2010 European Cup

   

The 2010 European Cup was the 47th European Cup. Held in June and September in Brno, Rotterdam and Barcelona, it featured Fortitudo Bologna of the Italian Baseball League winning their third title, their first in 25 years. Former major leagues to play included Gene Kingsale, Jim Brower, Eddy Garabito, Pat Ahearne, Dusty Bergman and Greg McCarthy as well as future major leaguer Junior Guerra. Danny Gonzalez and Jakub Hajtmar win the pool MVPs, while Juan Pablo Angrisano drives in Jairo Ramos Gizzi with the winner in the title game.

Competing Teams

Rotterdam

• Savigny Lions (France)
• Tenerife Marlins (Spain)
• Hoboken Pioneers (Belgium)
• DOOR Neptunus (Netherlands)
• Telemarket Rimini (Italy)
• T&A San Marino (San Marino)

Brno

• Rouen Huskies (France)
• Fortitudo Bologna (Italy)
• CB Sant Boi (Spain)
• Heidenheim Heidekoepfe (Germany)
• Konica Minolta Pioniers (Netherlands)
• AVG Draci Brno (Czech Republic)

Results

June 2

Rotterdam

• Telemarket Rimini 9, Savigny Lions 1. Chris Di Roma gives up only one run in seven innings while whiffing eight for Rimini, while Pierrick Lemestre surrenders seven runs in seven innings. RF Mario Chiarini reaches in four of five plate appearances, doubles twice and scores three times to lead Rimini's offense.

• T&A San Marino 7, Hoboken Pioneers 0. Jose Escalona whiffed eight in six shutout innings for the win, while SS Anthony Granato went 4 for 5 with two triples, three runs and two RBI.

• Marlins Puerto Cruz 4, DOOR Neptunus 2. The host team has a horrible debut, getting upset by Spain. Diegomar Markwell fanned eight and allowed only two runs (one earned) on three hits in eight innings, but Antonio Noguera and Leslie Nacar combined to hold the Dutch squad to two runs (one earned) as well. Marlins SS Néstor Pérez scores twice. In a losing cause, Dwayne Kemp homers and Eugene Kingsale reaches base three times.

Brno

• CB Sant Boi 3, AVG Draci Brno 2. The host team had come in unbeaten during the Czech Extraliga season of 2010, but couldn't match up with the Spanish opposition. C Radim Chroust homered off José Cruz in the third for a 1-0 lead. Sant Boi got two in against former major leaguer Pat Ahearne, a veteran of European Cups, in the bottom of the frame. In the fifth, Michal Ondracek walked, was bunted over, stole third and came home on an error by Spain's 3B Marc Carrillo, to even the game. It remained 2-2 until the bottom of the 8th, when Jose Luis Riera hit a sac fly off Greg McCarthy, relieving Ahearne earlier that frame. Cruz and Junior Guerra combined for 13 strikeouts to beat the Czechs.

• The other three games were rained out.

June 3

Rotterdam

• Hoboken Pioneers 5, Savigny Lions 3. Savigny DH Tim Stewart doubled in runs in the second and fourth to put Savigny ahead early, but two errors, a wild pitch and a Sammy Lauwers singled tied it in the 5th. Three walks and a wild pitch put Hoboken ahead for good in the 7th. Hoboken catcher Lauwers would finish a home run shy of the cycle. 3B Florian Peyrichou scored all three runs for the French club.

• Telemarket Rimini 5, Marlins Puerto Cruz 2. Cuban-German lefty Enorbel Marquez-Ramirez starred for the Italians with two runs (one earned) in six innings for the victory. 2B Jack Santora scored twice and drove in a run.

• DOOR Neptunus 6, T&A San Marino 2. The hosts got a strong win after their rough game one, as tall right-hander Dushan Ruzic did not allow a run until the 9th, when errors by SS Jeroen Sluijter and RF Danny Rombley (both former Olympians) let San Marino score two. By then, the game was well out of hand. LF Eugene Kingsale had 3 hits and 2 runs, while Rombley reached base four times. Henry Bonilla took the loss.

