5-for-13 (.385) with two doubles. He recorded a complete game two-hitter with one walk and five strikeouts to earn the win in game 3 of the week-long tournament.

In 2012 for Rouen, Ozanich posted a 14-3 record in 116 2/3 IP, surrendering 78 hits, allowing 26 earned runs (2.00 ERA) while walking 25 and striking out 86 with a 0.88 WHIP (Regular season, Euro Cup and playoffs). When playing in the field in 2012, Ozanich batted .342 (13-for-38) with 14 runs scored, four runs batted in, 14 walks, three steals and a .528 OBP. Rouen won the 2012 French D1 Finals, beating Savigny three games to none in the semi-finals, and then Sénart three games to one in the finals. Ozanich pitched the final game of the championship series, going eight innings for the victory. The Huskies then went to Nettuno, Italy to participate in the European Cup Final 4, a first for a French club. Rouen fell 4-0 to Fortitudo Bologna and 8-7 to L&D Amsterdam Pirates.

Owen Ozanich spent the 2011 and 2012 off seasons in Adelaide, Australia, where he played for the East Torrens Red Sox of the South Australian Baseball League (SABL). On November 18, 2011, Ozanich played in the 2011 SABL All-Star Game. The SABL All-Stars beat the Adelaide Bite 10-9, Ozanich pitched one inning and played left field and third base.

Ozanich pitching for the ABL's Adelaide Bite in 2012

On January 12, 2012, Ozanich made his debut with the Australian Baseball League's Adelaide Bite. The Bite called up Ozanich to bolster their bullpen during the final weeks of the regular season and playoffs. Ozanich made two appearances, pitching 4 innings, allowing 4 hits and 1 run while picking up 2 strikeouts. The Bite finished the regular season with a 20-25 record before being ousted in the first round of the ABL playoffs versus Sydney. Following the conclusion of the Bite's season, Ozanich continued to pitch and play the field for East Torrens, splitting time between shortstop and the outfield when not pitching. He batted .366 to go with a 4-4 record and 3.69 ERA. East Torrens finished with a 7-16-1 record. Ozanich led the team in wins, strikeouts, innings pitched and ERA.

The following off season Ozanich returned to Adelaide, again with the East Torrens Red Sox. East Torrens finished with a 14-14-2 record, just missing a playoff spot. The season before Ozanich arrived, the club won only 4 games, that number increased to 7 in Owen's first year and 14 in his second. He again led East Torrens in wins (4), innings pitched (73.2), strikeouts (49) and ERA (2.93). At the plate he hit over .300 again, playing RF and 2B when not on the mound. Ozanich signed his second professional contract with the Adelaide Bite, however he did not appear in any games during his second stint in the Australian Baseball League with the exception of the annual SABL vs. Bite All-Star game, where the Bite won the rematch of the 2011 contest. The Bite missed 2012-2013 the playoffs, finishing with a 21-25 overall record.

During his two seasons in the SABL, Ozanich batted 46-for-131 (.351) with 20 runs scored, 9 doubles, a triple, 20 RBI and 5 stolen bases. On the mound he posted an 8-9 record in 141 1/3 IP, surrendering 118 hits, allowing 52 earned runs (3.31 ERA) while walking 38 and striking out 110 with 1.10 WHIP and 2 saves. Ozanich, along with Kensington's Nick Talbot were the only two players in the SABL to post back to back seasons of .300 or better batting averages (min 50 AB) and sub 4.00 ERA's (min 50 IP).

