Going for gold in 2012 – British Baseball is back

NBL teams and schedule announced

Following the BBF AGM (click here to read more…) in January, there’s only a couple of months until the baseball season starts, and only a couple of weeks until players will be doing more than throwing the pill in jest. In fact, by the start of March we’ll be seeing them hurling in anger as teams try to forget their 2011 demons or rekindle the magic of last summer.

The big talk, as always, will be in the NBL, which is where this series of updates will start. The league is reduced to eight teams in 2012, with the Mildenhall Bulldogs (http://www.britishbaseball.org/page/show/310476-bulldogs) pulling out of the leagues altogether and the Richmond Flames (http://www.londonbaseballsoftball.com/) surprisingly dropping out as well.

The Southern Nationals (http://www.britishbaseball.org/page/show/382257-nationals?subseason=54620) won the NBL title in their first time of asking, although many of the players had picked up national crowns before at other clubs, while the Lakenheath Diamondbacks (http://site.lakenheathdiamondbacks.com/) were the beaten finalists in their debut British Baseball season.

It’ll be interesting to see if both teams can replicate their success this time around, as some important players for the Nationals will have their mind on Great Britain’s international commitments for the coming summer, while many at Lakenheath may have their eyes more closely following the US foreign policy; American Air Force bases have traditionally fared well early in their foray into baseball in the UK, but as was demonstrated last year by the Bulldogs and Menwith Hill Patriots (http://www.britishbaseball.org/page/show/285678-patriots) (both failing to complete their regular season schedule), personnel changes come thick and fast at these clubs.

The Southampton Mustangs (http://www.southamptonmustangs.co.uk/) and Flames were the beaten semi-finalists in the NBL last term, but only the Mustangs will return to the division in 2012.

Both ran into pitching problems in their NBC matches against the Diamondbacks and Nationals respectively, so this will be a key area to lock down. The Mustangs’ second team might not yet be able to provide new recruits, as although they fared well last season and have won promotion, they are still two leagues apart.

The Flames flew the flag for Richmond in 2011 as both the Knights (AAA) and Dragons (AA) struggled after each gaining promotion from the season before. As a franchise, the Flames (who had played in the NBL since 2004) will lie dormant in 2012, with their retained players boosting the Knights and Dragons while the Club will enter an as-yet unnamed side into Single-A. The biggest announcement from the Club so far on their playing staff is that their ace, the NBL’s leading pitcher in 2011, Robbie Unsell, will be joining the Herts Falcons (http://hertsbaseball.com/) for the coming summer.

The Mustangs have impressed since entering the NBL from AAA in 2010, making the playoffs in both seasons, and will have even more chance with only eight teams making the NBL grade this year. The Flames will use 2012 as a chance to rebuild the entire Club and press on to create a sustainable future for baseball in south west London.

Near-misses for the NBCs were the Bracknell Blazers (http://www.bracknellbaseballclub.co.uk/) and Croydon Pirates (http://www.croydonpirates.co.uk/), both of whom had their ups and downs in 2011. The Pirates again made some improvements following going winless in 2009, while the Blazers squad struggled to achieve their expectations last term – the club having won the crown in ’09 and made the final in ’10.

Bracknell continue to develop their youth players and it will be interesting to see how many of the AAA team, which showed promise but was unable to convert their potential into many wins last season, may step up to the big time. For the Pirates, developing the club as a whole is key to seeing where new talent will come from, and they will be hoping that their prime south-London location can continue to draw in big personalities and strong players as they attempt to return to the glory years of the mid-noughties.

The London Mets (http://www.londonmets.org/) had a great regular season, but lost to the Nationals in a playoff game in September, denying them entry to the NBCs in 2011. Rumour is that they’ve picked up a number of the NBL players who have left Richmond this year, so they’ll be looking to put last summer’s blip behind them. The Club have launched a fourth team, making them now the only club with both senior adult and junior teams at every level in the UK, and the Mets will be confident of bouncing back in a big way to reclaim the national crown they last won in 2008. That season they lost just once en route to the title, and they’ll be hoping that if they are successful during the year the Olympics comes to the capital that players stick around to build a legacy.

As mentioned, the Bulldogs won’t take part in the 2012 season, but the Essex Arrows (http://www.britishbaseball.org/page/show/285620?subseason=40834) and Falcons will retain their places in the top league despite a difficult couple of years.

The Falcons last made the playoffs in 2009, when there were only five teams in the NBL and the Pirates failed to win a league game all season, while the Arrows also last competed in September that year as well, when they, in fact, won every game in the AAA division. Both have since struggled to maintain momentum – the Falcons being crippled by DL-destined stars last year – but both clubs are hoping their youth programmes can fill holes left by ageing, injured and departing players in 2012.

The Arrows in particular may struggle as they have lost starting pitcher Richard Chesterton to the Essex Redbacks (http://www.essexredbacks.com/)(whose top team will remain in AAA for at least the 2012 season), but it does provide the opportunities to blood players from the AA Essex Archers team, who have been consistently successful in the past four years.

The Herts Club’s senior teams in general had a summer to forget on the field, but the Little League(http://hertsbaseball.com/events/herts-little-league/#.TyqWGcX84R8) programme and youth teams are providing a steady stream of players joining the older ranks, and there is high hope that it won’t be long before the Falcons, who on their day can upset form better than any other team in the NBL, will be back up among the top dogs. The addition of Unsell from Richmond and new signings Jake Michels and Christobal Hiche (http://hertsbaseball.com/2012/02/20/herts-bring-in-two-from-across-the-atlantic/#.T0eihIcaMR8) from the Americas makes the Falcons about twice as competitive should their numbers hold up in very different surroundings.

Whatever happens, it makes for an exciting phase of the sport as the top level looks to expand its reach and improve its quality. The Clubs’ first BBF League action is on April Fool’s Day, and I for one hope that we see some seriously good baseball.