Brno

• Fortitudo Bologna 3, Konica Minolta Pioniers 1. An expectedly tight game provided plenty of drama. Jesus Matos and Jurjen van Zijl traded goose eggs for four innings. In the 5th, SS Juan Carlos Infante singled in a run for Bologna for a 1-0 lead. The score remained even through the 7th, at which point Matos left with a 11-K, 1-hit outing. The Piuoniers rallied against Victor Moreno in the 8th, with #9 hitter/LF Jefferson Muzo doubling in 2B Shurty Tremus. The game was deadlocked going into the bottom of the 9th. C Juan Pablo Angrisano opened with a walk from van Zijl, who was taken out after 118 pitches. 38-year-old 1B Jairo Ramos Gizzi then launched a home run off reliever Jean-Paul Gulinck to end it.

• Fortitudo Bologna 8, Heidenheim Heidekoepfe 3. To make up the game one rain-out, Bologna had to play shortly after their dramatic win over Konica Minolta. They showed fatigue, getting shut out for six innings by Dusty Bergman. Meanwhile, the Germans had scored twice off Cody Cillo. In the 7th, the wheels fell off for Heidenheim. C Mattia Reginato drew a leadoff walk and PH Francesco Alaimo tripled him in. With one out, Infante singled in the tying run. Bergman got fellow former big leaguer Eddy Garabito, but Angrisano singled to put two on. Ramos Gizzi continued his hot day with a RBI single, then 3B Joe Mazzuca singled in a 4th run. Bologna tacked on four insurance runs off Martin Almstetter in the 9th. Finishing with 3 hits apiece were Infante and Ramos Gizzi for Bologna and 2B Chris Beck for Heidenheim.

• CB Sant Boi 8, Rouen Huskies 4. Rouen started well. 2B Luc Piquet opened by reaching on an error and came around on a grounder by 1B David Gauthier later in the inning. In the fourth, 3B Maxime Lefevre singled, swiped second and scored on a Piquet double. In the meantime, former minor leaguer Keino Perez was holding Sant Boi scoreless. That changed in the 6th when Daniel Martinez singled in 1992 Olympian Xavier Civit (age 37) and 2B Daniel Sánchez and 1B Jose Luis Riera added a RBI. Perez wound up allowing eight runs in the final three innings to take the loss. Sánchez scored three times for Sant Boi. C Boris Marche was 3 for 3 with a walk for Rouen.

• Heidenheim Heidekoepfe 10, AVG Draci Brno 7. Heidenheim began the scoring match in the top of the first when SS Brandon Taylor singled in C Simon Gühring against P Martin Schneider. 2B Chris Beck singled home 1B Peter Dankerl in the second to put the Germans in front, 2-0. Four errors (three by players with US minor league experience) cost Heidenheim badly in the bottom of the second, and former Twins farmhand Jakub Hajtmar made them pay with a 3-run triple off Markus Winkler, the big blow in the six-run frame. By the time Schneider got yanked after four, Heidenheim had pulled within 7-6. They tied it in the 5th against reliever Petr Minarik then took the lead for good against Minarik in the sixth, with a 2-run double by CF Robert Gruber. Heidenheim wound up with 19 hits, led by 4 from Taylor and 3 apiece by Gruber and Dankerl. Gühring scored three times. Hajtmar got three hits in a losing effort.

June 4

Rotterdam

• T&A San Marino 13, Marlins Puerto Cruz 2. San Marino rebounded from yesterday's loss by lighting up Audie Nunez for six runs in three innings and the bullpen didn't do any better for the Marlins. SS Anthony Granato went 4 for 5 with 2 walks, a homer, 3 runs and 3 RBI while 47-year-old 3B David Sheldon was 4 for 6 with a double and 3 RBI.

• Telemarket Rimini 10, Hoboken Pioneers 0. Three Italian hurlers combined on a 3-hit shutout of the Belgian entry. 1B Clinton Balgera drove in three while SS Danny Gonzalez raps four hits for Rimini.