The Rouen Huskies finished the 2013 regular season in first place with a record of 24-4 in France. The team swept through the 2013 Challenge de France with a 4-0 record, earning a spot for the 2014 European Cup. Ozanich posted a 2-0 record in 11 1/3 IP in the tournament with a 0.79 ERA, 2 BB and and a tournament high 13 K. He batted .333 (3-for-9) with 2 runs scored and an RBI. In the 2013 regular season Ozanich had a 10-0 record in 80 2/3 IP, he surrendered 54 hits, allowing 9 earned runs (1.00 ERA) while walking 5 and striking out 85 (0.73 WHIP). He led the French league in wins, WHIP, opponents' batting average and ERA. At the plate, he hit .410 (16-for-39) with 5 doubles, 8 runs scored, 7 RBI, 3 steals, 9 walks to go with a .538 SLG and .520 OBP. In the 2013 European Cup, Ozanich pitched 15 IP, going 0-1, allowing no earned runs (0.00 ERA) along with 7 hits, 3 walks and 15 strikeouts. In the 2013 playoffs, Ozanich batted .308 (4-for-13) with 2 RBI. The Huskies won their 10th French League title against Senart in the finals (rematch of 2012 finals). On the mound he had a 2-2 record in 28 1/3 IP, surrendering 22 hits, allowing 6 earned runs (1.91 ERA) while walking 7 and striking out 18. In late September 2013, Rouen won both games against Antwerp and Moscow in the qualifying round to remain in the European A Cup in 2014. In game 1 vs. the Belgians, Ozanich went 3-for-3 with 3 RBI in an 11-5 victory. In the must win game 2, Ozanich pitched a complete game one-hit shutout, striking out 13 and walking none to notch the 7-0 win. Combining regular season statistics with Challenge de France statistics, European Cup statistics, French playoffs, and 2014 Qualifier statistics, Ozanich pitched 144 1/3 innings, posting a 15-3 record, allowing 16 earned runs (0.99 ERA), 95 hits and 17 walks while striking out 144 (0.77 WHIP), he did not allow a home run the entire season. At the plate he batted a combined 28-for-75 (.373) with 5 doubles, 12 runs scored, 14 RBI and 4 stolen bases. The Huskies finished with an overall record (regular season, Challenge de France, Euro Cup, playoffs and 2014 Qualifier) of 37-11.

In the 2014 the regular season he batted .233 (7-for-30) with 5 runs scored, 2 RBI, 3 walks and a stolen base. On the mound he was 4-0 in 48 IP, allowing 11 runs (2.06 ERA) on 37 hits while walking six and striking out 41. In the Challenge de France he reached on a HBP and later scored in his only game in the field. On the mound versus Paris and their top ranked offense he threw 6 innings, surrendering just one hit for the win. Rouen ended up finishing third at the Challenge with a 3-1 record. In the 2014 European Cup, Rouen posted a 3-2 record, with wins over Nettuno, Solingen and Prague. Ozanich was again 0-for-0, with 2 runs scored as a pinch runner. In 14 innings pitched, he went 1-1, allowing 17 hits, 4 runs, 1 BB, 11 K (2.57 ERA). Overall in 2014, Ozanich hit .233 (7-for-30), with 8 runs scored, 2 RBI, 3 walks and 1 stolen base. Overall on the mound he pitched 68 1/3 IP, giving up 16 ER (2.10 ERA) to go with a 6-2 record, 55 hits, 8 walks, 54 strikeouts and a 0.92 WHIP. The Huskies finished third in the regular season with a record of 20-8, just behind Paris and Montpellier. Their overall 2014 record was 28-14.

Ozanich represented France in the inaugural Global Baseball Match series vs. Samurai Japan in March 2015. The European All-Star team dropped Game 1 to the Japanese, 4-3, at the Tokyo Dome before bouncing back in Game 2 with an impressive 6-2 victory against the number one ranked team in the world. Ozanich was the only French player on the roster which featured three ex-MLB players: Shairon Martis, Yurendell DeCaster and Fernando Martinez. Ozanich traveled to Gwangju, South Korea in July 2015 to take part in the Universiade games with France. His start against heavily favored Korea was cut short after four scoreless innings due to heavy rain, and France finished a disappointing 8th in the games.

