Weekend Recap : Essex Arrows extend NBL lead after double victory against London Capitals

BBF NBL

Essex Arrows @ London Capitals

Essex Arrows extended their lead at the top of the National Baseball League after winning both games of their two-game series against the London Capitals at Enfield Playing Fields.

Defeat ended the Capital's five-game winning streak in the NBL and furthered their pain in this fixture. They have now lost five consecutive matches against the Arrows.

Game one was a fascinating pitching battle between two of the highest-performing pitchers in the division. Capitals’ Masa Hashiguchi and Arrows’ Giovanni Pappalardo ranked as the two best pitchers in the league in terms of wins before the match with five and four wins respectively.

It was Pappalardo who came out on top. He pitched a shutout with six punch-outs across 98 pitches and drew equal with Hashiguchi at the top of the pitching wins leaderboard.

Despite his team’s 2-0 defeat, Hashiguchi, the league leader in strikeouts, pitched his sixth complete game of 2024 - the most of any pitcher this season.

Game two saw yet another fantastic performance from an Arrows pitcher. Yonathan Novas pitched a complete game with seven Ks and just one earned run for his second victory on the mound this season.

Novas provided his own run support in the batter's box with an equally fantastic offensive performance. His two hits, one run, and one run batted in helped propel the Essex side to a 5-1 victory.

Essex Arrows are sitting atop the NBL three games ahead of London Capitals

Essex Baseball GM Brad Neal was full of praise for his side after their impressive results. He said: “Two great wins for our Arrows today to stay top of the NBL.

“Excellent starting pitching, solid defence, and timely hitting are great signs as we continue our push for top spot going into the playoffs”.

Essex Arrows’s next challenge in their title push comes against the Sheffield Bruins at Townmead Playing Fields in a fortnight.

The London Capitals also return in two weeks for a series against BC Vetra at Saltford Sports Club.

BBF AAA

Herts Cardinals 1-9 & 0-3 London Metros

Bracknell Inferno 21-12 & 10-3 Cardiff Merlins (AAA)

Croydon Pirates 17-3 & 7-2 Essex Saxons

Bristol Badgers 0-7 (forfeit) & 0-7 (forfeit) New Forest Thunder

Hurricanes Baseball 1-14 & 16-12 Richmond Roebucks

BBF/BBF BBL HIgher

Sheffield Kodiaks 0-15 & 2-12 Long Eaton Storm

Liverpool Trojans 7-6 & 12-4 Manchester A's

BBF AA

London Meteors 8-10 & 12-14 Richmond Dragons

Tonbridge Wildcats 9-6 & 16-8 Brighton Aces

London Sidewinders 3-2 & 14-11 London Mustangs

Herts Hawks 9-12 & 4-7 Milton Keynes Bucks

Bristol Bats 9-8 & 13-2 Oxford Kings

Bournemouth Bears 0-7 (forfeit) & 0-7 (forfeit) Guildford Mavaricks

BBF A

Cardiff Merlins (A) 14-3 & 22-4 Bournemouth Bears

Tonbridge Bobcats 17-7 & 12-5 Brighton Jets

Bristol Brunels 14-15 & 11-15 Bristol Buccaneers

Taunton Muskets 11-7 & 3-10 Cornish Claycutters

Richmond Barons 8-15 & 13-14 Croydon Pirates (A)

Bracknell Phoenix 9-4 & 18-9 Hasting Pirates

London Minotaurs 10-5 & 15-4 Herts Eagles

Cornish Pioneers 0-7 (forfeit) & 0-7 (forfeit) New Forest Knights

London Mercury 8-9 & 11-12 Richmond Dukes

Weston Jets 20-1 & 17-0 Taunton Pistols

BBF/BBF BBL Lower

Manchester Bees 2-16 & 9-4 Leeds Locos

Wragby Warhammers 2-12 Hull Scorpions

East of England Baseball League

Northants Centurions 11-3 & 14-11 Cambridge Monarchs

Cambridge Royals 16-15 & 9-6 Harwich Town Bay Area Blues

Report by Michael Thomas