• DOOR Neptunus 7, Savigny Lions 1. Savigny, still trying for a win, turned to veteran minor leaguer Paul Mildren, a recent signee. He was no match for the host team and Kevin Heijstek. In the third, Neptunus got all it needed on a double by Martijn Meeuwis, a single by Shaldimar Daantji, a steal and a single by 2B Dwayne Kemp for a 2-0 lead. Savigny scored in the 5th on a triple by Vincent Ferreira and a Kemp error, but that's all they would get off Heijstek. A 3-run double by SS Jeroen Sluijter in the 6th provided good insurance for Neptunus.

Brno

• Heidenheim Heidekoepfe 20, Rouen Huskies 7. After each team scored once in the first, Rouen starter Giovanni Ouin imploded in the second, surrendering six runs, highlighted by a 3-run blast from SS Brandon Taylor, the second of five hits by Taylor. Neither Ouin (11 R in 3 2/3 IP), Anthony Piquet (7 R in 2 IP) nor Quentin Becquey (2 R in 1 1/3 IP) could contain Heidenheim, which won by the mercy rule after 7 innings. Heidenheim starter Peter Dankerl was far from effective with 8 walks and 7 runs in 6 2/3 innings but it was easily enough. Five players scored three runs for Heidenheim. Taylor drove in six. Heidenheim had 23 hits, led by Taylor's five, including two home runs. In a losing cause, Rouen LF Joris Bert scored three times.

• Konica Minolta Pioniers 19, Rouen Huskies 9. Rouen's bad day got worse as their staff again allowed way too many runs in a mercy rule loss for a total of 39 runs surrendered on the day. Once again, their offense did their job, pounding Shane Gnade for 15 hits and 9 runs while throwing 153 pitches. Rouen went up 3-0 in the first but were trailing by the third and never caught up. The Pioniers scored nine runs in the sixth inning alone. The ineffective Rouen staff this time included former minor leaguer Justin Staatz (14 R, 10 BB, 137 pitches in 4 1/3 IP), Becquey (4 BB, 3 R, 0 outs) and Aaron Hornostaj (2 R in 1 2/3 IP). 3B-SS Maxime Lefevre homered twice and drove in three to lead Rouen's offense. For Konica Minolta, RF Mark-Jan Moorman hit a 3-run homer and 2B Shurty Tremus scored four times to lead a balanced offense.

• AVG Draci Brno 4, Fortitudo Bologna 3. The host Czechs got their first win in an upset over the Italians. Bologna scored in the second against Leoš Kubát for a 1-0 lead. Draci Brno tied it in the 4th when SS Jakub Hajtmar singled, stole second and later came home on an error. In the 6th, two-time Olympian Fabio Betto faded for Fortitudo. With one out, Hajtmar tripled and came home on a sac fly by 2B Martin Schneider. 3B Tomáš Polanský doubled and 1B Pavel Budský (the first Czech player in the US minors) was given a free pass to bring up OF Michal Ondráček, who doubled home two more for a 4-1 edge for Draci Brno. Bologna almost tied it in the bottom of the 6th. Kubát walked C Juan Pablo Angrisano and DH Jairo Ramos Gizzi, then a Schneider error loaded the bases. Kubát plunked a batter to force in one run and issued a bases-loaded walk before giving way to former major leaguer Greg McCarthy, who escaped the jam. The Czechs got two on in the 7th but Schneider lined into a double play to end the inning. In the bottom of the 9th, Bologna SS Juan Carlos Infante began with a single off McCarthy. Radim Chroust relieved and CF Eddy Garabito bunted Infante over, then Angrisano and Ramos both walked to load the bases. Submariner Radek Procházka came in to try to rescue Draci Brno. Up came 3B Joe Mazzuca, a former minor leaguer. Mazzuca lined to Hajtmar for out number two and Jakub completed the double play by throwing to Schneider to save the day for the hosts. Shortstops Infante and Hajtmar each finished with three hits.

• Konica Minolta Pioniers 9, CB Sant Boi 2. Former minor leaguers Junior Guerra (Sant Boi) and Eddie Aucoin (Konica Minolta) traded goose eggs for four innings. In the 5th, DH Jeffrey de Vrieze (also a former minor leaguer) led off with a triple against Guerra, then scored on a single by 2B Shurty Tremus for a 1-0 Pioniers lead. The next inning, C Mark Duursma walked and stole second then came around on a hit by RF Mark-Jan Moorman. The Pioniers were up 4-0 by the time Guerra was yanked in the 7th and cruised to victory. Tremus, a light hitter, drove in four, while Moorman had 3 hits, Duursma scored three and CF Jakub Malik reached base four times in a visit to his homeland.