Owen went 10-1 in 2015 regular season for Rouen who finished in first place in the French Division 1. In 57.2 IP, he surrendered 9 earned runs (1.40 ERA) allowing 35 hits and 5 walks (0.69 WHIP) to go along with 50 strikeouts. In the 2015 Challenge de France Ozanich won his semi-final start against Montpellier, going 6 innings, allowing 1 earned run on 4 hits, 1 walk and 5 strikeouts. Ozanich was named 2015 French Finals MVP, Rouen beat Montpellier to claim their 11th title. In the playoffs, Owen pitched 21.0 innings, went 2-0 with a 2.14 ERA, surrendering 16 hits, 5 ER, 3 BB while striking out 22. Combined in 2015 Ozanich went 13-1 in 83.2 IP, 15 earned runs (1.61 ERA), 55 hits, 9 walks (0.76 WHIP) with 77 strikeouts.

Ozanich again played for Europe in the Asian Winter League in Taiwan in 2015 and 2016. He led team Europe in innings pitched (19.1), strikeouts (17), WHIP (0.98) and ERA (1.86) in 2015 and again led team Europe in innings pitched (14.1) in 2016, where he played for former MLB infielder Desi Relaford, who managed the 2016 squad. For his time with Team Europe, Ozanich logged 33.2 IP, 37 H, 18 ER, 9 BB, 27 K, (3-to-1 K/BB) with a 1.36 WHIP and a 4.81 ERA against professionals from the KBO, NPB and CPBL. He is the only player to have played for Europe three times (Japan 2015, Taiwan 2015 and Taiwan 2016).

In March 2016, Ozanich started France's first game in the World Baseball Classic Qualifiers against host nation Panama. Carlos Ruiz homered twice off the French starter as Panama beat France. Ozanich lasted 4.2 IP, 5 ER, 0 BB, 3 K. France finished with a 1-2 record, beating Spain the following day before again falling to Panama at Rod Carew Stadium in the elimination game.

Rouen's overall 2016 record was 39-4. The Huskies finished first in the 2016 regular season with a 24-3 record. Ozanich led the team with a 9-0 record to go along with a 1.22 ERA in 74.0 IP, 44 H, 10 ER, 10 BB, 83 K with a 0.72 WHIP. The Huskies took home the 2016 Challenge de France, sweeping past Clermont-Ferrand, Toulouse, Montpellier and Senart. Ozanich was awarded best pitcher for his performance, a one hit, complete game shutout against Montpellier in the semi-finals. The Huskies also took home the 2016 CEB Cup which they hosted in June. Ozanich pitched a complete game shutout (9 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 10 K vs. Karlovac in the semi-final) and won Best Pitcher honors. On July 16, 2016, Ozanich started the first ever FFBS All-Star Game for France, throwing three scoreless innings, striking out two. Ozanich won Rouen's first semi-finals game in Toulouse, beating former Florida Marlins pitcher Harvey Garcia, allowing one run over six strong frames. Ozanich helped the Huskies win their 12th championship at home over rival Senart with two strong starts against the Templiers (16 IP, 1 ER in the French Series). His overall stats for 2016 were: 13-0 record, 114.0 IP, 57 H, 12 ER, 22 BB, 117 K, 0.94 ERA, 0.69 WHIP.

On September 3, 2016 Ozanich started against Rob Cordemans and the Netherlands at the Yoshida Challenge. He pitched 5 innings allowing just one earned run while striking out 3 against the Dutch. The following week in Holland, in his lone appearance in the 2016 European Championships, Ozanich pitched 3 innings giving up 2 runs against Italy.

Ozanich with Europe in 2015-16

In the 2017 regular season Owen went 7-1 in 66.2 IP, 48 H, 8 ER, 12 BB, 72 K (1.08 ERA). Rouen finished in first place in the regular season with a 26-2 regular season record en route to winning the 2017 French Series over Senart in a thrilling five game series. The 2017 Huskies finished 36-7 overall. Ozanich pitched against 2017 European Champions Rotterdam in the 2017 Champions Cup in Regensburg, Germany (5.2 IP, 4 ER, 5 K). Overall on the 2017 season went 9-2 in 94.1 IP, 78 H, 18 ER, 20 BB, 101 K, with a 1.03 WHIP and 1.71 ERA. In July 2017, Ozanich again was voted by the fans to start the second ever FFBS All-Star Game for France, where he threw another three scoreless innings, striking out two, matching his previous year's performance. This year, Ozanich was voted to start a third straight All-Star Game. He logged another three scoreless innings, striking out 4. In the first 3 contests the right-hander has not allowed a run in nine innings of work while striking out eight along the way.

