Great Britain Defeats Hungary 22-3 In Dominant Win At 2023 Europoean Championships
Great Britain continued to build momentum at the 2023 European Baseball Championships on Monday, 25 September, defeating Hungary 22-3 in five innings in Trebic. The win sees Great Britain improve to 2-0 in the competition, putting the GB team at the top of the Pool B standings with one game to play in the group stage.Manager Drew Spencer handed Matteo Sollecito the ball for his first start with the Senior team, with only one change to the lineup from Sunday’s opening win against Sweden. With Shamoy Christopher behind the plate and Harry Ford serving as the designated hitter, Sollecito struck out the first two batters of the game before hitting Hungary’s Graeham Luttor with an inside pitch. Bailint Piros would then double home Luttor, giving Hungary the 1-0 lead after half an inning.
Harry Ford singles during Great Britain's 12 run second inning
(Paul Stodart/Great Britain Baseball)GB’s Harry Ford would again be the offensive catalyst, walking to lead off the bottom of the first, then promptly stealing second. With one out, Aaron Singh was also issued a free pass, before Christopher was hit by a pitch from Hungarian starter Adam Piros (0-1). With the bases loaded, Ben Leid stepped into the box, and was hit by the first pitch he saw to force in the tying run. A double play would get Hungary out of the inning without any further damage, and the score was tied after the first inning. It was all Great Britain from there.While Sollecito settled down, striking out the side in the top of the second, Great Britain’s patient approach at the plate paid huge dividends in the bottom half. The GB squad would send 16 batters to the plate in the inning, scoring 12 runs, with every offensive starter crossing the plate at least once during the frame except Singh. While most of the damage came by way of free passes, with six walks and two hit batters issued by the Hungarian pitching staff, the big blow came from Nick Ward. With Ray Mercer and Ford aboard, Ward smacked a ball into a gap in right centre field that rolled all the way to the wall, allowing him to whip around the bases for an inside-the-park three-run home run. 
Nick Ward (left) celebrates with Harry Ford (1) and Ray Mercer (2) after scoring on an inside the park home run in the second inning (Paul Stodart/Great Britain Baseball)Despite the long wait, Sollecito showed no slowing down as he worked a 1-2-3 third, and the GB offense continued to work in the bottom half. With the Hungarian pitching staff again struggling, issuing three more walks and hitting another batter, the bats came to life. Jackson Prichard, making his GB Senior debut as a defensive replacement for Kennard Dawson, doubled to left field to score Leid and Julian Sanders to make the game 15-1, and the floodgates opened again. Seven more GB runs would cross the plate in the inning, with a two-run triple from Nateshon Thomas and an RBI double from Sanders the biggest blows, and by the end of the third, the score was 22-1.Jake Esch (1-0) worked a scoreless fourth inning, but the Hungarians didn’t go down without a fight. With Tyler Sharples making his Senior debut on the mount in the fifth, Hungary was able to scratch across two runs, but it was not enough to prolong the contest. With the GB lead 22-3, the tournament’s run rule (a 15+ run lead after five innings) came into effect to end the game.
Nateshon Thomas (right) high-fives third base coach TS Reed after tripling in the third inning (Paul Stodart/Great Britain Baseball)With the victory, Great Britain improves to 2-0 at the 2023 European Championships and have won their last five games in Europe, dating back to the World Baseball Classic Qualifier last September. Esch picked up the victory in relief of Sollecito, his first win at the Europeans since 2014.Pool B of the European Baseball Championships will conclude tomorrow, 26 September in Trebic, with Great Britain facing 2021 European Championship hosts Italy. First pitch is set for 17:30 CEST / 16:30 BST. The 2023 European Baseball Championships can be watched on Staylive, WBSC Europe’s newly announced streaming partner for the contest, at BaseballEurope.TV. GB fans can get a 10% discount on the tournament streaming package by using the code GREATBRITAIN10 at checkout.For the latest news and notes from GB Baseball at the 2023 European Baseball Championships and more, make sure to follow Great Britain Baseball on Facebook, and gb_baseball on X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram.- #LetsGoGB –