June 5

Rotterdam

• Savigny Lions 6, Marlins Puerto Cruz 0. Savigny got its first win at Neptunus Family Stadium with an easy win over Spain. Tim Stewart of the Lions turned in a gem, while former A's farmhand Iván Granados couldn't contain the French batters. In the third, Savigny got all it needed. RF Boubakar Guaye opened that frmae with a single. Veteran 3B Fabien Proust hit into a force. SS Yann Dal Zotto singled through the middle, then 2B Romain Martinez-Scott reached on a fielder's choice. CF Christophe Goniot bunted in one run, then Stewart was walked intentionally. 1B Florian Peyrichou foiled that move by smacking a grand slam. Stewart allowed only five hits and walked none while whiffing seven.

• Hoboken Pioneers 1, DOOR Neptunus 0. The hosts suffered their second upset loss, as American import Terence Antonacci, a veteran of the Belgian First Division, held them scoreless on eight hits and two walks. The 500 home fans had hopes in the early going as Neptunus challenged in the first two innings. LF Eugene Kingsale opened the game with a single, the first of three hits, and stole second with one out. 3B Raily Legito singled him to third then swiped second. After RF Danny Rombley, a former Expos AA player, fanned on five pitches, DH Dwayne Kemp coaxed a walk. 1B Jeffrey Arends grounded to Dennis De Quint at third for an inning-ending force. In the second, Neptunus CF Shaldimar Daantji singled with two out and stole second. Kingsale walked and both runners advanced on an Antonacci balk before 2B Benjamin Dille was retired. In the bottom of the third, LF Nicky Mertens drew a leadoff walk from Niels Harteveld. With one out, CF Steven De Lannoy doubled in the game's lone run. Antonacci made it hold up as the Belgians pulled off the upset.

• Telemarket Rimini 15, T&A San Marino 6. In a match-up of Italian Baseball League rivals, Rimini battered San Marino in the end but the game was hard-fought for a while. With one out in the top of the first, ancient 3B David Sheldon singled, followed by a hit by 2B Francesco Imperiali. LF Max De Biase grounded into a run-scoring force. Rimini got the run back quickly. 2B Jack Santora walked and advanced on an error by SS Anthony Granato and a wild pitch by Brazilian native Tiago Da Silva. With one out, Cuban LF Laidel Chapellí ground home Santora. San Marino retook the lead in the second as 1B Dean Rovinelli singled, stole and advanced on a hit before coming home on a sac fly. In the bottom of the second, Rimini DH Lorenzo Avagnina tripled and scored on a single by SS Mattia Campanini.

San Marino got their third straight run-scoring frame. Granato led off with a single off Jim Brower and stole the next two bases. With one out, De Biase singled him home. This time, Rimini did not match them right away. With the score still 3-2 in the bottom of the 5th, #9 hitter/C Giuseppe Spinelli singled and was bunted over by Santora. SS Danny Gonzalez singled him in, then RF Mario Chiarini went yard for a 5-3 lead, Rimini's first time ahead.

San Marino stormed back, getting the first two men. An error by Gonzalez let in one run, then Granato slammed one deep off Brower to give his club the 6-5 edge and knock Brower from the game in favor of Chris Di Roma. Rimini blew it open in the bottom of the 6th when 35-year-old CF Filippo Crociati led off with a triple. Mattia Salsi relieved Da Silva and got Avagnina to ground out to short, but Crociati scored the tying run. Campanini and Spinelli both singled, then Salsi threw a wild pitch. Santora drew an intentional walk. Jose Escalona relieved and got Gonzalez to hit into a run-scoring force, putting Rimini up 7-6. Chiarni was intentionally walked to bring up Chapellí, who drew a walk to force in a run. 1B Clinton Balgera singled home two, then Crociati doubled in a run for his second hit of the inning. Ilo Bartolucci came in and got Avagnina, but Rimini now led 11-6 and would never look back.