Ozanich with Santiago Industriales in Chile in December 2018

Rouen finished with a 15-9 record in the 2018 regular season, in which Ozanich went 8-2 in 74.1 IP, 60 H, 14 ER, 10 BB, 81 K (0.94 WHIP, 1.70 ERA). The Huskies took home their 9th Challenge de France on May 13th with a 13-5 victory over Senart in the final. During the annual tournament, Ozanich pitched 7 innings, allowing no earned runs while striking out 6 in his semi-final start. In June's European Champions Cup held in Rotterdam, Ozanich went the distance (9 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 7 K) in a 127 pitch effort to lead the Huskies to an 8-1 win over Amsterdam. Rouen finished 4th in Europe that June. On October 13, 2018, Ozanich pitched a complete game, 1 hit-shutout in game 3 of the French Series to help the Huskies sweep the Montigny Cougars and claim their 14th French championship. Ozanich picked up two wins in the finals, allowing just one run in 16.2 IP, striking out 18 on his way to Finals MVP honors. Overall in 2018, Owen went 13-2 in 125.1 IP, 93 H, 19 ER, 24 BB, 126 K (0.93 WHIP, 1.36 ERA). Ozanich posted an impressive eight year run with the Rouen Huskies, where from 2011-2018 he compiled a 91-15 career record (.858 win pct.), 6 saves in 831.0 IP, surrendering 142 earned runs (1.53 ERA) allowing 580 hits, 142 walks (0.86 WHIP), while striking out 748 (5.26 K/BB) (all competitions: French regular season, Euro Cup, Challenge de France, Playoffs, Final 4).

Owen Ozanich played the 2019 season for Parma alongside former Rouen and current French national team pitcher Marc-Andre Habeck, and also alongside Team Europe Italian players Stefano Desimoni, Sebastiano Poma and Mattia Mercuri. Ozanich was the opening day starter for Parma, where he allowed just two runs over six strong innings of work in a 12-2 victory. Parma finished 4th in the 2019 European Champions Cup, where Ozanich started against his former club, picking up the win against French champions Rouen. He pitched 5.2 innings in the tournament, allowing 3 earned runs while walking none and fanning a team high nine batters. In his second outing of the event, Ozanich broke his leg on a line drive off the bat of Rotterdam's infielder Tyriq Kemp. This injury ended Ozanich's first season in Italy. Parma finished 4th in the regular season with a 12-11 record and lost 3 games to 2 to eventual 2019 Italian champion Bologna in the semi finals. In his first season in Italy, Ozanich logged 18.2 innings over 5 appearances, allowing 8 ER, 4 BB and 18 K, finishing with a 3.86 ERA. He finished 11th in the league in ERA, just behind Alessandro Maestri (3.34) and Carlos Quevedo (3.32), and second in the league in walks per game (1.93) trailing only Raul Rivero of Bologna.

In August 2020 the righty returned to Parma after having the metal plate removed from his leg one year after surgery. Owen appeared in two games out of the bullpen in his second season in Italy. In his first Italian league action in over a year, Ozanich pitched a scoreless inning, striking out two against Collecchio on August 15 before throwing a second scoreless inning against top seed San Marino on August 19. Parma Clima finished the 2020 season in third place in the Italian Serie A behind Bologna and San Marino. A year later in 2021, Parma would go on to win the European Cup in July 2021 in Ostrava, Czech Republic.

In his two seasons with Parma, Ozanich logged 26.1 IP, in which he surrendered, 25 H, 11 ER, walking 6 while punching out 30 to go with a 3-2 record, 1 save and 3.75 ERA (Serie A + European Champions Cup).

