Great Britain Baseball Squad Competes in 2005 European Championships
It was a solemn day for the Great Britain Baseball team.
Wearing black arm bands in tribute to those who lost their
lives in the London bombings the day before, GB began the
2005 European Championships against the defending champions
the Netherlands. Drew Bignall pitched for the GB squad and
went 6.1 innings giving up only two runs, one being earned.
The bats were not working for Great Britain as they failed
to score a run during the entire game. Adam Roberts was the
only GB player to get on base more than once. The final score
was 4-0 in favour of the Netherlands, a much closer finish
over the last two times these teams met.
The next team to face after the loss to the Netherlands was
the Swedish. Great Britain bats were alive as they scored
in five of the first six innings. Alex Smith pitched an outstanding
game giving up only six hits in eight innings. His only trouble
came in the fourth when Sweden registered four of their six
hits and scored twice. Sam Whitehead closed the door on the
Swedes with a 1-2-3 ninth inning and a final score of 8-2
in favour of the GB team. After this result, Great Britain
held a 1-1 record, and are aiming to finish in the top three
of their pool, which will allow them to compete in the playoffs
for a spot in the top-four in the tournament.
The next match for the Great Britain team will be against
Italy who were runners-up in the Championship the year before.
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