The top baseball league begins to march in compact ranks this weekend. Between Friday and Saturday the six teams that make up group A will play the first round of the regular season, which includes three seven-inning matches per week.
The first day immediately pits Italian champions UnipolSai Bologna and Big Mat Bsc Grosseto, the great revelation of 2023, against the “Falchi”, a team capable of reaching the semi-finals.
The club with the scudetto on its chest has confirmed its Italian hard core but has significantly rejuvenated itself in terms of foreigners and EU players. Two new pitchers have arrived at Lele Frignani’s court, the 21-year-old Jefrem Leon, originally from the Netherlands Antilles with three years of minors in Washington and the talented Eduar Lopez, who boasts experience in the US minor leagues, in the Mexican league and in Colombia. Also arriving from Curacao is Junior Martina, European champion third baseman with the Netherlands. The Tuscan team, led by Stefano Cappuccini, took the pitcher Barreto and the third baseman Alomà from the Industriales of Havana to confirm their position at the top, while they are focusing on the former Godo Rodriguez to replace Backstrom behind the home plate. Angelo Palumbo extends the mountain, but the diessa Piccioli has made important purchases in Nettuno, bringing Mercuri, Sellaroli, Pecci and Giordano to the Maremma. Today the talented Oldano will be absent due to injury.
The other Maremma team, BBC Grosseto, with Junior Oberto on the bench, starts with many ambitions after having signed the former Modena pitcher Soto (with Taschini in relief), the catcher Garcia da Macerata, the Cubans Carbo and Penalver and the promising players Filippo Piccini and Samuele Bruno, expected in mid-May after the conclusion of the college championship. Testing the quality of the red and whites will be a Parmaclima team that has changed its skin during the winter with ten new faces on the roster including the former Bologna pitchers Scotti and Bocchi, the infielders Scerrato and Angioi, the Cuban pitchers Casanova (a welcome return) and Figuereido , who together with the confirmed Luis Gonzalez will be Marcello Saccardi’s three foreigners.
San Marino, overtaken in the Scudetto final by Bologna, has put together a very respectable team: they have recalled Tromp and decided to focus on the expert receiver Luis Alvarez, on the former Parma pitcher De Leon and on the third Marcos Diaz, who exploded in the BSC Grosseto. This weekend Doriano Bindi’s boys will compete with Hotsand Macerata, who in 2023 finished the first two phases in command, before falling against Big Mat. The Marche players opted for second-hand players with the former Parma player Joseph, the pitcher Cuomo who played in Bologna, and the former San Marino striker Dudley Leonora, as well as the Grosseto prospect Doba.
The rest of the program (for the four groups it is the second round) includes the Tuscan derby between Padule and Fiorentina, the interesting Turin-Reggio Emilia and New Rimini-Rovigo duels. Settimo and Milano make their debut, playing at home against the big teams Modena and Collecchio.
The weekend program
Gir. A: 1st shift, Friday at 8pm; Saturday 3pm and 8pm: San Marino-Hotsand Macerata, UnipolSai Bologna-Big Mat Grosseto, Bbc Grosseto-Parmaclima.
Round B: Sunday Settimo-Comcor Modena, Milan-Camec Collecchio, Platform Tmc Poviglio-Tecnovap Verona. Class. Collecchio (2-0) 1,000; Verona, Modena (1-1) .500; Poviglio (0-2) 0. Seventh and Torino 0-0
Gir. C: Saturday Padova-Crocetta Parma, Gereon Ronchi-Cagliari, New Rimini-Itas Rovigo. Ranking: Rovigo (2-0) 1,000; Crocetta, Rimini, Cagliari, Padova (1-1) .500; Ronchi (0-2) 0.
Gir. D: Saturday Padule Sesto-Lupi Auto Fiorentina; Saturday and Sunday Athletics Bologna-Nettuno 1945; Sunday Lions Dolphins Neptune-Godo. Ranking: Godo, Nettuno, Fiorentina (2-0) 1,000; Athletics, Sesto F., Lions Dolphins (0-2) 0.
Gir. E: Saturday Campidonico Turin-Palfinger Reggio; Sunday Ciemme Oltretorrente-Senago, Codogno-Catalana Alghero. Class. Oltretorrente (2-0) 1,000; Senago, Turin, Reggio E., Codogno (1-1) .500; Alghero (0-2) 0.
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