Ozanich made the move back to France for the 2021 season. Montpellier won the 2021 Challenge de France. Ozanich recorded a 26-pitch save against La Rochelle in game one of the tournament, then picked up an 80-pitch win in relief versus Senart the following day. The Barracudas swept their four game schedule, beating Rouen in the final by the score of 15-1. Ozanich went 1-0 with a save, logged 6.0 IP, allowing 4 H, 2 R, 3 BB and 7 K in the event. Montpellier lefty Kevin Canelon took home MVP honors for his two spectacular outings on the mound. Owen finished the 2021 regular season and playoffs with a 4-2 record in 41.2 IP, in which he allowed 30 hits, 4 earned runs (0.86 ERA) while walking 9 and fanning 48 opposing batters (0.93 WHIP). He led the FFBS in saves (3) and ERA (0.86).

In 2022, Ozanich went 1-1 with a 2.03 ERA, 5 BB/37 K, 1 save in 31.0 innings. He led all French pitchers in WHIP (0.96), K/BB (7.4) and K/9 (10.7). He finished third amongst French pitchers in ERA, behind Jose Paula and teammate Mathis Nayral. In the annual Challenge de France, Ozanich got the start against Savigny in the semi-finals. He came out of the game with a 4-1 lead in the 7th inning, but Savigny rallied to win 6-5 against Montpellier closer and former Phillies prospect Yoan Antonac. Montpellier finished in third place in 2022, bowing out to eventual champions Rouen in the semi-finals.

In 2023, Ozanich was promoted to manager alongside assistant head coach Giovanni Luciani. The pair took over mid-season for longtime head coach, Jean Michel Mayeur. Ozanich led the Montpellier Barracudas to a 19-5 regular season record, good enough for first place in the French D1. In the playoffs, the Barracudas won the semi-finals over Toulouse before meeting the Montigny Cougars in the French Series. In game two of the series, Ozanich returned to the mound for the first time in over a year, pitching a scoreless inning while striking out two. Montigny won game four, pushing the series to a deciding game five in Montpellier. Ozanich started, throwing the first 21 pitches of the game for strikes. He exited the game after 65 pitches (50 strikes), blanking Montigny over 5.1 innings, allowing 4 hits, walking none and punching out 8. Montpellier won the game 8-0 and took home their first French title since 1995. At age 34, Ozanich finished the French Series with 6.1 scoreless innings, walking one, while striking out 10.

So far in 2024, the Barracudas are off to a 10-10 start in the French D1. Ozanich has appeared in 10 regular season games as a pitcher, logging a 2-0 record in 20.0 IP, 14 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 20 K. He's currently second in the French D1 in ERA (0.90) behind only Yorfrank Lopez. Ozanich helped lead Montpellier to a 2024 Challenge de France title, where in two appearances, he picked up a save and a win (on the same day) over 5.2 IP, the righty scattered 3 hits, no runs, 2 walks and 8 strikeouts. On June 5, Ozanich started against the Duerne Spartans (Belgium) in the 2024 European Cup held in Valencia, Spain, going 8 innings, allowing just one run, walking one and striking out 9 for the win. Overall on the 2024 season, the 35 year old Ozanich has a 4-0 record over 33.2 IP, 23 H, 3 ER, 6 BB, 37 K (0.80 ERA, 0.86 WHIP). In four seasons with Montpellier (2021-2024) Ozanich has pitched 129.0 IP, allowing 97 H, 22 ER, 27 BB, 151 K, going 10-4 with 7 saves, a 0.96 WHIP and 1.53 ERA. For his career in France (Rouen & Montpellier) Ozanich is 101-19 (.842 winning pct) in 960.0 IP, in which he allowed 677 H, 164 ER (1.53 ERA) walking 169, striking out 899 (5.31 K/BB) to go with a career 0.87 WHIP and 12 saves. His 102 wins and 898 K with a French club trail only his former teammate Keino Perez who finished his career with 118 wins and 1,008 K. During his time as a position player in France he batted .340 (49-for-144) in the regular season. If you add games outside of France along with FFBS playoffs, during his time as a position player Ozanich hit .294 (64-for-218) with 48 runs scored, 8 doubles, 1 triple, no home runs, 33 RBI and 10 stolen bases (all competitions: French regular season, Euro Cup, Challenge de France, Playoffs, Final 4).