Granato finished with 3 hits in a losing cause, while for the winners, Chiarini had 3 runs and 3 RBI, Gonzalez 3 runs and Balgera and Avagnina both drove home three.

Rimini became the first team to lock up a spot in the Final Four in September.

Brno

• Heidenheim Heideköpfe 8, CB Sant Boi 1. Martin Dewald was the star of this game; having not appeared in Germany yet this season as he was in a US college, Dewald returned to Europe to blank Sant Boi for 7 innings before yielding a single score in the 8th. By then, Heidenheim had run away with it, starting with a steal of home in the 2nd. 2B Chris Beck wound up with 3 hits and CF Robert Gruber drove home three.

• AVG Draci Brno 14, Konica Minolta Pioniers 10. Draci Brno pulled off its second straight upset as the hosts in the first extra-inning game of this year's Cup.

The Dutch scored first. In the bottom of the first, their Czech player, CF Jakub Malik reached on an error by countrymate Jakub Hajtmar at short. 1B Lennart Koster walked and C Mark Duursma singled him home. Draci Brno tied it in the second on a single-and-steal by LF Michal Ondráček and an error by Dutch LF Jefferson Muzo. Draci Brno got men on the corners in the third with two outs when cleanup hitter/1B Pavel Budský flew out against Arshwin Asjes.

In the bottom of the third, the Pioniers retook the lead. 2B Mervin Gario, Malik and Koster hit three straight singles to score one run and Duursma ground in Malik. RF Mark-Jan Moorman singled home Koster. Draci Brno came within a run in the 5th when Asjes plunked Hajtmar, who stole second then scored on a hit by 2B Martin Schneider.

Draci Brno took its first lead in the top of the 6th. With one out, Ondráček singled, stole second and advanced on a fielder's choice that let DH Wayne Ough reach. Jean-Paul Gulinck replaced Asjes but provided no relief. RF Martin Veselý bunted home Ondráček. With one out, Gulinck tried to pick off a runner. During the long rundown, an error by Muzo allowed Ough to score and make it 4-4. PH Tomáš Červinka singled and another Muzo miscue let Veselý come home. Petr Minařík let after six with the 5-4 lead intact.

In the 9th, Ondráček singled in Schneider for some insurance and a 6-4 lead. In the bottom of the 9th, though, SS Shurty Tremus led off with a double against Ough, a former AA pitcher. With two away, Koster hit a first-pitch home run to keep the Pioniers' hopes alive and force extra innings.

Dave Draijer, a former Dutch national team mainstay, had a horrid time in the 10th, allwoing one run in on an error before Schneider hit a 2-run double and aa Ough sac fly made it 10-6 Draci Brno. Schneider and Ough then traded positions. Schneider was not as effective on the mound as at the plate, giving up a sac fly to Malik, a RBI double to Duursma, allowing a run on an error by Veselý and finally allowing Moorman to hit the tying double with two outs.

In the 11th, Draci Brno kept up the attack, now against Maarten Mulder. Due to the silly international baseball extra-inning rule, they started with two on board (as both teams had in the 10th). With one out, Červinka (now in left field) doubled in Ough. After a second out, Gario made a crucial run-scoring error. 3B Tomáš Polanský doubled in two more and it was now 14-10. In the bottom of the 10th, Schneider went 1-2-3 to lock up the win.

Ondráček finished with four hits while both Schneider and Koster had 3 runs and 3 RBI.

• Fortitudo Bologna 10, Rouen Huskies 0. Rouen's woes continued as Rene Mazzocchi and two relievers combined to shut them out on 7 hits while Robin Roy and Justin Staatz could not control the bleeding in yet another mercy rule loss. SS Juan Carlos Infante reach base all five trips to the plate and scored three runs, as did CF Eddy Garabito.

June 6

Rotterdam

• Marlins Puerto Cruz 10, Hoboken Pioneers 0. Hoboken failed to pull off another upset as Leslie Nacar held them to four hits while striking out ten in an easy win for the Tenerife club. CF Steven De Lannoy did his darndest, getting three of Hoboken's four hits, including a double; he also walked and stole a base in a losing effort. Former Twins farmhand Lesther Galván also had 3 hits, while scoring three times for the Marlins.

