POSTED: May 15th 2009
NewsUpdate
Italy ramps up for Baseball World Cup
KEIR RADNEDGE & LAURA WALDEN / Sports Features Communications
TAMPA: Italy is already hard at work preparing its bid to overthrow the Netherlands as Europe’s top baseball nation.
Europe welcomes the Baseball World Cup from September 9 to 27. The first group stage is being played out in Barcelona (Spain), Prague (Czech Republic), Regensburg (Germany), Stockholm (Sweden) and Moscow (Russia) followed by a second round in the Netherlands and Italy before the third round only in Italy.
The final is being staged 40 miles south of Rome in Nettuno along the coastline where American troops landed during the Second World War and whose local roads thus feature a welcome sign describing it as “the city of baseball.”
Nettuno Mayor Alessio Chiavetta said, "We are pleased and proud to have the opportunity to host the final phases of the 2009 World Cup of Baseball. Our city represents baseball in Italy: Nettuno is baseball and lives for baseball. This fascinating sport has become integral to the city's life."
Nationwide baseball centres
A capacity crowd of nearly 8,000 is expected for the final itself with crowds of around between 2,500 and 3,500 for the other games in the closing rounds whose venues include Italy’s other main baseball centres such as Bologna, Grosseto, Parma and Rimini.
Graziano Delrio, mayor of Reggio Emilia, said: “We are really honoured to host the two knock-out second round games of the World Cup in our excellent field of via Petit Bon. This will be a recognition of the city’s commitment to the event. For us sport in all of its forms is important both in its own right and for its contribution to society.”
The event can also play a role in baseball’s bid for reintegration into the Olympic Games. Baseball is one of seven sports seeking access to the 2016 Games.
The objective is to demonstrate to the world, and especially to the IOC, the ability for the European continent to host high-level events and the spread of baseball throughout all its countries.
If the bid progresses to the closing stage, in Copenhagen in October, then baseball’s visibility can only be enhanced by the international TV coverage of the World Cup.
Italy ranks 13 in the world and second in Europe only to the Netherlands. Team Italia beat Canada in the recent Baseball World Classic before falling to Venezuela and the federation’s media director, Riccardo Schiroli, is looking ahead eagerly to the World Cup.
Intensive preparations
The Italians have planned an intensive schedule to prepare a team which is likely to feature the country’s leading players such as power hitters Mario Chiarini and Beppe Mazzanti, pitcher Riccardo De Santis and US-based pitcher Alex Maestri – the first Italian-born pitcher to sign into MLB when he joined Chicago Cubs in 2006 - and third baseman Alex Liddi (Seattle Mariners).
Schiroli said: “Our major league is in fifth weekend of the season and there will be no breaks however we have a series of weekly matches against our own Italian Baseball League teams. These will be played on Mondays and Tuesdays because our regular season games are mainly Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays.
“As for the likely players who are under contract in the United States we are in daily contact with them and their coaches and we will see what happens.”
Italy has cast envious eyes on the Dutch status as Europe’s No1. The Netherlands made it into the top four in the World Cup in 2005 and 2007, reached the final of the Intercontinental Cup in 2006 and progressed to the second round of the recent World Baseball Classic.
Schiroli said: “We have a lot of respect for them - but also a huge desire to beat them.”
The two teams will share four friendlies – two in each country – during the first round of the World Cup since they are seeded direct, as joint hosts, to the second round.
The event has already registered on the broadcasting radar which underlines the game’s growing popularity in Italy which now has around 25,000 licensed players from junior to top level. Italian national radio is discussing a daily radio talkshow and TV will screen live all of Italy’s second round games.
As Schiroli said: “This World Cup will give baseball here the sort of coverage it has never had before.”
Nettuno passion for baseball
The seaside town of Nettuno has a strong baseball tradition that the locals have passed on for generations and is ranked with soccer as the favorite sport. Even during the off season fans take to the seaside areas to play on the beach with makeshift diamonds.
Marco Cestarelli, who works in the mayor’s offices, underlined the city’s dedication to baseball and its long-standing local tradition. His son dreams of someday playing pro-ball with the Yankees or one of the MLB teams. A poignant documentary called the “City of Baseball” was filmed about how American troops introduced the sport to the citizens and how it caught on over the years. Baseball almost has a cult following in the Italian military town and fans follow international games via satellite.
Local fans are excited and thrilled by the prospect of welcoming the international teams who will contest the World Cup in their stadium and crowd excitement promises to be high. Their enthusiasm is contagious and this first multi-hosted World Cup event is building towards a grande finale creating a super launching pad to expand the sport throughout Europe.
Picture (above right): The team surrounds Jason Grilli / Image: Ratti/FIBS
Keywords · Italy · Baseball World Cup
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