In 14 seasons in Europe (2011-2024) with Rouen, Parma and Montpellier, Ozanich has logged a combined 104-21 W/L record. He has pitched 986.1 IP, 702 H, 175 ER, 175 BB, 929 K, 14 saves, 0.88 WHIP, 1.59 ERA. (updated August 1, 2024)

Since first pitching for France in 2011, Ozanich appeared in 25 games for the national team, posting a 5-7 record in 109.1 IP, surrendering 103 hits, allowing 46 earned runs (3.78 ERA) while walking 36 and striking out 91. Ozanich started for France against South Africa in the Qualifiers for the 2013 World Baseball Classic in Jupiter, FL on September 21, 2012, pitching three scoreless innings allowing no hits with two strikeouts, one of which being former MLB infielder Gift Ngoepe. In the 2014 European Championships Ozanich pitched France to a 3-2 victory over host nation Germany on opening night of the tournament, beating Luke Sommer; he allowed two runs (one earned) in five innings before Matthieu Brelle-Andrade, Thomas Langloys and Pierrick Lemestre wrapped it up. In a 5-4 France victory over Belgium four days later, Ozanich pitched five scoreless innings, walking one and striking out three.

On August 20, 2017, Ozanich helped France upset highly favored Chinese Taipei by the score of 4-3 in front of 8,500 fans at TianMu Stadium to open the 2017 Taipei Summer Universiades. He pitched 7.1 IP, allowing 3 runs, walking one and striking out two. France finished 3-4, with wins over Chinese Taipei, Russia and Mexico. In November 2018, Ozanich led all French pitchers in innings pitched (9.2) and strikeouts (6) in a seven game exhibition series against South Africa held in Johannesburg, Durban and Cape Town.

Following team France's seven game series in South Africa, Ozanich made the trip across the Atlantic to South America to join the Industriales de Santiago in Chile. He recorded a 1-0 record to go with a 3.00 ERA for the defending Chilean champions.

In September 2019, Ozanich pitched for France in the 2019 European Championships in Bonn, Germany. In his first game since returning from a broken tibia, Ozanich pitched three scoreless innings in a France victory over Austria. Later that week, Ozanich took the loss against the eventual Europe/Asia Olympic qualifier winner Israel. Former major league infielder Danny Valencia homered off the French starter, who struck out 4 and walked 1 in the defeat.

Two years later, the veteran hurler pitched well in the 2021 European Championships for France. Once again under the wing of his former Rouen teammate and manager Keino Perez, the righty led France with 10.0 innings pitched, in which he walked 4 and struck out 13, while pitching to a 1.00 WHIP and 2.70 ERA.

In the summer of 2022, France had to re-qualify for the 2023 European Championships. Ozanich started the final of the qualifier against host nation Bulgaria, going 4 innings, allowing 1 run, walking none while punching out 3. France won all their games in the four team tournament, beating Slovenia, Ireland and Bulgaria twice. At age 33, Ozanich again led the France staff in innings pitched. Two months later, Ozanich made the 2022 French World Baseball Classic qualifier squad, managed by current Texas Rangers manager Bruce Bochy. It would be Ozanich's last appearance as a player with France. Owen Ozanich played in 5 European Championships (2012, 2014, 2016, 2019, 2021), and a French record 3 WBC Qualifiers (2012, 2016, 2022).

Ozanich has been the pitching coach at the Pole Espoir de Montpellier since September 2019, and the manager of the Montpellier Barracudas since 2023.

Sources

• South Burlington stats
• Bio page

http://www.sa.baseball.com.au/cm/stats.aspx?TID=15298&CID=3090