• Telemarket Rimini 4, DOOR Neptunus 3. Neptunus went to Leon Boyd, a star of the 2009 World Baseball Classic, against Rimini's Sandy Patrone. The hosts finished a very disappointing 2-3 as they would close a one.

In the first, 2B Jack Santora greeted Boyd with a single, but was erased on a double play grounder by SS Danny Gonzalez. RF Mario Chiarini singled then scored on a two-bagger by LF Laidel Chapellí. In the second, Boyd walked CF Filippo Crociati, who scored on a double by DH Lorenzo Avagnina. They kept pecking away with another run in the third on a double by Chapellí and a single by Crociati an out later. In the 4th, they kept up their one run-per-inning pace when Santora grounded in 3B Mattia Campanini. Boyd was replaced by Dushan Ruzic, who shut out the Italians the rest of the way.

Patrone left after four shutout innings in favor of Michele Quattrini and Neptunus rallied. DH Dwayne Kemp walked and stole second with one out before 1B Jeffrey Arends doubled him home. SS Jeroen Sluijter bunted into a run-scoring Quattrini error and it was 4-2. In the bottom of the 6th, 3B Raily Legito walked and RF Danny Rombley singled him to third. Rombley stole second then a wild pitch scored Legito. They got no further, though, as Kemp flew out, C Martijn Meeuwis grounded into a force at home and Arends grounded out.

Neptunus got Sluijter to second base with one out in the second but LF Eugene Kingsale and 2B Benjamin Dille both grounded out. In the 8th, Legito was hit by a pitch and Rombley bunted into a Campanini error. Kemp bunted both runners into scoring position, then Meeuwis was intentionally walked. With a big chance to tie or go ahead, Arends lined right to 1B Clint Balgera for an unassisted double play.

In the bottom of the 9th, Neptunus challenged again when CF Shaldimar Daantji tripled with one out. Kingsale grounded out, then Dille walked. That brought up Legito, a longtime star in the Netherlands who held the Dutch national team record for games played. On a 2-2 count, he flew out to end the game.

• T&A San Marino 12, Savigny Lions 4. San Marino made its way into the Final Four with an easy win over the French entry. In the bottom of the first, SS Anthony Granato singled and stole second, then scored on a double by 3B David Sheldon. An out later, LF Max De Biase got hit by a pitch. A sac fly by 1B Dean Rovinelli made it 2-0 and Savigny CF Christophe Goniot dropped a fly from C Simone Albanese for a 3-0 San Marino lead. Savigny rallied in the second on a hit by 3B Florian Peyrichou, a walk to C Vincent Ferreira and RBI single by LF Pierrick Lemestre. With one out, RF Boubakar Guaye tripled home two and it was a tie game. San Marino went up for good in the second on a 2-out triple by Granato and an error by SS Fabien Proust. Granato and De Biase both finished reaching four times and scoring three.

Brno

• Fortitudo Bologna 2, CB Sant Boi 0. Bologna clinched a spot in the Final Four with their shutout win against Sant Boi. Jesus Matos did not allow a hit for the first three innings and wound up combining with Victor Moreno on a 3-hit, no-walk, 14-K whitewash. Jose Cruz turned in a good game but allowed solo homers to CF Eddy Garabito (in the second) and C Juan Pablo Angrisano (in the 7th) to give Bologna all it needed.

• Heidenheim Heideköpfe 10, Konica Minolta Pioniers 7. Heidenheim also made its way into the Final Four (the first German team to do so since that phase was added in 2008) with a close win over the Pioniers. They got going early. In the bottom of the first, 2B Chris Beck opened with a double off Jurjen van Zijl and was singled in by 3B Hagen Raetz. With one out, SS Brandon Taylor homered for a 3-0 lead.

The Pioniers got their lone run off Dusty Bergman in the third. 2B Shurty Tremus opened with a double and SS Mike Duursma followed with one of the same. They wound up loading the bases but CF Jakub Malik ground into an inning-ending twin killing.

