Es geht los ! Play Ball – Swiss Baseball Opening Day 2018 – www.spielplan.ch
Our Swiss Baseball Nationalteam Headcoach Chris Byrnes wrote a Season Pre-view – enjoy reading:
(further below Swiss Baseball MVP 2017 Taylor Eichhorst’s version)
As the NLA gets started for their 2018 season there should be an interesting battle at the top of the standings between the Therwil Flyers, Zurich Barracudas, Zurich Challengers and the Bern Cardinals. Over the last four years the league has been dominated by the finals between the Therwil Flyers and Zurich Barracudas with the Flyers coming out on top three of the four years. However, the teams are very evenly matched as it could very easily been the other way around as the Barracudas have led in the ninth inning of game 5 in two of those years but were not able to shut the door.
1. Zurich Challengers – will be the surprise of the league this year. They have bolstered their pitching staff with James Sanders returning and the addition of Simon Steffen and Stefan Haltmeier to go along with Andreas Girasole,Tobi Siegrist and Rob Sedin. This is the best pitching staff in the league. Offensively, they have two top players in Tobi Siegrist and Rob Sedin to pump the offense. Siegrist perhaps the best baseball player Switzerland has produced is in the twilight of his career but he still puts up numbers and is a great competitor. Rob Sedin was the MVP last year for good reasons as he can do it all offensively, hit , steal bases, get rbi’s and is the best bunter in Europe. If you add a nice veteran core of players with Saentis Zeller and Chico Colindres the offense is powerful. The only question mark for the Challengers is can they stay focused and play good defensively to constantly win, they are sometimes their own worst enemy. The sky is the limit for this team.
2. Therwil Flyers – what else can we say about the defending champions, they have a veteran team that wins every year. They take their core talent and blend nicely with a few imports and they are hard to beat. Pitching wise they will count on Hide Oshima and Lukas Croton for game 1 and most likely they will have import for game two. Taka Oshima is emerging as a top closer so they have the pitching talent to make it back to the finals. The only question mark is Lukas Croton their ace who is now passed his medical exams and will be challenged to make all the games with his new work schedule. This impacts the win total. Offensively this team is tough to beat as they have a deep lineup with no easy outs. Taka Oshima has taken his game to a different level and is in beast mode. The team generally plays solid defense and that puts them in the finals again in 2018
3. Zurich Barracudas – they are another talented team going to the finals in the last four years. However, they will be challenged as they have lost some pitching depth with Roger Salvoldelli retiring and Simon Steffen signing a two year four figure deal with the Challengers. This leaves Andi Rüesch as the lone Swiss starter with support from Elliot Berger and Nderim Coma. Josh Crouse might get a Swiss passport and if that happens then he will close game 1. Evan Brisentine is back again and he had a very solid year and pitched great in the playoffs. He alone adds to the Barracudas win total. Offensively, the Cudas will struggle a bit to score runs as they will not have Bert Marsnik in 2018 who was a key source of power in the middle of the lineup. Harry Wischnewski is the band leader here for this team, if he is hot then they win, the team feeds off his mojo. Josh Crouse known as the bus driver is one of the best talents in the league and will be back and he always makes an impact and puts up consistent offensive numbers. The Cudas will bring in another import so that will help the offense. Kevin Fermin the best young talent in Switzerland is back for his second year and he has a ton of skills defensively and offensively.
4. Bern Cardinals – a resurgence in Bern is happening and they will be a team to reckon with in the coming years. They have perhaps the best young talent of any team and they are getting experience. They are a very scrappy team and capable of winning every game. Pitching wise they have some depth for game 1 with Thierry Burkhardt emerging as a top pitcher and Jonah Schaller also emerging as a legitimate closer. The question mark is who will pitch game 2. If they can hire an import pitcher then this team becomes very hard to beat. Offensively, Burkhardt becoming one of the best players in Europe and they have lots of good young bats, Reinhard, Schaller, Doxler and Ambuhl. Add in the legend of Johnny Perigos and you have a very capable offense. This is a team that will compete and give other teams troubles and I see them securing the final playoff spot in 2018
And MVP 2017 Taylor Eichhorst with his Season Pre-view – enjoy reading:
The 2018 season will be a lot more competitive this year. As a player/coach for the last four years I have seen a dramatic change in the teams who have put a big effort into developing their youth and the teams in their lower systems. Both Bern and Lucerne have done a great job developing their programs all around and this might be the year it all comes to fruition. Look for them to compete with the big power houses in the Barracudas and Therwil. The one team that has pushed aside adversity is the Wil Devils. They have been the paragon of a team that doesn’t quit. Wil is a whole different team than what I came to know four years ago. Now with some younger kids making an impact in NLA and a few national team players they no longer will be the comfortable day that we have seen in the past. I have no idea what to expect with Lausanne but I will give them all the respect they deserve after winning the NLB championship last season. The Challengers will always be a tough game day and depending on which team shows up that day, they could be the best hitting team in the league. Look to see them at the top of the bracket as well. I can guarantee that my team, the Sissach Frogs, will compete every game. And just like last year we will be surprising teams again when they are on the wrong side on the scoreboard at the end of the game. I think we will again see the Flyers and Barracudas as 1/2 at the end of the season but neither of them will be playing in the finals. It’s bold but i feel a change in the wind with the Eagles and Cardinals taking flight. Look for a Bern vs. Lucerne final. Winner will be the team with the best Swiss pitching.