In the bottom of the 4th, van Zijl allowed another run to fall behind 4-1. Markus Winkler relieved Bergman in the sixth and the Pioniers rallied. Malik led off with a walk. With one out, RF Mark-Jan Moorman singled, then a Taylor error made it 4-2. Tremus doubled in Moorman and they were within one run, but Mike Duursma hit into a double play.

The Dutch tied it in the 7th on a walk, a single by 1B Lennart Koster, a hit batsmen and a bases-loaded walk by Winkler to Moorman. Martin Dewald relieved a day after a complete game and retired LF Jefferson Muzo. Heidenheim retook the lead in the bottom of the frame on a 2-run homer by Beck to go up 6-4.

The Pioniers got their first lead in the 8th inning. With two away, 3B Mervin Gario singled and DH Dè Flanegin doubled. Koster walked on four pitches to laod the bases. Malik singled in one run and it was 6-5. C Mark Duursma then plate two with a single and his club led by one.

The Germans kept pounding away in the 8th, starting off with two hits off Dave Draijer. Jean-Paul Gulinck relieved and allowed a run-scoring fielder's choice. Beck walked on five pitches. Raetz lined into a double play and it looked like the Pioniers might escape with a 6-6 tie intact. C Simon Gühring, 0 for 4 from the #3 slot so far, ground to Gario at third with a chance to end the threat. Instead, Gario made a throwing error, scoring a run. CF Robert Gruber singled in two and it was 10-6 Heidenheim.

In the 9th, the Pioniers tried to rally against Dewald. Muzo struck out, but Tremus drew a walk. Mike Duursma hit into a force. Gario then went down swinging and their cause was lost.

• Rouen Huskies 10, AVG Draci Brno 8. The hapless Huskies finally got a win, despite facing two former major league pitchers. In the top of the first, Rouen showed little respect for Pat Ahearne, one of those former players from The Show. 2B Luc Piquet opened with a single, then stole second. He moved to third on a grounder by RF Joris Bert. SS Aaron Hornostaj walked and swiped second. CF Kenji Hagiwara ground into a two-run error by 3B Tomáš Polanský then scored on a hit by DH David Gauthier.

In the bottom of the first, the home team fought right back against Anthony Piquet. SS Jakub Hajtmar singled and advanced on a wild pitch. With one out, Polanský singled him home. 1B Pavel Budský got plunked, then LF Michal Ondráček hit into a force-out. Ondráček stole second, then DH Wayne Ough plated both runners with a hit to center. Piquet walked the next two batters but settled down by getting CF Karel Hrušovský, the #9 hitter, to ground out.

In the third, Rouen retook the lead when Hornostaj singled and stole second. With two outs, C Boris Marche singled him home. The Huskies padded their lead in the 4th. After one out, 3B Maxime Lefevre singled off Ahearne and swiped second. Luc Piquet hit into a miscue by Hajtmar, then Bert doubled in a run. Hornostaj doubled home both runners and it was now 7-3, Rouen.

The hosts battled back in their half of the fourth. RF Martin Veselý singled, then C Radim Chroust hit into a force. Hrušovský singled Chroust to third, then Hajtmar hit into a run-scoring force out. 2B Martin Schneider homered to make it a one-run contest. No runs scored in the 5th, 6th, 7th or 8th as Giovanni Ouin and Keino Perez provided good relief for Anthony Piquet and Ahearne controlled Rouen more effectively. Both times got rallies during this time but made nothing of them.

In the top of the 9th, Hagiwara opened with a single against Ahearne, the 14th hit allowed by the ex-Detroit Tiger. He was yanked in favor of Radek Procházka. Gauthier greeted the submariner with a 2-run homer for a 9-6 lead. Marche and 1B Quentin Becquey both drew walks. Greg McCarthy was summoned as the third Draci Brno hurler. LF Mathieu Brau bunted the runners over, then Lefevre singled for a 10-6 edge. Maxime took second on a wild pitch, but Luc Piquet and Bert both grounded out to end the Rouen half of the frame.

The home team battled back in the bottom of the 9th. Hrušovský opened with a double off Perez. Hajtmar flew out, but Schneider singled in one run to make it 10-7. Polanský struck out as Schneider took second on defensive indifference. Veteran star Budský singled in a run, bringing up the potential tying run in Ondráček, a good performer so far in the Cup. He didn't get the job done this time against Perez, though, flying out to Hagiwara to end a nicely fought game.

September 25

• Fortitudo Bologna 3, T&A San Marino 2. Jesus Matos whiffs 12 in 7 2/3 innings to outduel Henry Bonilla.

• Heidenheim Heidekoepfe 4, Telemarket Rimini 1. After going 5-0 in round one, Rimini falls flat in the semifinals. Martin Dewald turns in a strong outing, holding the Italians to one run and four hits in nine innings. Matt Pali provides the offensive support with a 2-run homer. Taking the loss to Germany is German citizen Enorbel Marquez despite 11 strikeouts. Heideinheim advances to the Gold Medal game, becoming the first German team to win a Medal in a European Cup (an event over 45 years old).

September 26

• Fortitudo Bologna 2, Heidenheim Heidekoepfe 1. Markus Winkler follows teammate Dewald in throwing a gem, holding Bologna scoreless for nine innings. Unfortunately, he is matched goose egg for goose egg by Cody Cillo and Fabio Milano. Heidenheim goes ahead in the 10th on a RBI single by Chris Beck, but Winkler finally cracks in the bottom of the inning. With the baserunners on board under the relatively new IBAF Extra Innings Rule end the game, Ryan Lilly makes a crucial game-tying error. Juan Pablo Angrisano then singles in Jairo Ramos Gizzi with the winner. It marks Bologna's first European Cup title since 1985.

• Telemarket Rimini 4, T&A San Marino 3. In the Bronze Medal game, Mario Chiarini goes 4 for 5 to power Rimini to the title, as his team rallies from a 3-1 deficit after six. They score the three 7th-inning runs off teenaged reliever Michele Meschini.

Standings

Rotterdam

1. Telemarket Rimini, 5-0
2. T&A San Marino, 3-2
3. Marlins Puerto Cruz, 2-3
4. DOOR Neptunus, 2-3
5. Hoboken Pioneers, 2-3
6. Savigny Lions, 1-4

Brno

1. Fortitudo Bologna, 4-1
2. Heidenheim Heidekoepfe, 4-1
3. Konica Minolta Pioniers, 2-3
4. AVG Draci Brno, 2-3
5. CB Sant Boi, 2-3
6. Rouen Huskies, 1-4

Final Four

• (at Barcelona, Spain)

Semi Final

Winner	Score	Loser
Fortitudo Bologna	3-2	T&A San Marino
Heidenheim Heidekoepfe	4-1	Telemarket Rimini

Final

Winner	Score	Loser
Fortitudo Bologna	2-1	Heidenheim Heidekoepfe

Awards and Leaders

Rotterdam

• MVP: Danny Gonzalez, Rimini SS
• Average: Anthony Granato, San Marino, .583
• ERA: Dushan Ruzic, Konica Minolta, 0.00
• Hits: Granato, 14
• Runs: Granato, 11
• RBI: Clinton Balgera, Rimini, 9
• Doubles: David Sheldon, San Marino & Lesther Galván, Puerto Cruz, 4
• Triples: Granato, 3
• Home Runs: Granato & Riccardo Suardi, San Marino, 2
• Total Bases: Granato, 26
• Stolen Bases: Granato, 5
• Strikeouts: Leslie Nacar, Puerto Cruz, 16

Brno

• MVP: Jakub Hajtmar, Draci Brno SS
• Average: Brandon Taylor, Heidenheim, .583
• ERA: Jesus Matos, Bologna, 0.00
• Hits: Taylor, 14
• Runs: Three tied with 9
• RBI: Taylor, 10
• Doubles: Chris Beck, Heidenheim & Boris Marche, Rouen, 4
• Triples: Hajtmar, 2
• Home Runs: Taylor, 3
• Total Bases: Taylor, 25
• Stolen Bases: Michal Ondráček, Draci Brno, 5
• Strikeouts: Matos, 24